Syntax Literate: Jurnal Ilmiah Indonesia p�ISSN: 2541-0849 e-ISSN: 2548-1398

Vol. 7, No. 3, Maret 2022

THE IMPACT OF CONTENT MARKETING AND BRAND TRUST ON CUSTOMER LOYALTY

Evi Yusniar Fog , Ricardo Indra

Bina Nusantara University, Jakarta, Indonesia

Email: [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract

The increase in social media platforms in today's digital era and the understanding of companies or marketers about the importance of marketing products in marketing competition, as well as the importance of building relationships with customers to make them loyal customers, it makes company also use social media in building customer loyalty. Social media allows companies to do marketing and built direct relationships with consumers at a relatively small cost but with a higher efficiency value. However, given the amount of competition with similar products or services on social media, it is difficult for companies to reach potential target audiences on social media. Therefore, companies need to create content that attracts the target audience, so they may choose to use the products or services offering. Besides, compelling content allows the company to build its credibility on social media. In this context, marketing through content has a good impact on companies to increase trust and loyalty. This research aims to find out if the effect of content marketing and brand trust on customer loyalty. This research is expected to give insight to companies that use social media as a digital marketing strategies, to create creative, original, and useful content for social media users and ultimately build customer trust and lo.

Keywords: social media, content marketing, social media marketing, brand trust, customer loyalty

Introduction

Social media has become an online platform that people use to interact with other people, and nowadays it has become part of people's lives. Billions of people around the world use social media. Facebook, reported monthly active users worldwide in the third quarter of 2020 as many as 2.740 billion (statista.com 2020), while in Indonesia social media users have reached 198 million users in 2020 (statista.com). Social media includes a portfolio of online channels to distribute and participate in various activities, showing an integral way for a brand to communicate with its target users (Murdough, 2009). Regardless of the purpose, information about the brand must be necessary for consumers if the brand is to engage with customers (Schmitt, 2012). Social media introduces a new form of communication that results in a relationship between brands and consumers (Bruno & Dariusz, 2013). The emergence of social media as a marketing tool has open new ways for marketers to target the desired audience and to create interest in certain products, services, or brands (Ryan & Jones, 2009).

Content marketing has proven to be one of the most popular digital marketing techniques, which can attract the attention of the audience in a particular area of interest. Content marketing strategies do not always focus on promoting products or services by highlighting their features and attributes, such as promotional content in general. Besides, most are involved in creating interest among the audience towards the brand by emphasizing certain aspects of value creation (Baltes, 2015).

(Jefferson & Tanton, 2015) revealed that content marketing can be used to increase market needs. Also, the utilization of content marketing through texts, videos, or images can stir the audience's thoughts. Thus it can be said that content marketing can be used to attract customers to certain products or services offered using persuasion methods indirectly. This strategy can result in higher sales volumes and customer loyalty.

This research will highlight the importance of content in online marketing strategies, which are now widely used by companies.

Research Methods

This research uses quantitative methods, based on primary data to determine the relationship between variables. Therefore, the research uses a questionnaire, for collecting the data to test the proposed research model. Participants in this survey focused on social media users who have information about content marketing on social media platforms.

Selection of Variables:

The conceptual framework of the research is based on three variables, which investigate the content marketing of a brand post on social media to engage its target audience. Furthermore, the influence of brand trust will give rise to customer loyalty. Selected variables are content marketing, brand trust, and customer loyalty.

Research Objectives:

a) To identify the effect of content marketing on brand trust.

b) To assess the impact of brand trust on customer loyalty.

c) To find out whether there is a relationship between content marketing on customer ��loyalty.

Research Model and Hypothesis:

The research model and hypothesis proposed in examining the effect of content marketing and brand trust on customer loyalty are as illustrated in the image below:

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Figure 1

Research model of the Impact of Content Marketing and Brand Trust on Customer Loyalty

The Impact of Content Marketing on Brand Trust

Content marketing has a significant role in increasing brand trust, and content marketing is considered easier and more practical in providing the latest information to social media users. Therefore, content marketing can be a way for companies to interact, exchange information, also present the products or services to increase trust, and become one of the company's strategies to build brand trust. �

Previous research found that content marketing significantly affects brand trust (Ajina, 2019). Thus, the hypothesis of this study is as follows:

H1: Content marketing positively affects brand trust.

The Impact of Brand Trust on Customer Loyalty

Brand trust is the trust felt by customers in interacting with brands based on customer perceptions that the brand used can be trusted and accounted for to attract and satisfy customers (Delgado‐Ballester & Munuera‐Alem�n, 2005). Furthermore, it is said that trust in digital platforms is believed to increase customer loyalty and has a direct impact on customer loyalty (Ribbink, Van Riel, Liljander, & Streukens, 2004).

