Society’s perspective of the extent of knowledge of the social marketing concept in Saudi Arabia of the 18+ age group: an exploratory study

Abstract

The number of researchers interested in social marketing has increased since the term ‘social marketing’ was officially used in the 1970s. Recently, researchers in Saudi Arabia have shown an interest in the presentation of social problems and in identifying solutions to them. There are few publications that discuss certain issues in Saudi society. Despite the many awareness campaigns in Saudi Arabia, the society is still not aware of the concept of social marketing. Therefore, in this study, the extent of knowledge of social marketing in Saudi Arabia from society’s perspective and whether its campaigns have an impact on behaviour were investigated. Along with identifying the reasons that awareness campaigns influence Saudis to change their behaviours, an aim was to determine the areas where Saudis should increase awareness campaigns. In addition, which source of media is more widely used and most effective among Saudis in obtaining awareness information was explored.

A quantitative method approach employing a survey of 135 Saudi respondents was adopted for this study. The statistical analysis of the data collected showed that Saudi society is not familiar with the concept of social marketing. It was found that the majority agreed that collaboration with celebrities and influencers is one of the most effective influences on individuals’ behaviours during social marketing campaigns. According to the Saudi society responses, the coverage of these campaigns for actual social problems is low. The participants also indicated that they need more health awareness campaigns in addition to the awareness campaigns for laws and regulations related to female drivers, social behaviours and public morals and electronic games. According to the results, online campaigns via the internet are more effective than campaigns presented via traditional media among Saudis.