Our social shopping research revealed a high propensity for influencers [and consumers] to want rewards for recommending a brand or reviewing a product/service. There is, unsurprisingly, a high demand for incentives that discount (75%). But the intriguing insight is how this is coupled with a need for recognition too. There is a long tail of demand for more experiential rewards in return for posting comments or giving feedback.

I came across the RSA’s rather compelling video animation that looks into employee motivations. It caught my attention. Why? Because there are parallels when compared to the  motivations of influencers on a given topic in social media.

The animation emphasises how money has a limited impact in motivating or positively reinforcing a message. Don’t get me wrong financial reward can be important, but as the video of the MIT study shows, it only really works for short, straightforward tasks.

When it comes to motivating the more cognitive skills, skills required by influencers and reviewers, then the relationship needs to go beyond the transactional. We are demanding more conceptional and creative thinking from our influencers and in return they want deeper recognition and collaboration.

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The conversion from “like” to purchase is currently a hot topic for brands seeking to optimise social media opportunities; and recent research from YouTube, supported by the IAB, has highlighted the magnitude of this challenge.

The iconic Facebook thumb

60% of people who “like” or share content from brands are not existing customers – despite the fact that 75% of these very same customers consequently feel more positive about the brand.

As a social media agency, we’re obviously interested in really understanding how consumers want to interact with brands on social media and how that impacts purchase.

So, what’s going on?

The research

The YouTube/IAB research explored how 3,000 consumers in the UK, Germany and France, use YouTube and Facebook. It analysed sentiment  about branded content and advertising on these platforms, and asked questions which illuminate the motivations for visiting these platforms.

The answers to these start to offer some hints towards the current gap between liking – and buying from – a brand.

Not the real world

According to the research, 50% of “users cite both sites as a break from everyday life”. Behaviour is predominantly social, particularly on Facebook where keeping up with friends is a priority (66%) and site visitors have a more open agenda (63% “see what they feel like” when they get there). Similarly, on YouTube where “a cool video” is the prime reason for sharing a brands’ video, entertainment, rather than consumption, seem to be the dominant driver.

Could it be as simple as the fact that consumers’ heads aren’t necessarily in a purchasing frame of mind at this point?

And, if so, how do brands make this link?

Getting consumers

The IAB press release highlights the importance of understanding the different “customer mindsets” of each social media platform. YouTube,  for example, is often more associated with “entertainment” or “fun”, whilst consumers are more likely to visit a brand’s Facebook page than their YouTube channel if they want to “hear about or receive a special offer”.

Our ‘Social Shopping Explosion’ report explores what attracts consumers to follow brands on Twitter, and what encourages consumers to “like” a brand on Facebook. Discounts, for example, are far more effective in encouraging Facebook likes than Twitter followers -  and, as the IAB study also notes, when you add category into the mix, the picture changes again…

Step 1 is about understanding how to operate across social media platforms and how to get the message – and offer – right.

Step 2 is about encouraging the purchase once the consumer has started building a relationship with the brand.

Getting real

Whilst social networking sites may be a break from the routine of everyday life and linked to entertainment and fun, “1 in 2 users on each site think it’s a good idea for brands to have their own pages there”. There appears to be an openness to advertising.

Our research explores the changing landscape of recognition and recommendation, and considers some of the new routes to brand affinity and then advocacy, like ideas, inspiration, and reviews. This also highlights that the the opportunity to shift a site user from friend to customer is ready and waiting – but that brands might need to work a bit harder, particularly when brand loyalty is looking like a thing of the past.

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You may have noticed that we’ve been had a very retail focused week here!  As a leading social media agency we’re particularly interested in how social is changing the way we shop.

Given this focus, here’s our pick of the top three retail stories this week:

Retailers set for £85.2bn Christmas windfall – covered on Retail Gazette publicising figures from Verdict Research.  No surprises here that the figures point out that online sales are expected to rise 17.6 per cent to £8.1 billion, and this represents the largest share of growth of any sector.  Maureen Hinton, lead retail analyst at Verdict, interestingly points out that “retailers such as @johnlewisretail, Marks & Spencer and Next, that provide a range of multichannel options for buying, delivery and exchange are the winners at Christmas, as well as specialists with unique ranges such as The White Company.”  Nice to know we’re along the right our social shopping explosion report!

Asos launches mobile site – opening up another route to purchase for the UK’s biggest online fashion retailer this site will work across BlackBerry, Symbian, Android and iPhone operating systems, offering the full range and features of the retailer’s transactional website, such as its ’save for later’ function.  A timely launch in the run up to Christmas.

Weekly Facebook fashion index: most popular retail brands of the moment – a list of the most popular retail brands on Facebook.  Victoria’s Secrets, Zara and H&M are top three.  We will be revealing more data regarding specific brands, from our research, so it will be interesting to compare and relate such an index to our findings.

