Social network Facebook and customer engagement: A pilot case study from the Czech Republic

In recent years social media has provided new ways for companies to communicate with the public. Companies need to interact with current and potential customers using social media such as Facebook, which is very popular with target groups. The purpose of this study is to explore the communication of selected hotels with the public focusing on company communication that facilitates consumer sociability behavior on Facebook. This pilot study uses a mixed methods research approach and integrates quantitative data analysis in the first phase, using tools such as Power BI and Netvizz, with qualitative content analysis of company messages using Atlas.ti software. The data were obtained from six four-star hotels on Facebook in September 2018. The findings provide evidence of how hotels use Facebook for company–customer communication. The findings also indicate that different message features generated different customer behavior. The study contributes to a better understanding of marketing on social media in the hotel industry