Brand trust fluctuates with time and the accumulation of customer experiences in the process of forming brand loyalty (Haijun, 2014). In this regard, the consumer in the process of trust the brand, that then uses the product will build brand loyalty which is getting stronger. Thus, the hypothesis of this study is as follows:

H2: Brand trust positively affects brand trust customer loyalty

The Impact of Content Marketing on Customer Loyalty

Content marketing can be used to increase customer loyalty to a brand. The brand community on social media can increase brand loyalty by being mediated by the brand trust (Laroche, Habibi, Richard, & Sankaranarayanan, 2012). Because if the customers actively participate in social media, customers will get to know the brand, which is will increase customer trust, and customer trust will increase customer loyalty. Thus, the hypothesis of the study is as follows:

H3: Content marketing positively affects brand trust customer loyalty

Research Population:

The population for this study is individually targeted for social media users who are relevant to this study. The questionnaire is distributed to social media users such as Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn. The target audience of respondents is from major cities in Indonesia.

Sample Size & Data Collection:

The sample size in this study was 100 which were distributed to users of Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, but only 41 questionnaires were accepted. So that the data used is as much as 41.

The data used in this study comes from a survey using social media, for data collection, a structured questionnaire of 5 Likert scales was used, starting from 1 = strongly disagree to 5 = strongly agree. The questionnaire consists of 33 questions to measure the results of different variables, and each variable has 9 to 14 questions.

Results And Discussion

Data were analyzed using SPSS version 21. Data collected using the primary data method. The tool will help us understand reliability, validity along with regression and correlation. Questionnaire answers are included in the SPSS for further analysis. Initially, the questionnaires were checked for reliability, and then the data have been checked for validity.

Reliability Analysis:

To analyze the reliability data, the analytical tool used is Cronbach's Alpha, which functions to measure the consistency of the data received. Reliability analysis is used to determine whether the questionnaire is reliable or not. Composite reliability must exceed 0.7 levels above 0.70, indicating "internal consistency." ― Internal consistency is also measured by ― Cronbach's Alpha, and is above 0.70. These results confirm the reliability of the research (Naylor, Lamberton, & West, 2012).

Table 1

Cronbach�s Alpha of the N items in the data

Variable	Cronbach�s Alpha	N of Items
Content Marketing	,948	14
Brand Trust	,880	9
Customer Loyalty	,882	10

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Table 2

Correlation

Variable		Content Marketing	Brand Trust	Customer Loyalty
Content Marketing	Pearson Correlation	1	,862**	,827**
	Sig. (2-tailed)		,000	,000
	N	41	41	41
Brand Trust	Pearson Correlation	,862**	1	,906**
	Sig. (2-tailed)	,000		,000
	N	41	41	41
Customer Loyalty	Pearson Correlation	,827**	,906**	1
	Sig. (2-tailed)	,000	.000
	N	41	41	41

** Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2-tailed).

Table 3

Model Summary

H1: Content marketing positively affects brand trust

a. Predictors: (Constant), Content Marketing

In table 3 shows the value of R, R2, and the beta coefficient. R2 is ,743, which means content marketing for almost 74% of the variance in brand trust.

Table 4

Model Summary

H2: Brand trust positively affects customer loyalty

a. Predictors: (Constant), Brand Trust

In Table 4, R2 is ,821, which means brand trust for almost 82% of the variance in customer loyalty.

Table 5

Model Summary

H3: Content marketing positively affects customer loyalty

a. Predictors: (Constant), Content Marketing

In table 5 shows that R2 is ,684, which means content marketing for 68% of the variance in customer loyalty. This value of R2 is lower than in Table 4. It shows that brand trust creates more variance in customer loyalty than content marketing.

Result Analysis:

In table 3, the significance values are 0, and beta .862, which means hypothesis 1 is accepted. The results showed that content marketing has a significant influence of 86.2% on brand trust. In table 4, significance values are also 0 and beta ,906. Thus hypothesis 2 is also accepted. The results showed that brand trust also has a significant impact on customer loyalty, which is 90.6%. While in table 5, the significance value is 0 and, the beta level is .827. This value illustrates that content marketing also affects customer loyalty by 82.7%. However, the influence of content marketing on customer loyalty is much lower than the effect of brand trust.

Conclusion

From the results of the analysis above, it can be concluded that the questionnaire is reliable and can then be used for further research. The results show that new marketing methods using social media and brand trust have significant effects on customer loyalty. It means that the proposed hypothesis is relevant to the answers to the research questions. �

One strategy that can be used to build brand trust and customer loyalty is content marketing. The result that is shown in content marketing is either in the form of images or videos affect to build brand trust. Also, content marketing has significant positive effects on customer loyalty. Data from other analyses also show that brand trust also positively has a significant impact on customer loyalty, with that trust will make customers are loyal to the brand.

Through this research, for implications in the future for companies to increasingly understand the importance to do marketing through content on social media, having interaction, and influencing customers so that it will bring customers to be loyal.

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Evi Yusniar Fog , Ricardo Indra (2022)

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