A combined 55.8% of online consumers rate Facebook pages influential (32.9%), very influential (16.7%) or extremely influential (6.2%) in making purchases from the retailer or consumer goods company behind the page, according to data collected by Compete in April and May 2011. Data from the spring 2011 Online Shopper Intelligence study also indicates 27% of online consumers often visit the Facebook pages of retail and consumer goods companies in spring 2011, up a little more than 10% from 24% in spring 2010.
Sales/Promos Top Reason for Page Visit
Survey results show many online consumers are treating Facebook like a product circular. More than half (56.2%) say they visit the Facebook page of a retailer/consumer product company to keep up to date on sales and promotions. This is almost double the percentage who give the second-most-popular answer, learning about a specific retailer (29%).
Half of Consumers Like 5 or More Retailers/Products on Facebook
Almost half (47%) of online consumers like five or more retailers/consumer product companies on Facebook. The largest share of this percentage (18%) likes six to 10 retailers/consumer product companies, with 4% liking 30 or more. Another 10% do not like any of these companies.
1 in 4 Online Consumers Visit Retailer/Product Page Monthly or More
A combined 26% of online consumers visit the Facebook page of a retailer/consumer product company once a month or more. This includes 8.9% who visit monthly, 11% who visit weekly, and 6.6% who visit daily. Slightly more (27.8%) never visit a retailer/consumer product company page, while 22.4% are not Facebook members.
ROI Research: Facebook Users Like Entertainment
Looking at the different kinds of companies/products Facebook users are fans of, an April 2011 study from ROI Research and Performics finds the highest percentage (46%) are fans of entertainment-related products. This category is followed by food (41%), restaurants (40%) and apparel (35%).
Service providers tend to be among the least popular categories, including categories such as educational institutions (22%), telecommunications (19%), and financial service companies (15%).
About the Data: Data was compiled from a survey of 3,269 online purchasers between in April 15 and May 5, 2011.
