Consumers Don’t Trust Advertising, Think Social Media is More Believable
By Anna Johnson on June 3rd, 201095 percent of consumers do NOT trust advertising and 92 percent don’t trust what a company says about itself.
That’s the finding of Alterian, whose research shows that only 5 percent of consumers (4 per cent of U.K. consumers and 6 per cent of U.S. consumers) trust advertising, and only 8 per cent (9 per cent U.K. and 6 per cent U.S.) believe ‘what the company says about itself’.
So while marketers spent nearly $426 billion on advertising in 2009… 9 out of 10 consumers didn’t even believe that advertising!
The good news for companies marketing on the Internet – especially those increasing their social media budgets – is that a third of consumers (31 per cent U.K. and 35 per cent U.S.) regard companies using social media as ‘genuinely interested them’. In other words, around 3 out of 10 consumers regard marketers participating in social media as more trustworthy and believable.
Noting the results of Alterian’s survey of 2,000 adults in the U.K. and U.S., David Eldridge, CEO of Alterian said:
“Consumer trust is at an all-time low. What we are witnessing is an era of individualization. It is no longer adequate to adopt a strategy of mass broadcast and one-way conversations. Brands should be trying to understand communities rather than focusing on silo-ed communication channels.”
Alterian has published its research in a report, ‘Your Brand: At Risk or Ready for Growth?’ which explores consumer attitudes towards brands and companies. It’s available here.
