Is there a relationship between the institutional success of universities in webometric ranking system and their popularity on facebook? a holistic case of turkish universities

Purpose: Social media is among the most important digital platforms that bring individuals and institutions together. In the digital age, universities use social media to share news and updates about the institution, research, teaching, and social activities. Perhaps, one of the most critical indicators of success in the university account management process in social media might be the number of followers. Hence, this study examined whether there is a relationship between universities’ Facebook official account follower counts and universities’ position in the Webometrics university success ranking scale, which is an indicator of universities' institutional success. Method: The present study focused on 161 universities located in Turkey. The official Facebook accounts of these institutions and ranking success position in Webometrics were examined by using two different secondary data sets from 2017. Findings: The assumed relationships were tested through correlation analyses by using SPSS 20 statistical software. The results showed that there was a significant relationship between universities’ follower counts on Facebook pages and Webometrics ranking scores. Originality: This study would be pioneering research that can contribute to the literature on the relationship between the success of higher education institutions in Webometric ranking and the popularity of official accounts in a social media channel. Considering the results of this research, it is expected that the top managers of higher education institutions and universities will contribute to institutional value management.