Social network making the most of recommendations from consumers – the most trusted form of advertising.
As the popularity of Facebook grows more and more people are sharing opinions and information about themselves, their likes and dislikes as well as their activities on this social network.
We know from several studies that a recommendation from a consumer ‘just like me’ is the most trusted form of advertsiing. And that opinions posted online are a strong influencer prior to purchase. Imagine then being able to watch a hot book title as it began to climb the best-seller list within your Facebook network? You’d be alerted: "Thirty-one people in your network have bought ‘Microtrends.’"
A scenario like this soon will play out on Facebook, as the company is about to unveil plans to make shopping part of its social network, writes AdAge.
When Facebook members buy something at a commerce site, they can let those in their Facebook networks know about the purchase, passing along information on the item as well as a discount or coupon. The service will bring a sort of easily tracked viral element to online shopping. Two other people described it as part of a larger plan by Facebook that will allow data about Facebookers’ online transactions and interactions to circulate within their social graphs.
Social networking sites are already driving traffic downstream to commerical sites according to a study from Hitwise done late last year. One in 20 Internet visits went to social networking sites during September 2006 — nearly double the proportion of traffic a year previously. U.S. Internet traffic to social networking sites rose 11.5 percent from January 2007 through February 2007. It also accounted for 6.5 percent of all U.S. Internet traffic in February 2007.
“Social networking has become such a significant force on the Web that users are integrating it into other daily Web activities,” said LeeAnn Prescott, director of research at Hitwise. “As MySpace grows, it’s showing up in the upstream and downstream [traffic] of other categories that you wouldn’t necessarily think would be related."
According to a recent Deloitte survey, family members’ or friends’ comments about a product are the second-biggest influences on consumer purchases of new products or brands (after the reputation of the manufacturer or supplier).
Facebook already has ties to Amazon for book reviews and iTunes is expected to be a part of the announcement event when they unveil the new features to marketers in New York on Nov. 6.
Smart thinking!
