Digital Marketing and Social Media Open access Peer reviewed

Influencing social media engagement: integrating insights from survey and eye-tracking research

Yue Wang, Kevin Kam Fung So, Xiang Li

International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management | Jun 19, 2026

Abstract

Purpose Hospitality and tourism brands face the challenge of effectively building customer engagement (CE) on social media. Drawing on social psychology theories of influence, this study aims to examine how reciprocity and social proof affect hotels’ Facebook CE performance and tests the moderating effect of gender on these relationships. Design/methodology/approach Data were collected from 360 participants in an online experimental survey (Study 1) and from 110 participants in a subsequent eye-tracking study (Study 2). Findings Results reveal that the impact of influence tactics on online CE performance varies by gender and across measures, including behavioral intention, attention and trust. Overall, the eye-tracking study’s findings align more closely with the research hypotheses regarding attention. Research limitations/implications Results suggest that the effectiveness of engagement tactics depends on specific business goals, offering valuable insights for designing targeted social media strategies and future research. Originality/value This study advances understanding of firm-led CE strategies in hotel brands’ social media by exploring the interplay of reciprocity, social proof and gender. The findings advocate for methodological designs that incorporate objective data in future CE research.

Direct answer

What can I do from this paper page?

Use this page to scan "Influencing social media engagement: integrating insights from survey and eye-tracking research" quickly: start with the summary and abstract, then check the authors, source, topics, and related papers. From here, open Scollr to follow Digital Marketing and Social Media research, save the paper, or map adjacent work.

Authors

Researchers on this paper

Yue Wang

first | Hong Kong Polytechnic University | ORCID 0000-0003-0098-5359

Kevin Kam Fung So

middle | Kyung Hee University | ORCID 0000-0002-4846-7481

Xiang Li

last | Chinese University of Hong Kong | ORCID 0000-0002-0699-1904

Research areas

Follow related topics

Technology Adoption and User Behaviour Customer Service Quality and Loyalty Latest Digital Marketing and Social Media research

Citation

BibTeX

@article{Wang2026Influencing,
  title = {Influencing social media engagement: integrating insights from survey and eye-tracking research},
  author = {Yue Wang and Kevin Kam Fung So and Xiang Li},
  journal = {International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1108/ijchm-08-2025-1261},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1108/ijchm-08-2025-1261}
}

FAQ

Using this paper in a discovery workflow

How do I find related work for this paper?

Use the related papers and topic links on this page as starting points. In Scollr, you can also open the paper and build a literature map around its references, citing papers, and related work.

How can I keep up with new Digital Marketing and Social Media research papers?

Follow Digital Marketing and Social Media research in Scollr. New papers from the topic flow into a personalized feed, and you can save useful studies to revisit later.

Can I cite this paper from this page?

This page includes a static BibTeX block for Influencing social media engagement: integrating insights from survey and eye-tracking research. Always verify the DOI, source, and publication details against the publisher record before submitting a manuscript.

Follow this research in Scollr

Follow the topics and authors behind this paper, save useful studies, and build a literature map when you are ready to go deeper.

Get the app