How Social Media Spreads Disinformation and its Effect on Consumer Behavior

Session

Management Business and Economy

Description

Disinformation or misleading of information is a phenomenon that has become increasingly prevalent on social media, effecting in a meaningful way consumer behavior. Considering that the usage of social media is increasing day-to-day and most of the brand nowadays have created an identity in at least one social media platform, this paper aims to analyze the effect that disinformation has in consumer decision-making, brand perception and awareness, and consumer credibility. This research is based on secondary data analysis, based in recent statistics from credible sources and case studies, focused especially in cognitive and self –affective drivers that effect the perception of consumers about a brand based on false beliefs. Even though social media has become a big facilitator to connect consumers with great numbers of brands simultaneously, it has some negative effects and some risks while applying it as a part of the digital marketing tactic. One of the negative effects is the fast spreading of disinformation. The paper concludes that fake reviews, manipulated content and incorrect affirmation have an amount of significant effect how consumers become aware of a brand and how the loyalty process is affected by this group of references. The increase of disinformation can have negative effect on brand reputations and influence buyers’ decision making. Therefore, it is important for businesses to have in consideration disinformation and social media platforms as a variable with significant effect in their marketing strategies and to discover some tactics how to reduce the effects of disinformation, by recreating consumer credibility, understanding ethical and legal aspects and uphold the credibility of online communications

Keywords:

Disinformation, social media, consumer behavior, brands, influence.

Proceedings Editor

Edmond Hajrizi

ISBN

978-9951-982-15-3

Location

UBT Kampus, Lipjan

Start Date

25-10-2024 9:00 AM

End Date

27-10-2024 6:00 PM

DOI

10.3107/ubt-ic.2024.16

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Oct 25th, 9:00 AM Oct 27th, 6:00 PM

How Social Media Spreads Disinformation and its Effect on Consumer Behavior

UBT Kampus, Lipjan

Disinformation or misleading of information is a phenomenon that has become increasingly prevalent on social media, effecting in a meaningful way consumer behavior. Considering that the usage of social media is increasing day-to-day and most of the brand nowadays have created an identity in at least one social media platform, this paper aims to analyze the effect that disinformation has in consumer decision-making, brand perception and awareness, and consumer credibility. This research is based on secondary data analysis, based in recent statistics from credible sources and case studies, focused especially in cognitive and self –affective drivers that effect the perception of consumers about a brand based on false beliefs. Even though social media has become a big facilitator to connect consumers with great numbers of brands simultaneously, it has some negative effects and some risks while applying it as a part of the digital marketing tactic. One of the negative effects is the fast spreading of disinformation. The paper concludes that fake reviews, manipulated content and incorrect affirmation have an amount of significant effect how consumers become aware of a brand and how the loyalty process is affected by this group of references. The increase of disinformation can have negative effect on brand reputations and influence buyers’ decision making. Therefore, it is important for businesses to have in consideration disinformation and social media platforms as a variable with significant effect in their marketing strategies and to discover some tactics how to reduce the effects of disinformation, by recreating consumer credibility, understanding ethical and legal aspects and uphold the credibility of online communications