The use of netnography as a research method to analyze online brand communities: the case of Estrella Damm

Abstract

This paper introduces a research technique, netnography, that can be used to analyze online brand communities. We will describe how it works, its limitations and some ethical considerations, and we will propose a functional model for analyzing online brand communities that we will later apply to the analysis of the Estrella Damm community on Facebook at two specific moments, June 2012 and May 2017, in order to observe its evolution. The results obtained show that, in the last five years, the brand has revised and improved its digital strategy, as we have noticed a clear commitment to create original content for its digital profiles and a proactive attitude with its fans: i.e. joining their conversations. These were aspects which were not observed in the analysis carried out in 2012.

KEYWORDS: online community, brand, netnography, methodology, social network, Facebook.