Abstract
U.S. social media marketing spending hit $40 billion in 2020, a 20 percent increase over 2019. (Cooper, 2020). Brand spending is having its intended impact, as more brands are connecting with consumers on social media (Cooper, 2020) through their own feeds and through their extended network of “likes” (Lipsman et al., 2012; Shay and Van Der Horst, 2019). With roots in social marketing (Weibe, 1952; Kotler and Zaltman, 1971; Lazer and Kelly, 1973), social media marketing can help businesses find ways to connect with consumers to help them co-create content and build their brands. Brands are using social media marketing as part of an integrated strategy (Ashley and Tuten, 2015) and in turn, research finds that consumers trust a business more that has a presence on social media (Bija and Balas, 2014). This chapter reviews the six eras of social media marketing development, ten theoretical approaches of B2C social media strategy, and seven essential topics of B2C social media marketing strategy research. While there has been extensive research on social media, there is still room for scholars and practitioners to understand what social media strategies are most effective to help businesses make those trusted connections that build loyalty with consumers and grow their businesses (Alves, Fernandes, and Raposo, 2016; Zahay, 2021).