According to the e-tailing group and MyBuys, in a joint online survey, consumers are more comfortable sharing data with retailers than they are with social networks, especially if it enhances the shopping experience. The majority of survey respondents (55%) responded that they are “mostly willing” to provide shopping preferences to trusted retailers in exchange for an enhanced shopping experience. Willingness To Share Shopping Preferences With Favorite Retailers (Completely/Somewhat Agree; % of Respondents) Sharing Consideration% of Respondents Somewhat willing to share to get better shopping experience 57% Mostly willing to share to get better shopping experience 55 Nervous sharing because privacy might be compromised 44 Willing to share to expedite shopping experience 44 Nervous sharing because security might be compromised 44 Will share personalized information for more personalized shopping 43 Cautious sharing with retailers, but not with peers 40 Source: e-tailing Group/MyBuys, July 2012 In contrast, 52% of consumers responded that they are “much more concerned” or “somewhat more concerned” about sharing the same data on social networks Sharing Personal Information With Social Channels (% of Respondents) Level of ConcernPersonal InformationShopper Preferences Much more/somewhat concerned 57% 52% About same level of concern 38 42 Somewhat less/not at all concerned 5 7 Source: e-tailing Group/MyBuys, July 2012 Robert Cell, CEO of MyBuys, notes that “Today’s consumer... expects a tailored online experience... (but) they’re more comfortable sharing shopping preference information with retailers than they are with social networks... designed for this type of exchange... the data strongly shows that (sharing)... results in a better shopping experience... increases brand loyalty...” When asked about specific types of information they would share, 63% of respondents said they would share the types of offers they prefer; 61% said they would share the brands they buy; 60% would share the products they purchase. Preferences for Sharing Information With Retailer (Completely/Somewhat Agree) Most Likely Share% of Respondents Types of offers preferred 63% Brands purchased 61 Products purchased 60 Other stores shopped 46 Shopping behavior 46 Source: e-tailing Group/MyBuys, July 2012 On the mobile frontier, consumers remain more cautious. In fact, 76% of consumers indicated they have mixed feelings or find it somewhat undesirable to be geo-targeted on their mobile device. GeoTargeted Preference For Mobile DeviceReaction% of Respondents Highly/somewhat desirable 24% Somewhat undesirable 34 Mixed 42 Source: e-tailing Group/MyBuys, July 2012 Cell added that “Online privacy is a complex issue and there is no ‘one-size-fits-all’ answer, but consumers are willing to share data when there is an equitable value exchange... " Please visit MyBuys here for additional information.