ONLINE MARKETING STRATEGIES OF BEER PRODUCTS AFFECTING PERCEPTIONS OF RAJABHAT UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN BANGKOK UNDER THE ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL ACT B.E. 2008

Abstract

This research aims to: 1) Investigate the marketing communication strategies of beer beverages; 2) Examine university students’ perception of the meaning conveyed through beer advertising under the same Act; and 3) Evaluate the effectiveness of the Act in influencing students’ understanding of beer advertisements. This is a qualitative study employing in-depth interviews with communication strategy experts. The sample was selected through purposive sampling and comprised three groups: 1) Communication scholars, 2) Alcohol beverage retailers, and 3) Legal experts. In total, ten communication strategy experts were interviewed. The research instrument was an in-depth interview protocol designed to explore experts' perspectives on the marketing communication strategies of beer alcoholic beverages under the aforementioned Act. The research instrument was validated by three experts in communication and online marketing, who evaluated its content validity. The Index of Item Objective Congruence (IOC) was calculated, and only items with an IOC score of 0.50 or higher were retained for use in the study. The findings revealed that the marketing communication strategies of leading beer brands and entrepreneurs today tend to utilize social media platforms-particularly Facebook Pages-which serve as public channels that can rapidly reach a wide target audience. This is especially true among university students, who are characterized by fast media consumption behaviors and a tendency to imitate behaviors presented in the media. Such communication strategies effectively stimulate brand awareness and influence consumer decision-making. Entrepreneurs have adapted integrated marketing communication (IMC) strategies based on the 7Ps framework. The study highlights the complex and multifaceted nature of marketing communication processes that entrepreneurs skillfully employ to motivate consumption within the constraints of the law.