8/2/13
More than seven in 10 Internet users (73%) from the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. are on Facebook, according to Vision Critical. Among these, 38% have purchased an item after sharing or favoriting it on the site. Among the 24% of adults who use Twitter, 22% have purchased something after tweeting, retweeting, or favoriting it on the site. Among the 15% of people who use Pinterest, 29% have made purchases after pinning the items. Half of social media-triggered purchases take place within one week of first sharing or favoriting the item on a social network. Pinterest users are most likely to make spontaneous purchases after “happening on” items on the site rather than searching for the items specifically (47% vs. 28%), while Twitter and Facebook users are more likely to buy items they were already considering or researching.
Social media users are about equally likely to buy in-store or online after sharing or favoriting items. Three in 10 Facebook users (30%) have made purchases in-store, and 29% have made them online after sharing or favoriting the items (multiple responses allowed). More than two in 10 Pinterest users (21%) have bought items in-store, and 20% have bought online. Some 17% of Twitter users have bought in-store, and 18% have bought online.
Facebook users are much more likely than users of other networks to log in daily; Twitter users log in least frequently. Almost two-thirds of Facebook users (65%) post less than five times per week. Though they don’t speak up very often, the majority of these quiet users (55%) visit the site daily.
Pinterest is most likely to be used for following cooking and crafts information and activities, while health and humor or human interest stories are the most popular topics on Facebook and Twitter. Social media users who make purchases after sharing or favoriting items are most likely to buy the items from discount retailers (online or offline). Twitter users are more likely than Pinterest or Facebook users to buy from department stores. Food and drink are the top purchases made after pinning items on Pinterest, while electronics are the top purchases made after sharing, favoriting, or tweeting items on Facebook or Twitter.
Among social media users who make purchases after sharing or favoriting the products, Twitter users are most likely to have made these purchases via mobile (35%). About one in five Pinterest users (19%) and 17% of Facebook users have made these purchases via mobile. Almost seven in 10 social media users who have made social media-inspired purchases via mobile are men (69%), and a similar proportion are ages 18-34 (68%).
SOURCE: “From Social to Sale,” July 2013, Vision Critical, Alexandra Samuel, VP Social Media, 505 Fifth Ave., 18th Fl., New York, NY 10017; 212-402-8222; info@visioncritical.com; www.visioncritical.com. Price: Available online at no charge.
© 2013 Business Valuation Resources, LLC (BVR). May not be reproduced without written consent of publisher.