An Empirical Investigation on Social Media Users’ Demand for Financial Information Distributed via Social Media Platforms

Abstract

Managers feel significant pressure to establish a social media presence that differentiates their organization from rivals though few managers are confident that their organization provides social media users with the information they desire. Consequently, although the supply of information provided to social media users by organizations continues to rapidly proliferates, few studies have investigated the information social media users want organizations to provide. This study explores the information desires of two social media stakeholder groups: nonprofessional investors and non-investors. We find the information desires of both social media user stakeholder groups to be similar. More specifically, both nonprofessional investors and noninvestors want information that addresses them as customers, though nonprofessional investors do desire financial information more than noninvestors. The academic and practical implications of our results are discussed.

Keywords: communication theory, financial information, information demand, information transmission, nonprofessional investors, social media

JEL Classification: M31, M37, M41, G24, D83