Who do people ask? Why, friends and family of course. A recent survey of over 1500 adults showed that consumers still look first to their friends and family for advice regarding their purchase decisions. Respondents said that family and friends help them choose what to buy, up 13% from 61% last year. Next on the list are retailer websites. The study notes that retailer websites are a growing influence.
Traditional media such as TV and magazines are an information source for 42%, ahead of sales associates and e-mail messages from retailers, each at 32%. It’s interesting to note that traditional media ranks behind online source as an information source. While that may be the case, several studies point to TV advertising in particular as most effective in influencing consumer purchase decisions.
Despite recent survey findings that almost half of Americans engage with brands on social networks, just 26% of respondents of the survey said they use social networks to find information about an item they’re considering purchasing. But, if Millennials (16-34) can be used as a leading indicator, social networks may prove a more influential information source in the future: Millennials were 54% more likely than the average respondent to say they turn to social media for product information.
So what does this mean? Portal functionality;
- Let your customers send out email alerts to their family/friends from your portal.
- Ad functionality that creates custom websites for each pair of eyeballs, which they in turn can share with their loved ones.
- Create a members section where membership has its privileges. Where the hunt for apt, house or rental and its discussions take place on your portal.
Anyone can throw up a product page with some pictures and the number of bedrooms. Let your portal be the center of house hunting for your customers, they will thank you by returning over and over again. What is more they will bring their friends as well.
About the Data: The data is based on a survey of 1500 adults and 200 teens aged 16-65+.
