It’s only the beginning of November, but everyone is starting to talk about Christmas! We know, we know … don’t remind us right? As it turns out, 65% of people use social media for holiday shopping!
Crowdtap created an infographic to showcase the social side of holiday shopping, specifically. Among the numbers, 92% of consumers trusted social media over all other forms of advertising, and two out of three shoppers purchased a gift they found via social media.
Peer recommendations from Facebook and Twitter dominate as the leading driver for a purchase! It’s twice as effective as a commercial on T.V. If those numbers don’t make you think twice about social media for holiday shopping, I don’t know what will!
Pinterest leads the way for gift inspiration, but most doing holiday shopping will see what their friends and family say on social media sites before actually purchasing.
Peer recommendations are the key drivers in gift discovery!
Shoppers also look to social media for digital coupons. They also share those coupons with others – which increases the brand’s social visibility!
Holiday shopping for social media is also happening in real time. Most shoppers are updating their social media sites while they are in the store sharing the best deals and finds.
So what does this mean for your business? Make sure you are visible this holiday season! If you are selling products, make sure you have plenty of reviews on your items.
Post great items on Facebook and Twitter. Encourage your audience to be engaged with the post.
Put together a holiday gifts page and share it on your social media sites. Blog about how to find the best gifts for those “difficult to buy for people” in our lives.
Also, make sure to take advantage of shoppers looking for deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday! This year Cyber Monday is on December 2.
The bottom line: as consumers become more savvy with social media services and turn to peer recommendations for purchasing decisions, it will be imperative for brands to leverage their influential consumers to become their personal word-of-mouth marketers both online and off.
How are you tapping into social media for holiday shopping this year?