Platforms for helping: Companies’ CSR communication and consumers’ response on Weibo during the pandemic lockdown

Abstract

The current study examined companies’ use of social media platforms for CSR communication during the pandemic lockdown. We examined 1768 companies’ posts on Weibo and tested how the content and the features of the posts influenced retweets and likes. We used “fit” to describe a circumstance where an outside factor made a certain business more capable to alleviate the situation. We defined it as high in the perceived firm-situation fit. Results showed that for high-fit companies, the inclusion of pandemic content and CSR had a significant positive effect on retweets, while for low-fit companies, pandemic content hurt the number of retweets; the CSR factor did not influence retweets. The inclusion of CSR information had a significant positive effect on likes for both high-fit and low-fit companies. The results indicated that consumers have more moral expectations of high-fit companies to provide help during the pandemic lockdown. Moreover, increased interactivity has a significant positive effect on retweets and likes. Drawing from these results, practical suggestions on how to use social media platforms for future CSR communication to promote social good were also discussed.