Connected Consumption

trendsinsocialcomputingand

connectedconsumption

anePaperbysidneyevematrix

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eCommerce

60% Althoughit'sbeenaroundforyears,thesocialshoppingtrendpeakedduringtheDecember2009holidayseason.Moreretailersandconsumersareonlinethaneverbefore.

retailershave

onFacebookvirtualstorefrontsaccordingtotheInternetRetailerTop500Guide

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2..

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AreportbyShop.orgindicatedthatalmosthalfofbrickandmortarretailerswereplanningtoincreasetheirinvestmentsinonlinesocialmediacampaignsforthe2009holidaybuyingbinge.

Thatgrowthis,accordingtoReuters,duetothefactthatadvertisersperceivesocialmediamarketingchannelshavematuredconsiderablysince2008,becominganimportantpieceofacross‐platformpuzzle.

AccordingtotheHarvardBusinessReview

socialcommerce

connectedconsumerism4

5

.3.

Likewise,theannualFEEDReportfromRazorfishannouncedthemainstreamingof

isoneofthekeyeconomictrendsfor2010.

occurredinmid‐2009.

47% increasedSMMtraditionalretailers

forholiday20093

image:ThomasHawk

4..Privacyconcernsaside,peopleareembracingtheopportunitytonarrowcastourretailtransactionsandpublicizeourconsumerpreferencestofriends,fansandfollowers.

Asaresult,socialshoppingistakingbrandaffiliationandambassadorshiptoawholenewlevel.

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Socialmediamarketingencourages

bondingoverbrandsandbargainsinanetworkedculture.

.

AccordingtoauthorMitchJoel,thepowerofsocialshoppingis"theabilitytoconnectdirectlywiththebrandandbuildfriendshipswithindividualswhohavelike‐mindedinterests."

Thus,thesocialglueofconsumercommunitiesisloyaltytoasetofsharedvaluesand/orsimilarlifestylechoicerepresentedbyourpreferredbrands.

Itisnosurprisethen,thatopt‐insocialshoppingritualsareemergingasthenextmechanismforelevatingcompaniesandbrandsto(whatSaatchi&Saatchicall)Lovemarkstatus.

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ThestagewassetforthepopularizationofconnectedconsumptionaswebusersbecameaccustomedtothepresenceofrecommendationenginesoneCommercesites,andtheincreasingnumberofbrandsonsocialnetworkslikeFacebook.

Whereasfewpeopleadmittotrustingadvertisingmessages,mostofus(70%accordingtoNielsen)willadmitweusesocialcomparisonmodels,peerrecommendations,andfriendreferralswhenmakingpurchasedecisions. .9

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"ecommercetypicallylackshumanwarmthandsociability,sinceitismoreimpersonal,anonymousandautomatedthantraditionalface‐to‐facecommerce."Butaddingjustabitofsocialinteractionandpeer‐to‐peeradvice,viaalivechatclientormessageboards,canmakethedifferenceatthemomentofimpassebetweenacompletedpurchaseandtheshopperbouncingtoanother,moreinfo‐richsite.

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Trendsinonlinesocialshoppinghelpconsumerswhoareplaguedbyindecisionandoftenabandontheirelectronicshoppingcartsinfrustration,observesNatalieZmudaatAdvertisingAge.

ResearchersatMcMaster'sUniversityinCanadademonstratedthatpartoftheproblemwithtraditional(nonsocial)onlineshoppingisthat,

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image:ЯickHarris

AsresearchersattheMITMediaLabhavepointedout,theemergenceofthesedigital,interest‐drivenshoppingnetworksiscontributingtoconsumersbecomingmore

Thisinturndrives:

• comparisonshoppingtrends

• increasedparticipationinloyaltyprograms,and

• creationofvaluable(andinfluential)usergeneratedcontent.

AllofwhichissuretopleaseeCommerceretailersandsocialmediamarketers.

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8..imagebyratterrell

information‐aware.12

Acollectionofnewsocialshoppingappsforsmartphoneuserspromisestosimplifytheprocessofsharingpurchasehistorywithfamilyandfriendsas

TheiPhoneand3rdpartyappdevelopmentisanotherfoundationalelementsupportingstructuresofconnectedconsumption.

iPhoneistheplatformformobilesocialshoppingcampaigns,sinceresearchshowsusersofthissmartphonebrandhavethehighestclick‐thrurateforanimatedmobileads.

