A Bibliometric Network Analysis of Digital Marketing Research Trends and Intellectual Structure in the Scopus Database

Abstract

The field of digital marketing has become a fast-developing area, although the current body of knowledge is still disjointed between platforms, methods, and consumer segments, with little integration in terms of thematic development and the intellectual structure of the field. The objective of this paper is to provide an evidence-based review of the state-of-the-art of digital marketing by revealing main trends, collaborative networks, and knowledge gaps. The bibliometric network analysis was performed on the Scopus database and included studies published from 2003 to 2025. In total, 277 papers were retrieved and filtered according to PRISMA criteria by employing such keywords as digital marketing, social media marketing, consumer perception, digital transformation, and digital adaptation. Network visualization and cluster analysis of authors, keywords, and thematic clusters were done using the VOSviewer (Version 1.6.19). There were 250 authors, and out of those, 15 authors fulfilled the co-authors criterion, while there were 950 keywords, and only 17 keywords met the minimum criterion of occurrence of 7. The major research clusters that came out of the analysis were digital marketing, social media marketing, mobile application, and search engine optimization. The publication trend had been low until 2015 and thereafter increased remarkably after 2019. It showed a peak publication trend in the period of 2020-2021 due to the pandemic situation caused by COVID-19. Out of the authors, P.K. Kannan was the one with the highest number of citations, which was 553. The International Journal of Research in Marketing is the publisher with the maximum number of citations, i.e., 655. The keyword digital marketing is used most often, which occurs 90 times. The link between consumer perception and social media was recognized as one of the gaps in this research. The research findings provide guidance for researchers, practitioners, and policymakers who wish to enhance the field of digital marketing research in accordance with SDG 8, SDG 9, and SDG 12.