‘How engaged are you?’ Pakistan vs. UK: a cross-cultural study of the effects of customer engagement in the digital era

The explosive global growth in digital media has given firms unparalleled opportunities to enhance their engagement with consumers and build brand relationships. However, consumers’ responses may vary depending on their national cultural context, and they may consume and share brand information differently. This study therefore explores, in different national contexts, the effects of social media marketing activities on customer engagement and customer engagement on brand trust, brand commitment and brand value. We use commitment–trust theory to examine the model. Data were gathered from a total of 592 consumers in two different national market settings, i.e., the UK and Pakistan. The results confirm overall the effects of social media marketing activities on customer engagement, of customer engagement on brand trust and brand commitment, and of brand trust on brand commitment, both directly and based on the cultural moderator, suggesting the customer engagement effects are stronger in collectivist cultures. These findings fill several gaps in knowledge on the relationships between social media dimensions, customer engagement and key brand outcomes, and also enable managers and policymakers to understand the need to take national culture into account in social media activities. The study’s limitations are also discussed.