The Impact of the Information Push Mechanism of Social Media

Platforms on Brand Image Building and Brand Marketing

Wei Wang

Arts, Design & Architecture, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia

Keywords: Public Opinion Ecology, Digital Trust Mechanism, Brand Engagement, Algorithmic Transparency.

Abstract: With the increasing popularity of social media algorithm recommendation technology, issues such as

information cocoons, hidden marketing, and privacy security have attracted more and more attention. The

traditional marketing model still lacks accurate control of data and user behavior. This paper discusses the

mechanism of algorithm push in brand exposure. Through literature and case analysis, it is found that accurate

reach and real-time optimization can significantly enhance brand competitiveness, but information

homogeneity, value disputes, and data security concerns also threaten brand reputation and sustainable

development. Based on this, this paper recommends focusing on diversified content and cross-circle

communication, adhering to the bottom line of creativity and social values, and strengthening data compliance

and transparency, to ensure accurate push while taking into account social responsibility and promoting the

sustainable improvement of brand image and market competitiveness.

1 INTRODUCTION

With the rapid development of the Internet and

intelligent algorithms, social media platforms have

gradually become the core carriers of information

dissemination and social interaction. Social media

platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, and

Instagram are representative. Through intelligent

analysis of user preferences, behavior trajectories,

social relationships, etc., customized information is

pushed to users, enabling users to quickly obtain the

required information from massive content resources.

This highly customized information push

mechanism not only meets the diverse needs of users,

but also brings certain social impacts to brand image

building and marketing activities: on the one hand,

through precise push, the platform can accurately

convey brand information to the target audience,

thereby effectively improving brand awareness and

user loyalty; on the other hand, if the push algorithm

is too biased towards a certain content or audience, it

may also lead to information cocoon effect or public

opinion bias, which not only affects the public image

of the brand, but also may cause negative public

opinion or marketing misunderstandings. Jianbing Yu

et al mentioned that this information push mechanism

based on personal preferences may aggravate the

problems of information overload and single-user

experience (Yu, 2024). Especially in the current era

of booming big data and artificial intelligence, the

guiding role of algorithms on user content

consumption, public opinion, and brand exposure is

becoming increasingly obvious, thus affecting brand

loyalty and purchase intention. In addition, while

helping users save time, personalized advertising may

also cause privacy concerns due to the excessive

collection of user information. Hanbyeol Jeong

emphasized that personalized advertising will

customize content by collecting a large amount of

user private data, and this behavior may cause users

to have trust issues with advertising platforms (Jeong,

2024).

Therefore, this article will start from the social

background and theoretical basis to explore how push

algorithms affect users' perceptions and attitudes

towards brands, and combine industry cases to

systematically analyze how platforms should

effectively utilize or reduce the problems that may be

caused by information push mechanisms. By deeply

interpreting the user psychology and media

environment in the data age, it provides a more

systematic and diversified research perspective for

brands in social media image building and marketing

planning and provides practical ideas and solutions.

Wang, W.

The Impact of the Information Push Mechanism of Social Media Platforms on Brand Image Building and Brand Marketing.

DOI: 10.5220/0013985600004916

Paper published under CC license (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Public Relations and Media Communication (PRMC 2025), pages 44-49

ISBN: 978-989-758-778-8

2 NEW IMPETUS FOR BRAND

MARKETING

This section analyzes the three aspects of precise

reach and cost optimization, user loyalty and

community operation, and data feedback and real-

time optimization to demonstrate the multi-

dimensional new momentum brought by social media

in driving brand marketing.

2.1 Precise Reach and Cost

Optimization

Social media algorithm recommendation and big data

analysis technology, precise push relies on the

collection and algorithm analysis of massive user

behavior data, providing brands with a highly flexible

and customized marketing path. As Shan Lin pointed

out, through in-depth analysis of user interests,

behaviors, and preferences, artificial intelligence

technology has significantly optimized the click-

through rate and conversion rate of advertisements

(Shan, 2024). Compared with the traditional wide-net

delivery, precise reach can not only significantly

reduce resource waste, but also bring higher return on

investment (ROI) to enterprises.

First of all, the essence of precise reach is to

deliver content to the users who need it most or are

most interested in it with the best marketing strategy.

