Abstract:
BACKGROUND : Facebook has become one of the most popular advertising platforms on social
media. It is therefore important for social media marketers and researchers to have an
understanding of the predictors of Facebook users’ engagement with Facebook advertising
across all brands and Facebook advertising types.
OBJECTIVES : This study aimed to determine whether the theory of planned behaviour could be
applied to understand and predict engagement with Facebook advertising.
METHOD : Non-probability convenience sampling resulted in a sample size of 656 Facebook
users above the age of 18 who resided in South Africa. The data collected by means of an online
survey were analysed using regression analyses.
RESULTS : The findings indicated that attitude was the strongest predictor of behavioural
intention to engage with Facebook advertising, followed by subjective norms. However,
perceived behavioural control was found not to be a significant predictor of behavioural
intention to engage with Facebook advertising. Furthermore, behavioural intention to engage
with Facebook advertising was found to predict actual engagement.
CONCLUSION : Social media marketers need to focus on influencing attitudes and subjective
norms to increase engagement with their Facebook advertisements. Furthermore, the theory
of reasoned action was found to be more appropriate to predict engagement with Facebook
advertising, as it excludes perceived behavioural control.
