Survey: Social media affects less than half of consumers

Social influencers in particular are failing to resonate with many shoppers.

According to the new Connected Consumer Index, a global survey of 5,000 consumers from marketing automation company Selligent, only 41% of respondents said at least one purchasing decision within the last six months had been influenced by social media ads. Thirty-six percent said they actually purchased something via an ad on social media.

Results also cast some doubt about how much impact social influencers really have on consumer behavior. One-third (34%) of respondents can’t tell if a social influencer post is a paid/promoted ad; 36% of respondents hate when people promote things on social media, and 7% have never heard of a social media influencer before.

Furthermore, four in 10 (41%) respondents have reduced their use of social media due to privacy concerns. Of that population, 40% have quit Facebook; 17% Twitter; 17% Instagram, and 15% SnapChat within the last 12 months. More men than women have backed away from social - 44% vs 37%, respectively. 

Consumer privacy concerns also extend to voice-enabled assistants (such as Alexa, Siri, or Google Home). Roughly half (51%) of respondents are worried that their voice-enabled assistants are listening to them without consent/knowledge. This includes 58% of Gen Z respondents, 57% of millennials, 47% of Gen X, and 36% of baby boomers. 

Slightly less than half (47%) of respondents find voice-powered ad targeting nice/helpful when they’re served up ads based on what they’ve asked their digital assistants, 52% of people, however, find it “creepy.” Two-thirds (65%) of baby boomers find this type of ad targeting creepy. In addition, 69% of respondents find it creepy when they receive ads based on what they’ve said in conversations without prompting their voice assistant.

Other notable results include:
•    Half of respondents (51%) are willing to share some personal details if that means getting a more personalized experience.

•    96% of respondents expect a brand to respond within 24 hours of flagging an issue, and 90% expect that resolution to come within the same timeframe. 

•    However, 40% of respondents say they contact customer service to ask a question about a service or product, 26% to complain, and 21% for returns. Only 4% report they go online to publicly complain via social media when they have an on-going, unresolved issue.

•    54% of respondents will only tolerate two to three negative experiences before they abandon a brand altogether, while 22% will abandon a brand after only one bad experience.