COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS INFLUENCING CONSUMER BUYING BEHAVIOUR IN CHENNAI CITY

Abstract

This study examines the comparative influence of major social media platforms on the buying behaviour of digital consumers in Chennai City. With the rapid growth of digital technologies, platforms such as WhatsApp, Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter (X), and Telegram have emerged as powerful marketing tools that shape consumer perceptions, engagement, and purchase decisions. The primary objective of the study is to identify the most influential social media platform affecting consumer buying behaviour and to compare the effectiveness of different platforms. The study adopts a descriptive and analytical research design. Primary data were collected from 650 respondents, out of which 600 valid responses from Chennai City were considered for analysis after data screening. Statistical tools such as mean score analysis, ANOVA, and rank analysis were employed to examine differences in consumer responses across platforms. The findings reveal that visual and video-based platforms, particularly Instagram and YouTube, exert a stronger influence on consumer buying behaviour compared to text-based platforms such as Twitter (X) and Telegram. WhatsApp also plays a significant role due to its personalized and direct communication features. The study highlights that platform-specific characteristics significantly affect consumer trust, engagement, and purchase decisions. The research contributes to the existing literature by providing empirical evidence on platform-wise effectiveness in an urban Indian context. The findings offer valuable insights for marketers to design platform-specific social media strategies to enhance consumer engagement and influence buying behaviour.