La gestión comunicativa de las empresas vitivinícolas de España en las principales redes sociales / Communication management of Spanish wine companies in the main social networks

Abstract

Las redes sociales se han convertido en herramientas claves para la comunicación de las organizaciones, especialmente en el sector vitivinícola de España. Las redes sociales permiten aumentar la visibilidad, a la vez que establecer y reforzar las relaciones con los públicos, siempre y cuando sean gestionadas profesionalmente. Así, este estudio tiene como objetivo evaluar la presencia y actividad de las empresas vitivinícolas de España en las principales redes sociales (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter y YouTube). Para esta investigación se analizaron las 1.656 empresas vitivinícolas con mayor facturación de España. Los resultados exponen que las empresas tienen una presencia mayoritaria, pero su actividad es poco frecuente. Teniendo en cuenta que la gran mayoría de las empresas llevan entre 4 y 9 años utilizando las redes sociales, la presencia poco activa parece repercutir directamente en la media baja de seguidores que tienen las empresas.Palabras clave: relaciones públicas, comunicación digital, sector vitivinícola, Internet, redes sociales Abstract Social networks have become key tools for organizational communication in the Spanish wine sector. The popularity that the sector is obtaining has generated the need to carry out digital public relations strategies by companies. Social networks allow increasing visibility and establishing relationships with audiences if they are managed professionally. Maintaining an active presence in social networks allows wine companies to know the opinions and preferences of stakeholders, as well as obtain notoriety and manage the digital reputation. Thus, the purpose of this study is to analyze the presence and activity of wine companies in Spain through the main social networks (Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube). For this research, 1,656 wine companies with the highest turnover in Spain were analyzed: 33 corporate, 218 large, 517 medium and 888 small. Results exposed that companies have a majority presence in the main social networks, but their activity is low. Facebook is the social network most chosen by companies for communication with their stakeholders and Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube are the least chosen. However, the frequency of company publications is so far from the frequency recommended by experts. Spanish wine companies have an inactive presence in social networks and they bet in social networks where there is a greater penetration (ELOGIA, 2018; Kemp, 2018). Taking into account that the majority of companies have been using social networks for 4 to 9 years, low active presence seems to have an impact on the low media of companies’ followers. This implies the necessity to reflect on public relations management in social networks by companies. They are limiting the possibilities offered by platforms not only to increase digital visibility but also to share organizational activities. Having a presence with a low level of activity in social networks is the same as having a rudimentary, careless, and unprofessional presence. This could affect the notoriety and digital reputation of companies. Comparing this research with other studies applied to other wine companies in countries such as Germany, the United States, Australia, and New Zealand, the use of social networks without a defined communication strategy was observed (Szolnoki et al., 2018). The sector recognizes the power of social networks but is not making proper use of the platforms. Finally, this study is presented through a specific methodology for the analysis of communication management in social networks and has been adapted to a specific object (Spanish wine companies). As future research lines, the study of Spanish wine companies in social networks would be advanced. This involves the analysis of content management and interaction management in social networks. Keywords: public relations, digital communication, wine sector, Internet, social networks