社群媒體的出現,顧客開始利用社群媒體來蒐集產品或服務的資訊,不再被動地接收企業或品牌的行銷資訊。相反地,社群媒體促使企業輕易地接近顧客,長期培養與顧客關係,對於企業而言,社群媒體比傳統傳播媒體具有更高的效率,許多企業認為必須參與社群媒體的經營,才能在目前的環境取得成功。然而,社群媒體與傳統媒體在架構與平等性上有著根本性的差異,社群媒體的經營需要不同評估方式,作為適當分析與後續管理。本研究從效率分析的角度來評估企業在社群媒體的經營績效,透過資料包絡法的分析,建構適用於社群媒體經營績效分析的評估模型。由於社群媒體具有直接與顧客溝通的特性,經營社群媒體的公司多半為民生消費、線上購物與零售相關產業為主,因此,本研究以美國零售業領先廠商作為評估的對象,蒐集美國地區零售產業領先公司於2013年在社群媒體平台Facebook上所經營粉絲專頁之資料。透過所蒐集的資料,進行資料包絡法效率分析,其中包含:整體效率分析、虛擬乘數分析、差額變數分析、投影分析、敏感度分析、麥氏生產力指數分析等等,透過美國地區零售產業的個案分析,找出產業中各公司在經營社群媒體的情況,比較並分析其結果,針對效率不佳之公司提出改善經營效率之建議。
Comparing to traditional media channels, social media is more efficient to reach a broader audience and is able to provide more interactive features for the customers. Hence, how to manage social media efficiently has become an important issue for enterprises. Although past studies usually investigated this issue from the perspective of performance indicators, this study applied the approach of Data Envelopment Analysis to evaluate the social media performance from the view point of efficiency. To illustrate the practicability of the proposed approach, this study also investigated 15 major U.S. retail companies for their social media efficiencies on Facebook. Based on the findings of overall efficiency analysis, virtual multiplier analysis, slack variable analysis, projection analysis, sensitivity analysis and Malmquist Productivity Index, major retail companies can understand their production efficiency, technical efficiency, and scale efficiency on Facebook. In terms of production efficiency, there are 6 relatively efficient retailers, which include Walmart, Kroger, Target, Costco, Amazon.com and Macy’s. Besides, 9 retailers are relatively efficient in technical efficiency. Only 6 retailers have relatively efficient in terms of scale efficiency, which means rest of the retailers must change the scale of operations of social media to get the best of marginal benefit. Accordingly, inefficient retail companies can refer the findings of this study to allocate their resources on Facebook more efficiently.