The Impact of Social Media Marketing on Chinese Consumers' Willingness to Pay Green Premiums: The Mediating Effect of Green Marketing

With the proliferation of internet and social media platforms, the exponential growth of users across various social networks has prompted brands to recognize the critical importance of leveraging these platforms for marketing purposes. Concurrently, the philosophy of sustainable development has catalyzed innovations in products, services, and business models. Consequently, consumers' environmental consciousness has intensified, with green products gaining prominence due to their eco-friendly and low-carbon attributes. The influence of social media marketing on consumers' willingness to pay a green premium has thus emerged as a focal point of scholarly inquiry. Empirical findings demonstrate that: First, the entertainment value, precision targeting, and interactivity of social media marketing exert significant positive effects on green marketing, whereas novelty exhibits no statistically meaningful impact. Second, the entertainment value, precision targeting, and novelty of social media marketing significantly enhance consumers' willingness to pay a green premium, while interactivity shows no substantial correlation. Finally, green marketing partially mediates the effects of entertainment value, interactivity, and precision targeting on green premium payment willingness.