Dr. Sylvia Chan-Olmsted and colleagues determined the definition of a “media brand” and explored consumer perceptions of media brands vs. other brands.
An online survey of 300 German, South Korean, and American participants and qualitative surveys of 55 research assistants from Germany, South Korea, and the U.S. were conducted. Nine online interviews of media research experts were also conducted.
Key findings include:
— Consumers across the globe defined media brands as traditional media, digital entertainment, and social media.
—- Specifically, consumers categorized television channel/network, radio, news, film, music, streaming, social media, print, outdoor ads, messenger service, and video chat as media.
—- Gaming, hardware/software, online retailing, influencers and global tech brands were not perceived as “media” brands.
— Media brands differed from other brands (termed as “regular brands” in the study) because other brands operate on a more transactional approach connected to a need for consumer persuasion.
—- Conversely, media brands rely on continuous trust-building with consumers through content consumption and engagement with the brand.
— The media channel being used (i.e., television news) had a significant impact on the consumers’ level of trust in the content being consumed.
— When consumers trusted the content shown on a platform, they were also more likely to trust the platform as well.
Find the original study here.
