ABSTRACT
Dark social – non-public social networks – has grown exponentially as a medium for social sharing, accounting for 84% of sharing online. It provides an avenue for one-to-one interactions that are private and conversational. This study examines the role of dark social in marketing communications and how influencers can help organizations enhance customer engagement. Four case studies involving influencers and without are analyzed through the Integrated Relationship Management Framework developed based on the Commitment-Trust, Social Exchange, and Customer Relationship Management theories. Findings show that dark social is significant for organizations as it supports personalized interactions and drives engagement. The use of influencers further amplifies campaign reach. Online community engagement and user-generated content can increase brand loyalty, creating a favorable relationship with audiences before crisis. We propose a Dark Social Influencer Engagement Framework that allows organizations to personalize communications and circumvent risk factors like sustainability, loss of content control, lack of cultural sensitivity, failure to align with audiences and overtly opportunistic behavior. This study seeks to address the gap in academic research for dark social media communication.
