The aim of this study is to analyse the reach of existing investigation on social media and its relation to companies throughout 2014–۲۰۱۵٫ To achieve the proposed, the study proceeds in classifying such information and identifying methods to study social media and it’s relation with different marketing associated topics. The research uses a mapping process that uses the database generated from references of Web of Science’s publications during 2014–۲۰۱۵, amounting to 185 articles. The results found that the initial method is a descriptive analysis on the usage of social media as a tool for marketing. Nevertheless, during the past years studies have proposed that social media is becoming more an instrument for marketing and business management.

Introduction

The appearance of the Web 2.0 gave rise to social media, a phenomenon that changed the way how software developers and end-users started to use and view the World Wide Web. This is best exemplified by one of the characteristics of social media where its contents and applications are created and published by all types of users, whom continuously participate in modifying (improving and/or personalize) them in a collaborative manner (Domínguez, López, & Ortega, 2016; Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Social media is best understood as links that connect the Internet with channels of instant communication where people can express thoughts and share it collectively. Moreover, authors mention that social media has evolved rapidly and that its growth has been spurred by communicational advances, such as the present day mass availability of mobile portable devices (such as iPhones, iPads, among others) and the introduction of 3G surfing speed in 2007. According to Yamaki (2016), social media is an aggregation of mutual interactions composed by a relational structure of actors and their respective relationships. Thus, social media covers a wide array of different forms of online communication which include blogs, discussion forums, company sponsored chatrooms, mails, websites (created by users and companies), news sites, download sites, commerce-oriented communities that offer goods and services (eBay, Amazon.com), collaborative sites (Wikipedia), social media sites (Facebook, MySpace, etc.), business networks (LinkedIn), networks that focus on shared content (YouTube), photo-oriented sites (Instagram, Flickr), microblogging (Twitter), and much more (Study: Statista, 2016). From Earth’s 7.39 billion inhabitants, 3.4 billion have Internet access (with a 10% annual growth) from which 2.3 billion use social media regularly (over 10% growth since January 2015). It is also important to note that approximately 3.8 billion people use mobile phones (an increase of 4% per year) and almost 2 billion people access social media through them (Study: We Are Social, 2016). Currently, the Internet and social media have become relevant tools to manage brand experience and consumer loyalty, as these platforms allow consumers to express their identity, thus reinforcing their individuality through personalization and adaptation. Furthermore, through these, consumers can satisfy their social needs by exchanging and sharing their consumption related experiences of goods and services (Christodoulides, 2009).