Strategic Communication As A Tool For Rebuilding Trust And Transparency In Public Relations: A Ghanaian Telco Perspective

Abstract

This study examined how strategic communication and misinformation management shape public trust in mobile money services within Ghana’s telecom sector. Using quantitative data from 186 subscribers across MTN, Vodafone, and AirtelTigo, the analysis showed that communication practices extended beyond message dissemination to include clarity, accountability, corrective action, and user guidance. Respondents interpreted alerts, educational campaigns, and corrective updates as credible signals that informed behavioural decisions and reduced exposure to fraud. However, the same communication processes revealed uneven transparency, variation in message consistency, and differences in how users responded to risk information. The findings further indicated that trust was conditioned by perceptions of communication quality, the timeliness of responses to misinformation, and the extent to which messages supported user understanding and safety actions. Regression results demonstrated that strategic communication and misinformation management jointly influenced trust, while descriptive patterns showed that users relied heavily on anti-fraud communication in evaluating the reliability of the service environment. The study therefore positioned mobile money communication as a form of risk governance in which institutional responsibility, user interpretation, and fraud mitigation efforts interact to shape confidence in digital financial platforms.