Shoppers and Social Media: New Data for Digital Marketers

Consumers are researchers. They are seeking out information on each and every purchase, no matter the category, and they are consulting a wide range of sources. Not surprisingly, some of the most influential sources they consult sit in the social media realm. 

How do we know?

We asked them.

We set out last year to find out more about shopper behavior, asking 6,000 recent purchasers in six product categories about their purchase journeys. Where did they look for information and which of those informational sources were most influential in their final decision? Social media was a clear contender. 

We highlighted the social media findings from our study, and how shoppers use this channel for information about potential purchases, in our new report: “Shoppers and Social Media: How your customers use social to shop.” In it, we outline some interesting data points for digital marketers who are using social media to connect with their audiences, including the fact that 63% of shoppers are using social media to inform purchasing decisions and the large majority (80%) of higher-income consumers rely on it heavily. 

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All this boils down to the fact that digital marketers must meet their shoppers on their social platforms of choice, with flexible strategies that meet ever-changing needs and are designed to resonate with category audiences. Our findings indicated that the channel’s usage and influence varied greatly by product category, and that shoppers are, overall, quite fickle in how much they leverage it.

Marketers must stay a step ahead by taking action, and here are two of the most important tasks in your social media marketing toolkit: 

• Market research strategy: Deep consumer insights strategies can help marketers understand the content shoppers want to see, and where they want to see it. This includes a customer-centric approach that explores what they want to know prior to purchase (your sustainability practices? Ingredients? Use cases?), who they’d like to hear from (influencers? peers?), and where they are in the purchase journey when they consult social media. And because audiences are constantly evolving, keeping these insights fresh and up-to-date should be part of the plan. Any investment will pay off in the end by better informing where marketing effort and budgets will be most effectively spent.  

• Technology employment: Investments in social media management technology that will enable tracking, measurement and quick pivots will help you get the best ROI. There are a whole host of options available, but the best ones will link all your customer data together with your shopper insights and social media behaviors to give a more holistic view of your unique audience. Consider platforms that allow you to push out the right messages at the right time to the right people, with options to help you deeply explore audiences. They will save you time and headaches in the long run. 

Because the interaction between shoppers and social media platforms is constantly changing, a sharp social media marketing strategy needs constant evaluation and revision. If nothing else, the past two years have taught us that change is the only constant, and social media usage among shoppers is not immune. Digital marketers must keep up with where their most important audiences are spending time and, ultimately, money.

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[To share your insights with us, please write to sghosh@martechseries.com]