Stimulating Pro-Environmental Behavior Through Social Media Marketing in Environmental Organizations

Environmental organizations have increasingly utilized social media platforms to highlight issues related to climate change and environmental challenges, raise public awareness, foster engagement on environmental matters, cultivate a positive corporate image, and promote environmentally sustainable consumption practices. However, there is a lack of empirical evidence regarding the influence of these organizations' social media marketing strategies on their followers. The study aims to investigate the effect of environmental organizations’ social media marketing activities on brand image, online word-of-mouth communications, and the pro-environmental behaviors of followers. A quantitative approach was used in the research, and data were gathered through online questionnaires from 529 users who actively follow ten well-known environmental organizations on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn in Türkiye. The theoretical model and hypotheses were tested with Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). The social media marketing components of environmental organizations were defined as awareness, interaction, timeliness, customization, and advertising. As a result of the analysis, it was revealed that the social media marketing components of environmental organizations' awareness, timeliness, and interaction have a positive effect on the pro-environmental behaviors of the followers. At the same time, these components have a significant effect on brand image and online word-of-mouth in environmental organizations. In addition, it has been demonstrated that brand image and online word-of-mouth in environmental organizations significantly affect on the pro-environmental behaviors of the followers. The findings suggest that social media serves as an effective platform for environmental organizations to enhance their brand image and promote pro-environmental behavior. However, these organizations face challenges regarding the effectiveness of advertisements and the personalization of communication on these platforms. Doi: 10.28991/HEF-2025-06-01-014 Full Text: PDF