Following on from the final story, we also spotted some interesting research from DDB on www.adweek.com.  The most interesting points we took from this were:

• Over 90 per cent of Facebook users that have chosen to follow brands can be considered genuine advocates
• 92 per cent of this audience would either “certainly” or “probably” recommend companies and products they “like” on Facebook to their friends
• Fans want to feel more like a VIP who can access exclusive content and information about new products and special offers before the general public can
• 39 per cent of DDB’s interviewees said fan pages could be improved through supplying advance information and previews

Next week, we’ll be writing another post looking specifically at some of the sector findings of the research and providing some top tips on how to engage Twitter and Facebook followers.

In case you’re new to the immediate future blog, we released a major piece of research this week exploring the motivations and mindsets of consumers online (you can get a flavour for some of our findings in previous posts, Should we reward customers for social media recommendations and our introductory post, The Social Shopping Explosion).

You can download the report by visiting http://bit.ly/Social-Shopping

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The Explosion in Social Shopping

Developing brand loyalty and encouraging repeat sales is a challenge for online retailers, particularly in an increasingly competitive and crowded marketplace. With the ability to move between retailers at the click of a mouse and with a multitude of comparison sites for the savvy shopper, encouraging brand loyalty can feel like an uphill battle.

But social is providing a new route.

Reviews, recommendations and recognition

Our research, The Social Shopping Explosion, demonstrates that product reviews are on the up. 53% of respondents had reviewed a product or service in the past six month.

We also demonstrated that the review is rapidly catching up with both search and word of mouth in terms of influencing purchasing decision.

Consumers are increasingly writing reviews – and they are increasingly making purchases based on recommendations.

But it’s not quite clear where the retailers fit in.

The ethics of recognising customer recommendation

Recognising customer contribution is often approached with caution. There are whisperings of bribery or manipulation or undermining review authenticity. And as a social media agency, with our own reputation to manage, we tend towards caution.

However, only 3% of consumers would think negatively about a brand that recognised customer contribution.

53% would think more positively.

It’s a win-win situation. And the preferred form of recognition is not a discounted price.

The impact on brand perception if consumers are given incentives for recommendations

Recognising your customer with a bit of retail love

83% of survey respondents would like a combination of transactional and experiential recognitions; and there is a marked trend towards exclusive offers and developing a closer relationship with the brand. The preferred forms of recognition, including “exclusive insight about the retailer” and “the ability to interact and talk to real people at the company” demonstrate a growing appetite for brand advocacy; and present a compelling opportunity for e-retailers to extend their relationship with customers beyond the point of sale.

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Today we are launching our report on social shopping and its impact on consumer behaviour.

Online retail has traditionally been characterised by price-driven sales and purchase-driven consumers. The focus, for retailers, has been on engaging the latter and maximising the former.

And as a social media agency, we are seeing how social connections are changing this behaviour.

Social relationships on the web have transformed how shoppers are behaving online and dramatically changed the online customer journey. It’s an exciting time for retailers and The Social Shopping Explosion report highlights some of the new opportunities that social retail affords.

Research shows new social behavioural trends

With the rapid growth of social networks and the socialising of the internet, the question of where social media and e-commerce meet  – and how  –  is of huge relevance for retailers today. Particularly in the UK, where internet users continue to lead the way in purchasing online.

In August 2010, social media agency immediate future conducted an independent survey of 2,000 UK internet users to understand how consumers are behaving online.

The results are surprising; the implications for retailers, huge.

Changing the path to purchase

The social web has opened up the purchase cycle. It’s made it easier for consumers to talk online and easier for consumers to share opinions, information and advice. This means that purchase decisions are based on different criteria: the social shopper is increasingly buying on review, recommendation and the advice of other consumers.

Our research found that 46% of consumers are no longer searching purely on price.

This means that retailers can now engage with consumers before they’ve decided what they’re going to buy.

The empowered social shopper

The social shopper is empowered, vocal and increasingly collaborative. They are savvy, knowledgeable, demanding and the rules of engagement are different.

Broadcasting no longer works: brands and customers are talking; and, in the online space, it’s what other consumers say that really counts.

Our research found that 37% of respondents had reviewed or talked about a product online after purchase, fast catching up with those who had discussed it face to face (38.4%). Word of mouth is nothing new. What’s different is where it’s taking place.

Social spaces have created wider networks and, as such, have created a much bigger opportunity for retailers. Our research has found that consumers trust other consumers, even if they are people that they don’t know. This means that every consumer can now drive traffic and purchases via social.

The Social Shopping landscape is in growth

Recent reports from the IMRG/BPS Internet Access and Online Shopping in Britain report shows that online shopping continues to increase. It also finds that the number of internet users visiting social networking and blogging sites for the second quarter in 2010 has increased fourfold when compared to the same period in 2008.

Understanding this changing landscape is key to retailers; and understanding the social shopper is at the heart of their future success.

Exploring the types of shopping behaviour online and investigating how social touchpoints are affecting the customer journey, The Social Shopping Explosion provides up to the minute insights for brands operating in this new social marketplace.

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