Social Media Marketing Strategy and Consumer Buying Behaviour of Premium Cosmetic Products: A Comprehensive Literature Review

Abstract

The rapid expansion of social media platforms has fundamentally transformed marketing practices in the premium cosmetic products sector by reshaping consumer information processing, perception, and buying behaviour. The objective of the literature review is to integrate international and national academic literature to investigate the impact of social media marketing mix on consumer purchasing behaviour in the high-end cosmetics sector, and contextually, with contextual relevance to India consumer market for premium cosmetic products. specifically, the Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM) and digital consumer behaviour theories, the review assesses the importance of the quality of social media content, the appeal of advertising, the attributes of influencers, and electronic word-of-mouth (e-WOM) as the factors of consumer trust, perception, and purchase intention along the central and peripheral pathways of persuasion. The research also examines how the latter moderating effect of lifestyle orientation and patterns of digital engagement can influence cognitive, emotional, and behavioural reactions of consumers towards social media marketing communication. The conceptualisation of the accumulation of empirical data on the literature of premium cosmetics, fashion, and luxury branding indicates that social media marketing takes a strategic position in influencing both rational and affective attachment, which, together, make purchase behaviour. The review also pinpoints the main research gaps in the areas of localised consumer behaviour, conceptual model development and post-engagement behavioural outcomes. Overall, this study contributes to boy of literature by offering a structured thematic overview that updates future empirical research and managerial decision-making in the marketing of premium cosmetic products.