Social media presence makes retailers appear less trustworthy

Consumers are less likely to trust retailers with a social media presence, according to new research from YouGov

A social media presence may cause consumers to trust retailers less, according to the report Photo: ukscapes / Alamy

Consumers do not trust retailers with a social media presence, with other half of those surveyed by YouGov claiming presence on a social networking site makes them trust the retailer less.

Of the 1,096 UK adults YouGov spoke to, just over a quarter said it made them trust the sellers more.

The report reveals that many e-consumers segregate their online shopping and social habits. Almost four in ten (39 per cent) like to keep their social media and shopping activity separate, with around the same proportion (42 per cent) believing that networks such as Facebook and Twitter are for friends, not retail.

There is limited support for logging into social networks to shop, with one in seven (14 per cent) believing it is easier to sign into retail sites without having to put in their details again.

The youngest online shoppers (16-24 year olds) are the keenest to keep their social networking activity separate from their shopping activity. More than half (57 per cent) don’t like sites such as Twitter and Facebook to be linked with their purchasing history, and three in five (61 per cent) like to keep their social networking and online shopping activity separate.

YouGov’s report shows that when it comes to researching products, online shoppers are much more likely to turn to adverts on TV (26 per cent) or newspapers and magazines (15 per cent) than to social networking sites (10 per cent). However, all of these trail behind customer reviews on a retailer’s own site (60 per cent), shopping comparison sites (48 per cent) and consumer reviews on third party sites (40 per cent) when it comes to where consumers research their online purchases.
James McCoy, Research Director at YouGov, said: “The rise of social networks over the past decade has coincided with the growth of online shopping and many retailers have tried to harness the power of sites such as Facebook to increase sales. However, it appears that consumers prefer to keep their shopping and social sites separate, with online consumers not trusting retailers that are on the likes of Twitter.
"What is worse for retailers is that younger, more social media savvy consumers are the ones who have the greatest objections to using their Facebook and Twitter accounts for shopping. This is something they will need to address if they are to affectively deploy online marketing budgets.”