Brands can adjust the channel combination and

frequency of advertising based on the real-time data

provided by the platform, and strive to push

information to the right audience at the right time and

place. Secondly, because precise delivery greatly

compresses budget expenditures that are not related

to the target audience, each exposure is more

effective, which significantly improves the

advertising ROI. Research shows that the use of AI-

driven precision advertising algorithms can

significantly improve the accuracy and recall of

advertising matching. Among them, the average

advertising matching accuracy of the advertising

group using the intelligent push algorithm increased

by 10.864 percentage points, and the ROI increased

significantly (Lin, 2024). Under the same budget,

companies attract high-intent users through precise

content and interactive design, enabling companies to

achieve the maximum brand exposure and user

interaction benefits within a limited budget.

2.2 Cultivating Loyalty and

Community Operations

In the digital age where social media is powerfully

empowered, brand marketing not only relies on

precise reach and cost optimization but also needs to

build user loyalty and community stickiness through

long-term operation and in-depth interaction.

Compared with the "one-way output, one-time reach"

model in traditional marketing, social media provides

continuity and diversification for two-way

communication between brands and users. Research

by Haudi et al. shows that social media marketing is

not only a tool for one-way information transmission,

but also combines the advantages of traditional

marketing and digital marketing. It promotes

interaction and collaboration between customers and

brands by monitoring user behavior and needs. This

interaction includes not only direct communication

between customers and companies or brands but also

sharing and communication between customers and

other customers (Haudi, 2022). This shows that

sharing and collaboration between users strengthens

the functions of brand "self-propagation" and word-

of-mouth diffusion, making social media play an

indispensable and ever-new core role in the corporate

marketing system.

The core of community operation lies in

strengthening users' emotional identification and

value resonance. Shadma Shahid et al. mentioned that

through sensory marketing and brand experience,

brands can establish stronger emotional connections

with consumers, and this emotional attachment

further promotes consumers' loyalty to the brand

(Shahid, 2022). Emotional resonance and brand

experience jointly build a strong "stickiness" between

users and brands, thereby cultivating higher brand

loyalty and competitive advantages in a fierce market

environment.

2.3 Data Feedback and Real-Time

Optimization

In the high-frequency interactive environment of

social media, big data, and intelligent algorithms

provide brand marketing with unprecedented "real-

time" and "monitorable" features. As Awan et al.

described, by using big data tools and machine

learning models, data can be obtained in real-time,

and user behavior can be quickly analyzed, thus

providing strong support for efficient decision-

making (Awan, 2021). Information push is no longer

a one-time, static process, but a dynamic cycle closely

linked to user interaction. Studies have shown that

The Impact of the Information Push Mechanism of Social Media Platforms on Brand Image Building and Brand Marketing

real-time machine-learning methods can significantly

optimize resource allocation and improve marketing

efficiency by quickly adjusting user behavior (Awan,

2021). This flexibility of "monitoring and optimizing

at the same time" enables brands to maintain efficient

adaptability in the social media environment where

information flows at a high speed. With continuous

insights into user needs and emotional tendencies,

brands can continuously upgrade content and

services, improve user experience and reputation, and

achieve an efficient "data-driven-strategy

optimization-user satisfaction" virtuous cycle,

thereby maintaining strong adaptability and

continuous growth potential in a highly competitive

market environment.

3 NEGATIVE IMPACTS AND

POTENTIAL RISKS

In summary, this section aims to comprehensively

demonstrate the potential negative impacts and

challenges of social media algorithms in brand

marketing applications by analyzing three aspects:

filter bubbles, hidden marketing, and privacy and data

security risks.

3.1 Filter Bubble

In the era of high-frequency interactions on social

media and precise algorithmic recommendations,

users' browsing behavior is gradually dominated by

"customized" information, which has given rise to the

phenomenon of an "information cocoon".

Information cocoons mean that users, under the long-

term influence of algorithms, continue to receive

content that is similar or identical to their preferences,

thus blocking or ignoring diverse information. This

"homogeneous" information environment has, to a

certain extent, reinforced users' existing ideas and

attitudes, leading to less exposure to and

understanding of different viewpoints. Research by

Nian Li et al. shows that users are gradually exposed

to highly homogenized content, which exacerbates

users' neglect and isolation of other viewpoints (Li,

2022). For brands, if cross-communication cannot be

achieved between users in different circles, breaking

through the original fan base will be difficult, forming

a situation where "the familiar become more familiar,

and the unfamiliar remain unfamiliar." Moreover, in

the "information cocoon" environment, brands and

their loyal fans are often immersed in the "equal

temperature zone" of positive evaluations of the

brand, while external doubts, criticisms, and even

negative public opinion may be ignored or delayed

due to the preferences of algorithm push. Wen Yang

pointed out that information cocoons not only weaken

the interaction between brands and different user

groups but may also affect the ability of brands to

detect external criticism and negative public opinion

promptly (Yang, 2024). If a brand cannot receive

timely feedback from different circles or groups that

hold reservations about the brand, it is easy to lack

sufficient vigilance for potential problems and miss

the opportunity to make improvements before the

problem breaks out. When negative public opinion

breaks out, the difficulty of brand response and crisis

management will increase accordingly.

