LA PARTICIPACIÓN CIUDADANA EN LA COMUNICACIÓN DE LAS ORGANIZACIONES: ANÁLISIS DE LAS FRANQUICIAS DE SALUDBELLEZA, DECORACIÓN Y RESTAURACIÓN

An analysis of on-line communication of franchise companies through Facebook from the strategic perspective of interaction with their target audiences is presented in this research. The main hypothesis is to understand the fact that there is active presence of franchise brands and their target audiences on this social network. A secondary hypothesis suggests that some franchisee branch accounts may be creating confusion among the users. Objectives: to analyse the presence of major international franchise industries of Health & Beauty, Decoration and Food franchises operating in Spain on Facebook; to analyse the website of the company; to determine whether the account belongs to the franchisor or the franchisees; to determine the number of followers; to analyse posts and their either positive, negative or balanced approach, and last but not least, to decide the target audience contribution to content generation. An evaluation of the franchises belonging to the three major industries aforementioned is carried out. The results show the significance that both franchisors and franchisees, as well as citizens, give to this social network. However, it also shows some misuse on the side of several franchise websites which may lead to the feeling of confusion in the audience. Finally, basic strategic lines for the correct management of social media are indicated by the authors.