Social media and firm performance: The voice of managers in European contexts

Studying the voice of 248 managers, operating in four European countries (Italy, Germany, Spain and France), this research aimed to investigate the evaluation of managers regarding the impact of social media on their firms’ performance and to identify managerial choices that are associated with a positive impact. Findings indicate that the majority of managers in this study perceived a positive impact of social media on firm performance. Moreover, the probability of observing a positive impact turned out to be positively related to the choice to integrate the use of social media with other online and offline communication tools, and to the use of social media as a tool to reach new targets of customers. More generally, the research highlights that the use of social media appears more likely to be beneficial if they are used as complement of other communication tools