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socialshoppinggoesmobile.

Althoughit'snotnewsthatweconstructandcommunicateouridentitiesthroughconsumerhabits,it'slikelywe'veneverdonesoquitesopubliclypriortothemassadoptionofsmartphones.

Ontheirhandheldsmobileshoppers,theatregoers,diners,andcafecrawlersarelayingdownasetofdigitalfootprintsthroughthemalls,shops,andmarketplaces‐‐‐atrailofP2Preferralsforfriendstofollow.

Nosmallwonderthatarticlesabouttheadvertisingpotentialofgeo‐locosocnetappslikeFoursquarearepoppingupallovertheweb.

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1. http://www.directnews.co.uk/news/online‐marketing/social‐networking/over‐50‐of‐top‐e‐retailers‐have‐facebook‐presence‐$1337549.htm

2. http://cm.media.mit.edu/publications/connected‐consumption‐hidden‐networks‐consumption

3.http://www.utalkmarketing.com/pages/Article.aspx?ArticleID=15864&Title=Retailers_rely_on_social_media_advertising_for_Christmas

4.TheHarvardBusinessReviewsocialtrendreportiscitedinhttp://socialcommercetoday.com/harvard‐business‐on‐6‐social‐media‐trends‐for‐2010/

5.RazorfishannualFEEDreport:http://feed.razorfish.com/feed09/digital‐primacy/

6.MitchJoelonsocialshopping:http://www.twistimage.com/blog/archives/social‐shopping‐takes‐hold‐as‐the‐next‐hot‐online‐social‐network/

7.Saatchi&Saatchionbrandlove:http://www.lovemarks.com/

Resources Cited

imagebyAlinaKulesh

1. http://www.directnews.co.uk/news/online‐marketing/social‐networking/over‐50‐of‐top‐e‐retailers‐have‐facebook‐presence‐$1337549.htm

2.http://cm.media.mit.edu/publications/connected‐consumption‐hidden‐networks‐consumption

3.http://www.utalkmarketing.com/pages/Article.aspx?ArticleID=15864&Title=Retailers_rely_on_social_media_advertising_for_Christmas

4.TheHarvardBusinessReviewsocialtrendreportiscitedinhttp://socialcommercetoday.com/harvard‐business‐on‐6‐social‐media‐trends‐for‐2010/

5.RazorfishannualFEEDreport:http://feed.razorfish.com/feed09/digital‐primacy/

6.MitchJoelonsocialshopping:http://www.twistimage.com/blog/archives/social‐shopping‐takes‐hold‐as‐the‐next‐hot‐online‐social‐network/

7.Saatchi&Saatchionbrandlove:http://www.lovemarks.com/

8.BrandsonFacebook:http://www.insidefacebook.com/2009/02/16/facebook‐to‐launch‐redesigned‐pages‐for‐businesses‐tour‐first‐impressions/

9.Nielsenonconsumertrustinadverts:http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/consumer/global‐advertising‐consumers‐trust‐real‐friends‐and‐virtual‐strangers‐the‐most/

10.InterviewwithNancyZmudafromAdvertisingAge:http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20090413/EMAIL01/904139962#

11.ResearchersfromOntario’sMcMasterUniversity:http://is.gd/91b7r

12.http://pubs.media.mit.edu/pubs/papers/main.pdf

13.http://mashable.com/2009/05/06/iphone‐shopping‐savings/

14.iPhoneusersclickonmobileadverts:http://www.bizreport.com/2009/10/study_cpg_auto_scoring_well_in_mobile.html

15.Geolocoadverts:http://www.mediastyle.ca/2010/01/mobile‐tech‐opportunity‐in‐foursquare/

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about the authorSidneyeveMatrix,PhD.Queen'sNationalScholar,Film&Media,Queen'sUniversity,Canada.Blogger,Speaker,Professorteachingdigitalculture,masscommunication&marketing,popculture,television,&filmcourses.Website:sidneyevematrix.com

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