3.2 Subtle or Implicit Marketing

Under the marketing wave of digital media, more and

more brands are beginning to use implicit marketing

to attract the attention and interaction of target

audiences. Compared with traditional explicit

advertising, implicit marketing often uses "implicit"

elements such as hints, stalk culture, puns, or

metaphors, and achieves a "seemingly calm, but

sharp" style of communication through in-depth

research on audience psychology and the public

opinion field of social platforms. With the help of

social media algorithm recommendations, this type of

creative content can quickly trigger topics and form

high interaction and self-propagation effects.

However, while implicit marketing brings traffic and

topics, it also hides controversy and risks. Implicit

marketing often uses more "obscure" or "profound"

expressions to create gimmicks and attract users to

participate in "interpretation" and discussion. Since

social media push algorithms will give priority to

recommending hot topics and content with high

interaction rates, controversial or "implicit"

marketing information is more likely to be forwarded

and commented on in large quantities. However,

"implied" itself carries different interpretation spaces

and meanings, which can easily trigger the

polarization of public opinion. As Guoyin Jiang et al.

pointed out, algorithms tend to give priority to highly

interactive and controversial content, which further

strengthens the "positive and negative polarization"

trend of public opinion (Jiang, 2021). Once some

users or circles have negative, distorted, or offended

feelings about "connotation" content, there may be

large-scale discussions on social platforms or even

concentrated outbreaks of negative emotions, which

will cause irreversible damage to the brand image.

PRMC 2025 - International Conference on Public Relations and Media Communication

Research shows that high-quality information can

enhance users' trust in communication, but when the

content is inaccurate or misleading, the promotion of

algorithms may further amplify users' dissatisfaction

(Jiang, 2021). Therefore, once the "connotation" is

interpreted as offensive, discriminatory, or deviating

from mainstream values, the public opinion field

faced by the brand will present a "circle siege" trend,

unable to achieve the spread of positive word-of-

mouth through the original channels, and even fall

into an irreversible public relations crisis. It can be

seen that while creating topics and popularity, brands

need to carefully evaluate the potential for

controversy and social value conflicts brought about

by implicit marketing, to prevent it from evolving into

larger-scale negative effects with the help of

algorithms.

3.3 Privacy and Data Security Risks

While brands are achieving efficient marketing

through accurate analysis of user behavior

trajectories, interest preferences, and social

relationships, they are also facing major challenges in

privacy and data security. Refined operations usually

require the integration of multi-level user data,

including geographic location, historical searches,

and online behavior. If the collection of these data is

not explicitly authorized by the user or lacks a

transparent notification mechanism, it may infringe

on the user's privacy rights. Sara Quach et al.'s

research shows that although the widespread use of

digital technology has improved marketing

efficiency, it has also exacerbated consumers' distrust

of data collection and use. This trust crisis often stems

from the opacity of information and the lack of user-

informed consent (Quach, 2022). Secondly, the

original intention of big data and intelligent

algorithms to enable marketing is to improve user

experience and advertising conversion rate, but when

users realize that they are being "fully monitored" and

"tracked across the entire network", they often

question the platform's push mechanism and the

brand's true intentions. Once this psychological

"sense of being stripped away" or "spying" is formed,

it will affect the user's overall perception of the brand

and willingness to buy. Guoyin Jiang et al. showed

that when users perceive privacy risks, they will

doubt their trust in the brand, platform, or product

(Jiang, 2021). In the long run, the stigma of

"excessive use of data" or "privacy violation" will

undermine the brand's credibility and

competitiveness, and thus affect its sustainable

development in the market.

4 SOLUTION

4.1 Diversified Content Strategy and

Cross-Circle Communication

Through diversified content strategies, cross-circle

communication can be achieved, thus breaking the

information cocoon and other problems caused by

algorithm push. First, the User-Generated Content

Incentivization method can be adopted to make users

become "content co-creators". Through topic

challenges, interactive solicitations, etc., brands can

encourage users to re-create or forward and share

brand content based on their interests and social

relationships. As Xueying Penga and Lin Li Research

Institute said, high-quality content is the basis of

brand communication. It not only attracts the

attention of the target audience but also enhances

users' recognition of the brand through deep

emotional resonance or practical value (Peng, 2024).

