How Does Social Media Influence the Buying Behavior of Consumers ?

How Does Social Media Influence the Buying Behavior of Consumers?

Article :

http://smallbusiness.chron.com/social-media-consumer-behavior-45733.html

Now complementary, social networks and other medias coexist, forcing companies to revisit their communication plans. And if they invest social networks both in buying advertising space and to strengthen their customer service, we can ask how advertising on social networks influences the purchase act of consumers.

It is undeniable that communication on social networks is nowadays very important. This change is essential for companies, which must then adapt their strategies in order to communicate as effectively as possible with their consumers. A presence on social networks then seems inevitable for brands to continue to exist in the minds of customers and show their business activity.

The rise of smartphones and tablets greatly increases the consultation of social networks as well as commercial sites. Older means of communication, such as television advertising, seem to have a smaller impact, especially among younger generations. A study conducted by Nielsen in the United States reveals that 41% of tablet owners and 38% of smartphone owners do not hesitate to consult their device when they watch television. And among these, 44% of tablet owners and 38% of smartphone owners do so to consult social networks. Interactions on social networks are even stronger when consumers react live to the TV program they watch. Advertisers must then create the event to help create more engagement with their brand including live response on social networks.

Considering social networks as unavoidable, advertisers then use their Facebook pages and their Twitter accounts as a relay of their traditional customer services. A mutation considered almost natural by users of social networks in the United States since 47% of them follow this type of page and a third of them said they prefer to contact a customer service through the social networks rather than pick up their phone. This is particularly true among young people, since they are 37% of 18-24 years and 35% of 25-34 years to say prefer to use social networks.

Advertisements on these social networks allow brands to maintain a commercial presence with consumers. These ads are displayed based on visitor profile information to better target them and encourage buying.

The influence of social networks on the act of purchase is becoming more and more evident.

Comments on social networks also help increase sales and influencers on social networks like instagram play an important role in the consumer's decision-making process. These influencers are sometimes followed by hundreds of thousands of fans and are increasingly popular with brands and companies to advertise on social networks.

75% of users have already made a purchase after reading content published by an influencer. Because they constitute advisers of choice, the contents published by the influencers are not without effects on the people who read them.

In fact, 89% of American Internet users who follow an influencer declare having discovered a product or brand after having read one of their posts. 89% have already visited the brand website, 87% have already looked for more information about the product or the brand and 75% have already purchased the product or brand.

...