CorpComms Magazine

Nearly two thirds of UK consumers do not want to engage with brands on social media, according to a study launched today by research firm TNS.

According to the researchers many consumers resent being invaded by brands on their social networks.

The findings were produced by TNS's Digital Life study, which looked at 72,000 consumers in 60 countries.

The study found the largest amount of hostility in developed markets with 57 per cent of people not wanting to engage with brands via social media, this figure rises to 60 per cent in the US and 61 percent in the UK.

The researchers suggests that businesses are wasting their time and money trying to reach people online and that a failure to carefully target them is resulting in 'digital waste'. The Internet is replete with friendless Facebook accounts and blogs that no one reads.

'The result is huge volumes of noise, which is polluting the digital world and making it harder for brands to be heard - presenting a major challenges for businesses trying to enter into a dialogue with consumers online,' say the researchers.

Although around half of those polled admit that social networks are a good place to learn about products, the research shows brands must harness digital more carefully if they are to use it to their advantage.

One of the biggest incentives to interacting with brands online is the presence of a special offer, nearly two thirds of consumers will engage with a brand online if there is a promotional offer at stake.

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