The content shared spontaneously by users will

naturally carry brand information to more diverse

audiences, thus breaking through the "stratosphere"

caused by a single algorithm recommendation. In this

process, the "social fission" effect will further

amplify the scale and influence of communication,

helping brands to cross the boundaries of circles.

Secondly, the method of joint cross-field

cooperation is adopted to cooperate with important

roles such as brands, content creators, and celebrities

in different industries and fields. The target audiences

in different fields are often different, so when brands

integrate across fields at the content or product level,

they can get more exposure opportunities in other

circles. Jana Arbeiter and Maja Bučar mentioned that

cross-field cooperation breaks through the

communication limitations of a single industry by

integrating multiple resources and expertise while

reaching a wider and more diverse target audience

group (Arbeiter, 2021). Since users usually pay more

attention to "partners" they are familiar with or trust,

cross-field cooperation can naturally weaken the

closedness of "homogeneous information" to

communication, thereby allowing brand information

to penetrate a wider and more diverse user circle.

4.2 Adhere to Creative Boundaries and

Value the Bottom Line

Respecting the mainstream values of society, in

connotation marketing, brands may use creative

techniques such as hints and meme culture to "attract

attention". However, even if more "sharp" or

The Impact of the Information Push Mechanism of Social Media Platforms on Brand Image Building and Brand Marketing

"marginalized" creative elements are used, the overall

orientation should be in line with the mainstream

values of society and the core values of the brand. By

incorporating positive connotations such as

friendliness, equality, diversity, and sustainability

into the content, not only can the audience feel a good

user experience, but also the brand's sense of social

responsibility can be reflected. Respecting the

mainstream values of society can not only reduce

external doubts but also enhance the positive

attributes of the brand image. At the same time,

brands should also pay attention to content self-

examination and multi-department review. Before

launching marketing activities, brands should

organize multiple departments such as legal,

marketing, public relations, and product teams to

review and evaluate to ensure that the creativity

complies with laws and regulations, conforms to

brand positioning, and takes into account market

acceptance. Xueying Peng and Lin Li mentioned in

their research that in a changing market environment,

companies need to flexibly adjust their strategies to

quickly respond to public pressure and fluctuations in

market demand (Peng, 2024).

4.3 Strengthening Data Compliance

and Transparency

Informing users of the purpose and scope of data

means that before collecting personal data, brands or

platforms need to explain to users in easy-to-

understand and accessible forms such as pop-ups and

terms and conditions how the data will be collected,

why it will be collected, where it will be stored, and

in which specific scenarios it will be used, such as

personalized recommendations, advertising push,

product optimization, etc. In addition, users should

have the right to choose data collection, including full

authorization, partial authorization, or even refuse

any data collection. As Yuan Wang mentioned,

transparent communication helps build trust, which

lays the foundation for building a solid organizational

relationship (Wang, 2020). When implementing

explicit notification and authorization, platforms

should comply with relevant laws and regulations,

take into account ethical responsibilities, and avoid

using ambiguous terms or mandatory default

checkboxes in the agreement. Furthermore, users

have the right to query detailed information on

personal data collected by brands or platforms at any

time, including historical usage records, authorization

scope, etc. Through compliance management and

dynamic updating of data, not only can user rights be

better protected, but it can also help brands or

platforms reduce potential data security disputes or

compliance risks in the fierce market competition.

5 CONCLUSION

In general, the information push mechanism of social

media platforms contains both huge opportunities and

risks that cannot be ignored in the process of brand

image building and marketing. Precise reach and real-

time optimization provide brands with flexible and

efficient promotion paths, while community-based

operations and user co-creation further enhance brand

loyalty and word-of-mouth communication.

However, while over-relying on algorithm

recommendations, information cocoons, hidden

marketing disputes, and user privacy and data

security issues have gradually become prominent,

weakening the basis of mutual trust between brands

and audiences, and even triggering public relations

crises.

The analysis of this study shows that the rational

use of the information push mechanism needs to start

from many aspects: on the one hand, through

diversified content strategies, cross-circle

communication, and focusing on user emotional

experience, it is possible to effectively break the

information cocoon and enhance brand stickiness; on

the other hand, adhere to the mainstream values and

compliance awareness of society, control hidden

marketing within a reasonable range, and reduce the

potential negative impact of topic content under the

algorithm. In addition, it is also necessary to

strengthen data compliance and transparency, protect

user privacy and the right to know, form a virtuous

cycle of "algorithm empowerment-value win-win-

steady development", and ultimately achieve

sustainable improvement of brand image and market

competitiveness.

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The Impact of the Information Push Mechanism of Social Media Platforms on Brand Image Building and Brand Marketing