Topic: How have social networking websites affected consumers ' decision making process?
Introduction
The undeniable influence that social networking sites have on consumer behaviour is the subject of much commentary from psychological, sociological and economic perspectives. In discussing how social networking websites have affected consumers’ decision making processes it is obvious that social networking websites play an important role in consumers’ purchasing decisions.
This paper will demonstrate that social networking websites and the social and psychological constructs that they give rise to, are most likely the primary determinative factor in the decision making process of the modern consumer. The sources of this increased influence
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In addressing the two fundamental emotions (pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain) consumers are influenced by a number of factors that have been the subject of much research and academic attention.
Owing to the pervasive nature and effect of social networking sites, their existence and use by consumers has significantly altered the paradigm of when, where and how these influences can be applied to the consumer. Furthermore, it has been demonstrated to affect both online and in store sales. According to a study by Deloitte (Lobough, et al., 2015) in 2015 the percentage of in store sales that were influenced by digital media was 46% and expected to increase
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Looking at the area from the point of view of the companies attempting to engage with potential and existing companies, social networking sites have become a staple of the bundle of medium that companies use to effect the required level of engagement (Manglold & Faulds, 2009). This is largely because the discourse engaged in by consumers, when discussing products on social networking sites, has become critical information for the marketing professionals of the relevant company. Furthermore, the erosion of the marketing professional’s long held control over where and how consumers were touched by a company message, dictates that their efforts should be focused channelling experiences through engagement (Manglold & Faulds,
Pooja, M., Black, J. E., Jiangmei, C., Berger, P. D., & Weinberg, B. D. (2012). The Impact of Social Media Usage on Consumer Buying Behavior. Advances In Management, 5(1), 14-22.
Social media is at the core of many marketing plans for corporations in the United States and world-wide. One of these companies at the forefront of social media use is Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (Wells Fargo). The ability to directly contact customers and potential customers in a real time online environment is crucial to the bank / customer conversation and reinforcing the company’s place in a customer’s mind as the entity that they want to do business with (Wells Fargo Bank, 2014). This case study will discuss the current status of Wells Fargo’s use of social media as a means to building their customer base. Additionally, historical information on the process of the marketing move to social media will be presented and the development of the roles that are involved in this marketing strategy will be discussed. The impacts to the public sphere and society at large will play into the discourse of the social media topic and finally, the underlying theories will be discussed as they pertain to Wells Fargo and social media.
Topshop has focused on the social media platform not only to make the brand name known but to trap some revenue from the online sales. It has seen Topshop being ranked among the companies with the extensive range of customers across all the social media platforms. The most targeted group in this strategy is the younger population, hence this makes social marketing easier for the company (Schmidt & Iyer, 2015). Social media acts like an online shop without necessarily requiring their clients to walk into the store.
Technology is a great gateway to reach the affluent consumer audience. Consumers in this category are likely to use technology to thoroughly research a product or company before making their purchase. It is suggested that companies take extra time and effort to online sources in order to attract affluent customers. Recommendations include, “reach out to users who post negative reviews and find ways to mitigate their impact or explain misplaced blame, connect with shoppers on a more intimate level than broadcast TV through blogs, and use social media as a way to improve customer satisfaction” (Haack,
Social media in marketing is beneficial to any company in that it helps businesses organize control, and streamline communication and information, and help companies to better promote their brand (Paus, 2013, p.77, 78, para. 13). Social networking is not a bad way to promote a business or an organization but there has to be strategy implemented to monitor the images and information that can potentially foster negative perceptions of the
The shopping online, which is also mobile-adapted, is an invitation and inspiration to visit physical stores. It increases H&M’s service to consumers making more accessible the total amount of goods (Li and Frydrychowska, 2008). This type of sales is growing also because of social media development; in fact social media are essential communication channels when companies want to expand. H&M is one of the leading companies on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube (H&M, 2014; Passport, 2012).
Macy’s stores are just half of what Macy’s markets in todays society. Today, technology is running the world trying to make our lives more efficient and user friendly. Stores try to keep up in this constantly changing world to get customers to see all aspects of their advertising. Mostly, Macy’s is seen on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and other up and coming sites. Each page is filled with replying and staying connected to customers, marketing upcoming events and contest, and the newest items in stock. Each site is different in its own way and can sometimes be unpredictable when it comes staying relevant. There are many factors to their marketing on social media that can be strengths and
The use of social media substantially helps gather all types of fans of a brand or company together and allows them to interact and cooperate with one another, create an identity and communicate their interest for this specific brand or set of products. Take for example Kraft Foods campaign for the one hundredth anniversary for Oreo cookies. “Kraft launched the campaign because of its concern that Oreo did not "own top of mind awareness for men and women age 18-24" (Mitchell). What Kraft did was establish the primary target audience, and implemented a strategy to increase the traffic to their Facebook page. “The results of the year-long Oreo campaign were 231 million media impressions and almost a 200% increase on its Facebook page” (Mitchell). With Kraft’s marketing planned accordingly, it created word-of-mouth awareness,...
According to Murcott (1989) and Shepherd (1989), there are many factors that influences a person’s choices, including marketing and economic variables as well as social, cultural, religious or demographic factors. Based on Rideout et al., 1999; Roberts et al., (2005), social media like advertising have a big
Social media in marketing is used as an apparatus that builds an identity for a brand and gives awareness that they thought they could have. It does not only respect buyers, but also customer allegiance. Social media is widely-ranged so it can be used in whatever way that best conforms to the strategy and wants of the business. In accordance to the social media marketing report of 2014, a considerable (64%) of marketers use social media for at least 6 hours or more and 41% for 11 hours or more weekly, more importantly nearly (19%) of marketers use up to 20 hours each week on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and many more. The report also showed 7 social media platforms that led in 2014 which are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, Youtube, Pinterest and Instagram.
Parsons, A. (2013). Using social media to reach consumers: A content analysis of official Facebook pages. Academy of Marketing Studies Journal, 17(2), 27-36. Retrieved from http://0-search.proquest.com.mylibrary.qu.edu.qa/
Since social media users grow larger and larger, many companies take the opportunities of using social media marketing to reach more customers. Companies use social media marketing in order to achieve marketing communication and branding goals. Social media allows companies to see what prospects are saying about their brands and competitors. It also allows companies to build deeper relationships with existing customers that drives them to purchase again and again. Not only it can help them generate new leads, but it allows them to build deeper relationships with existing clients that drives them to purchase again and again. It has become common for businesses to branch out and experiment with multiple networks with the aim of reaching the maximum amount of costumers.
...o use for instant information. Data will be collected from the like page on Facebook, Instagram, twitter and Youtube these results will be converted into a table from their sub categories which will be formed from the tweets that are tweeted whether they link to consumer behaviour. There will be certain skills needed in this process, being open minded with data collected, observing the right information for your research and making sure it is reliable. Using social media as platform and tools to collect data become important in my research allowing to access like pages 24/7. This research interested me to investigate the influence of different social media on decision making. Also, the difference in characteristics according to consumers, the cultural and nationalities that interest to understand the influence of consumer behaviour and the variables behind it.
Among the billions of social media users, there is a percentage dedicated to businesses who use social media as part of their marketing strategy. The sheer number of people who use services like Facebook and Instagram on a daily
In recent years, social networking sites have rapidly gained popularity among people at all ages. A large number of people have registered and become members of some social networking sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Wechat. Also, people spend a lot of time on these sites chatting, playing games, and making friends. Social networking sites have become a part of people’s life. However, what accounts for the popularity of these sites? As far as I’m concerned, this phenomenon, which social networking sites are very popular nowadays, is caused by three important reasons.