ABSTRACT
Social media is increasingly playing an important role in brand marketing. The purpose of this study is to determine the importance of social media in shaping consumer trust in brands and consumer brand loyalty using the example of the food product category. The empirical study was conducted on a sample of 300 young consumers in 2022. The structural equation model was used to illustrate the relationship between social media activities, brand trust, brand equity and brand loyalty. Our research indicated that user-created social media communication influences brand equity and brand trust, while company-generated social media communication has no such influence. At the same time, company company-generated social media communication influences user-created social media communication. The results of the study conducted on food brands will be helpful for managers responsible for communication towards brands to focus on activities that increase brand equity and consumer trust towards brands.
