Social Media Analytics for Evaluating Digital Marketing Performance: The Case of Olive Oil Enterprises in Greece

Abstract

Social media (SM) platforms are widely used for corporate communication, yet quantitative evidence from specialized agri-food sectors remains limited. This study evaluates the SM adoption, activity, audience growth, interaction efficiency, and interaction concentration of the 511 Greek enterprises registered for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and/or Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) olive oil. Adoption was modeled at the enterprise level using logistic regression, and key performance indicators for 116 Facebook, 70 Instagram, and 32 YouTube profiles were compared between the first halves of 2025 and 2026 using paired, multiplicity-corrected tests. Only 28.2% of enterprises maintained at least one official profile; adoption was higher among standardization- and commercialization-oriented enterprises and among companies than among sole proprietors. Cooperatives had the lowest descriptive adoption rate (13.1%). Follower counts increased significantly on all three platforms, but median gains were small, whereas no posting or interaction indicator changed significantly. Inactivity was persistent, inactive Facebook pages tended to lose followers, and interactions were highly concentrated, even among active profiles. Posting volume was associated with audience growth and cumulative interactions but not with interactions per post, and an exploratory analysis of message features found no association that was consistent across both periods. For certified producers, the key decision is less whether to open a profile than whether it can be sustained, and follower counts alone are a misleading measure of performance.