Social media is so important to brands that 9 in 10 consumers say they buy the brands they follow on these platforms. Seventy-five percent increased their spend with a brand they followed through 2020, a 12% increase from 2019, according to the latest Sprout Social survey.
But with these numbers come increased corporate responsibility and greater challenges. According to Lizania Aguero, communications manager at Fresnillo plc: “The year we have just concluded has been characterized by the relevant role that communication has played in a context framed by the pandemic. And it is that the health emergency has highlighted the necessity, the fundamental right and the responsibility of the world population to keep themselves informed of daily events. In this sense, at Fresnillo plc we are convinced that the challenge for 2021 in terms of communication will be to strengthen our communication channels, our messages and continue to be a reliable and truthful source of information that adds to the current priority. that is the care of the health of the population ”.
In Mexico, there are 82.7 million digital users, according to the Mexico Internet User Habits Study, presented by the Internet Mx Association.
At the same time, the study “How Mexicans Get Information”, carried out by the consultancy firm Comunicación Política Aplicada, found that 100% of the digital users surveyed use at least one social network. Of which 26.07 percent use at least three. Then the percentage of those who use four appears, with 20.38%.
Facebook is the social network most used by Mexicans, because out of 100 people who use the Internet, 99 have an account and nearly 77 million have WhatsApp, or 93%.
In this sense, the expert underlines the relevance of having these spaces to connect with consumers. “In an increasingly digital world, proximity to the public via new platforms is becoming more important; It is a fact that a large part of the population is a user of social networks and digital information portals, where in addition to informing about the work of the company, the initiatives that we implement for different sectors of the population are broadcast, as well as read their demands, doubts, criticisms and respond to achieve this dialogue and this circle of trust. It is about using all the tools and platforms to make an effective, truthful and clear communication, where the public knows what is our added value as a company, as a brand, for the country and for each of the families. Mexican, mainly those where we have a great influence as a social and economic actor ”, he declared.
Regarding the use of platforms and content to connect with the public, Lorenza Sanchez Denegri, director of new businesses at Zimat Consultores, strategic advisor to Fresnillo on communication and public relations issues, underlined the attractiveness of tools such as Instagram Stories for telling stories. The specialist specifies that “500 million users interact with this platform every day, people seek the information told in a different way. We have to reach them. 51% of brands in the US are already using videos in Stories ”.
Fake News en 2021
However, all is not positive in terms of platforms, an evil which is confronted with it and which can put anyone in danger is the fake news, the term chosen as the word of the year in 2017 by the editors of the Dictionaries of Oxford, after analyzing 4.5 billion of the most used terms during these twelve months.
It is a problem that takes several years to be corrected, but above all must be taken care of in a year where the information can be life or death, as in this pandemic of 2021.
According to the specialist from Zimat Consultores, “We want more videos than photos, this has led us to fall into the era of click-baits and fake news. It is important to confirm the sources of the story. The strength of third parties who talk about you has never been greater ”.
According to Statista, a third of users worldwide say they have seen fake news on sites like Facebook or Twitter more than once a day.
“Fake news has multiplied in recent months, especially during the health pandemic. Today, they play a more important role due to the rise of information shared on social networks and digital media, because they are the medium that allows this type of information to spread more quickly and to have real consequences. At Fresnillo plc, we consider it important that all staff and communities know how to identify fake news and have sufficient criteria to be wary and not easily reproduce it. For this reason, we advise you to verify the information, to verify the source, to read all the news and not just the source, to give context to the information, ”continued Aguero.
The social networks on which they receive the most fake news are: 65.40% Facebook, 31.28% WhatsApp and 1.90% YouTube. And the least: 34.60% on Twitter, 26.54% on Instagram and 19.43% on WhatsApp.
Brands largely depend on this factor, as Kantar Media’s Trust in News report reports that the effects of fake news directly affect reputation.
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