Consumers who actively engage with social media are more positive about their connections with brands: 35% of those who use social media say they believe "companies are genuinely interested them," compared with just 16% of all consumers, according to a study by Alterian.

Moreover, only 8% of all consumers surveyed say they believe "what a company says about itself," and a mere 5% say they trust advertising.

Below, other findings from Alterian's Brands at Risk Report, which examines changes in the way consumers are listening to and engaging with brands.

Today's consumers are deeply cynical about companies: 58% say companies are only interested in selling products, without regard for what's right for consumers.

Asked whether they trust companies to act with their best interests in mind, 60% of consumers say they do sometimes, while 26% say they do rarely, and just 9% say they always trust companies to act in their best interest.

Only 17% of consumers say companies take note of their opinions.

Today's empowered consumers assemble their own opinions on products and services: Nearly all consumers (95%) say they conduct some form of comparison shopping prior to purchases.

Among those consumers, 46% use direct price-comparison websites and 35% use blogs and other search related methods.

Overall, 81% of consumers say the Web is the first place they go to compare products and services.

Most Trustworthy Sources of Information

Consumers cite family and friends (40%) as the most trusted source of information when researching  products and services, followed by professional reviews on the Web and in magazines (28%), and reviews on websites from people like them (19% among all respondents, 24% among US).

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Social Media Users More Positive About Brands

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