Four in 10 US consumers interact with retailers through social networking sites, according to a new survey from Deloitte. Data from the “2011 Spring Consumer Pulse Survey” also indicates out of this consumer subset, 63% interact to find out about promotions and 56% browse products on retailer social networking pages.
In addition, 38% of shoppers who interact with retailers through social networking sites review recommendations.
Smartphone Owners Research Product Prices
Consumers are also using smartphones to assist their shopping efforts. For example, 36% of smartphone owners have researched product prices online via smartphone, and 34% have used a smartphone to shop/browse via a retailer’s website.
Other popular smartphone-enabled shopping activities include researching other product information online (30%), receiving/downloading discounts, coupons and sale information (25%), and reading consumer reviews (25%).
Online Purchases, Research Up from ’10
Some online shopping activities have grown in popularity from 2010. Thirty-eight percent of survey respondents say they are purchasing more items online this year, up about 15% from the 33% who said so in 2010. Searching online to find the best product or price has also grown about 15% in popularity but is even more common, as 60% of respondents perform this activity, compared to 52% in 2010.
However, searching online for product/price/store information has dropped in popularity by about 5% in the past year. Seventy-six percent of respondents reported doing this in 2010, compared to 72% in 2011.
Half of Shoppers Find Lower Prices Online
Slightly more than half (53%) of shoppers say they often find lower prices online than in stores. Another 40% say online recommendations from other consumers have more impact on their purchase decisions than online marketing messages from retailers.
However, only about one in four (24%) consumers expects their favorite retailers to provide them with information access via apps, social media, and/or mobile alerts and messages. And only 16% want retailers to interact with them via mobile device in the store.
In terms of easing shopping with multichannel media, only 17% of consumers say retailers’ use of social media, smartphone apps, and/or mobile messaging/texting has made it easier for them to shop.
9 in 10 Marketers Use Social Media
Ninety-three percent of marketers use social media to market their businesses, according to a new survey from SocialMedia Examiner. Data from “2011 Social Media Marketing Report” also indicates a significant 90% of marketers said that social media is important to their businesses.
