The role of digital marketing and social media marketing on consumer buying behavior: A research on consumers' online shopping habits

With the development of technology, it has become easier for people to access devices such as smart phones and smart tablets. In this way, digital platforms, and in particular social media, have been commonly adopted by individuals. Their increased use has led to the use of these channels as marketing tools as well. The capacity of social media to reach a large number of people all over the world and its interactive communication style make it a popular medium preferred by brands for their marketing efforts. Social media is open to the access and use of all individuals who request it. Users who sign up to the various social media channels often become the target of digital content advertisements of brands, and therefore, should have sufficient knowledge to choose between products. Easy access of consumers to information, their option to choose between products, and their freedom to express their experiences have led brands to adopt consumer-oriented marketing strategies. Brands today not only produce quality products and services for their customers, but also try to reflect the lifestyle of their target audience. Before buying products or services, consumers examine certain criteria for brands such as ideology, social media content sharing, mobile marketing, e-mail marketing, and then make their purchases accordingly. The easiest ways to reach such information are through internet queries and social media research. In terms of buying preferences, it is important for brands to meticulously manage their use of internet and social media for their digital marketing activities, and to send consistent and integrated messages representing the brand image. This study examines the effect of social media digital marketing activities of clothing brands on consumer buying behavior. Consumers residing in İstanbul participated in the study and the data obtained were analyzed statistically.