According to a recent report from ROI Research Inc., sponsored by Performics, "S-Net The Impact of Social Media," social media
permeates consumers' lives and affects communication, shopping and other activities, driving changes in consumer behavior online.
The study of 3,000 U.S. social network users delved deeper
into how social sites affect family and friend relationships and consumer attitudes towards brands and products:
- 80% of respondents have an active Facebook account, and 23% of those
without an active Facebook account plan to join in the next month
- 67% of respondents have reconnected with people through social networking sites that they never would have
otherwise
- 39% of Twitter users respond to other people's tweets once a week or more
- 30% of respondents access Facebook and/or Twitter from their mobile phone (through a browser or
application) once a day or more
Active Social Networking Account
Holders (% of Respondents) |
Social Account | October
2009 | April 2010 | % Change |
Facebook | 71% | 80% | +13% |
MySpace | 44% | 37% | -16% |
You Tube | 39% | 37% | -5% |
Windows Live | 33% | 19% | -42% |
Classmates.com | 26% | 20% | -23% |
Twitter | 22% | 19% | -14% |
In | 11% | 10% | -9% |
Source: ROI Research, June 2010 |
Daina Middleton, CEO of Performics, says "Social networks have made... substantial changes in
the lives of their users... (as they) more actively participate with brands and each other... More than a third of all respondents reported using a search engine to further learn after seeing an ad on
a social networking site... more than a third think social networking sites are good sources of information about companies and products..."
Consumers reported a desire to connect
with brands throughout the study:
- 50% of Facebook users click on Facebook ads to "like" a brand
- 37% learned about a new product or service from a social networking
site
- 32% of respondents have recommended a product/service/brand to friends via a social networking site
- 32% of Twitter users re-tweet content provided by a company or
product
Access Via Mobile Once a Day or More (April 2010) |
Social Network | % Accessing | Change From Oct, 2009 |
Facebook | 32% | +23% |
Twitter | 30 | +15 |
You Tube | 22 | +22 |
Source: ROI Research, June 2010 |
Middleton added that "... it's a groundswell of technology-enabled word of mouth...
shifting from strict consumerism to... two-way participation between brands and everyday customers..."
Frequency of Activities on Facebook (% of Respondents) |
Social Activity | Facebook Respondents (Once a week or more) | Twitter Respondents (At least once a
week) |
Make comments about other people's post | 54% | |
Visit company or product pages | 25% | |
Login to other sites using Facebook | 25% | |
Share an opinion about a company | 22% | 33% |
Click on an ad on Facebook | 22% | |
Make a recommendation | 20% | 32% |
Re-post content | 19% | |
Ask for a product or service | 17% | 30% |
Source: ROI Research, June 2010 |
Scott Haiges, president of ROI
Research, concludes that "... users are not only satisfied, they want more... respondents expressed a strong desire to get:
- More printable coupons [49%]
- Notifications of
sales and special deals [46%]
- Information about new products [35%]
And, eCommerce predicts that by end of 2010, almost 9 out of 10 corporate businesses will engage through
social networking portals. On Facebook, says research from ComScore, the visitors who spend the most time on the site also spend the most dollars on online shopping, with an average of $67 in spending
for the top 20% of visitors.
Average Online Spending by Time Spent on Facebook &
Twitter ($ in Q1, 2010) |
Type of User | Facebook
Spenders | Twitter Spenders |
Heavy | $67 | $43 |
Medium | 61 | 75 |
Light | 50 | 73 |
Non-visitor | 27 | 43 |
Source: ComScore, May 2010 (User: Heavy, top 20% of visitors by time spent on site; Medium, next 30%, Light, lowest 50%) |
The comScore research report says that people using Twitter are more likely to purchase Online than people using Facebook, who tend to communicate or play games. Twitter users are
more interested in updates from brands, and the amount of information about products and services are more available through Twitter than Facebook, notes the comScore study.
For more information about the study and Performics, please visit here.