Beliefs and attitudes towards social network advertising: A cross-cultural study of Saudi and Sudanese female students

The study aims to investigate the possible differences in beliefs and attitudes towards social network advertising that may exist among women in Saudi Arabia and Sudan and specify the factors that influence their attitude towards social network advertising. Data sets of two samples from Saudi Arabia (169) and Sudan (195) were collected using a survey of female students from both countries. A t-test was then applied on the processed data, together with correlation and regression analysis, in order to answer the posited research questions. The results revealed no significant differences in attitude towards social media advertising between the two samples, although significant differences in beliefs about social network advertising were documented. In addition, the results indicate that five of the individual factors are statistically significant: these are prior web experience, entertainment, credibility and social norms for the Saudi sample and informativeness, entertainment, credibility and irritation for the Sudanese sample. This study provides insights for international marketers in terms of attitudes and beliefs towards social network advertising. The results may offer some valuable information that may aspire to improve marketing-related activities aimed at social media users.