Page 208 - MARSIUM'21 COMP OF PAPER

internet and with the increasing popularity of social media, now, 53.6 percent of the world's population uses social media
(Kemp, 2021). Hence, many firms use social media platforms to reach a bigger audience and increase brand equity (Raji et al.,
2020). From micro to huge, Malaysian companies recognize that social media marketing is no longer a choice but a must
(Ainin et al., 2015) for a wider reach (Thackeray et al., 2008) . The social media drives brand equity and improve brand
awareness (Raji et al., 2020), brand loyalty (Khalid, 2016), and perceived quality (Hermaren & Achyar, 2018). According to
Ukiwe, (2009), brand equity also allows the company to have stable long-term growth. Thus, social media brand
communication dimensions have a statistically significant effect on brand equity (Zahoor et al., 2016).
Many companies leverage social media communication into their business model (Parveen et al., 2015), such as
Fashionvalet (Md Saad & Yaacob, 2021), Air Asia (Harun et al., 2018) and Pamoga (Yusoff & Yasin, 2019). Companies use
social media to increase branding and engagement (Carlson et al., 2019; Liu et al., 2021).

For instance, Starbucks uses various social media tools for customer knowledge which serve as powerful branding
and marketing tools (Chua & Banerjee, 2013). Starbucks promotes and markets its products through social media channels
(Getaruelas, 2019). For example, Starbucks has an active Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and YouTube account
(Starbucks, 2021). This way makes Starbucks instantly connects with a large audience and gain brand equity without spending
any money (Taecharungroj, 2017). However, contrary to food and beverage retail stores, some businesses like electronics
component retailers rarely use social media for marketing and branding. For instance, Top One Technology, a small business
that sells electrical components, is having difficulty in promoting their brand to the local and online communities they serve.
As a result, this study aims to investigate factors that drive brand equity of electronic component retailers. Further, the study
implemented several social marketing communication strategies to increase brand equity of Top One Technology Sdn. Bhd.

1.1 CASE DESCRIPTION AND PROBLEM STATEMENT
Top One Technology Sdn. Bhd. is a business that provides a range of electrical components, modules, tools,
equipment, and a small volume of Printed Circuit Board (PCB) prototyping services. Mr. Toh Cha Heng founded the company
in June 2016, and it is situated in Skudai, Johor Bahru. The company's goal is to offer exceptional service and technical support
to all clients, regardless of volume. There were two employees in the company, including a sales engineer and an accountant.
Top One Technology Sdn. Bhd. sells electronics goods to retail consumers and manufacturers such as AIMflexs System Sdn.
Bhd. and VS Plus Sdn. Bhd. Retail consumers included students from schools and universities such as the Universiti Teknologi
Malaysia and polytechnics. Top One Technology Sdn. Bhs. operates from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., from Monday to Saturday.

Top One Technology Sdn. Bhd. was facing problems such as low brand awareness. Mrs. Joliza, the business's sales
engineer, claimed that the company had limited local customers and a low online presence since its establishment three years
ago. In fact, Top One Technology Sdn. Bhd. had implemented several marketing initiatives to promote and publicize its
products and services, such as distributing brochures, establishing a website (www.T1.com.my), and using social media
platforms, including Facebook. However, they failed to attract more customers. The main reason for the social media failure
was that they did not effectively utilize and update Facebook pages regularly. According to Lozano (2020), many companies
fail to leverage social media due to inconsistent posting.

Furthermore, Silva (2017) found that social media can be useless if it is not handled appropriately. Clearly, brand
equity is crucial for businesses to drive sales and generate loyal customer (Parwinder & Rekhi, 2018). Steven (2004) also
emphasized that brand equity is essential to sustain the business. Besides, brand equity can be the primary motivation to
purchase a specific brand compared to others (Malhotra & Malhotra, 2015). Hence, it is important for Top One Technology
Sdn. Bhd. to use social media for brand equity. According to Stojanovic et al. (2018), the intensity of social media usage can
positively affect brand awareness, brand loyalty and perceived value.

There are several ways to gain brand equity for Top One Technology Sdn. Bhd. such as firm-created social media
communication. Firm-generated content (FGC) is about businesses produce and manage social media content and discussions
(Schivinski & Dabrowski, 2015). The company can start making content in their social media according to the current trend.
Essentially, marketing communications could play an essential role in selling the company's products (Tritama & Tarigan,
2016). Content that is relatable to the business and its clients will pique their attention and make them unable to refuse the
offer. (Glucksman, 2017). However, simply creating content in social media platforms is not enough. Nowadays, one-way
communication has evolved into multi-dimensional, two-way, and peer-to-peer communication (Berthon et al., 2008).
Therefore, user-generated content (UGC) can be beneficial to the company for achieving a bigger audience.

User-generated content (UGC) is generated when previous buyers share their thoughts, preferences, experiences
online, that allows potential buyers to read and access the information (Bahtar & Mazzini, 2016) in an interactive virtual
community (Sethna, Hazari, & Bergeil, 2017). The information typically consists of product, brand, or specification-related
subject matter that encourages consumers to learn more about the product and drive their purchase intentions (Kiran &
Shanmugam, 2016). UGC is a highly effective hidden marketing tool for businesses due to editorial and social media content
to improve brand equity through the user's network (Fromm, 2016). Therefore, this study aimed to investigate factors that

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