research paper on the effect of social media on buying choices

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Effect of Social Media on Purchase Decision

by ISRAR ALI

Social media has revolutionalised the ways of communication and sharing information and interests. The rapid growth of social media and social networking sites, especially, in developing country like India is providing marketer a new avenue to contact customers. Though, organizations are increasing their spend in social media, it is difficult to measure a real return on investment. This paper attempts to assess the impact of usage of social media on purchase decision process. The paper examines the usage pattern and its influences the five stages of purchase process. The study finds that the social media is most widely used in information source for perceived convenience, effectiveness and perceived credibility. Also, the social media reviews and opinions affect the purchase decision process; however, tendency of share their experiences post purchase is surprisingly low.

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Muhammad Yasir Rafiq , Umair Javeid

Electronic word of mouth (E-WOM) has very significant impact on purchasing decision of buyers, product awareness, connecting business and marketing. The objective of this research was to explore how social media influence on purchasing decision of consumers. A structured, self-administered questionnaire distributed among 2,500 citizen of posh area of Lahore. Of them, 1,366 questionnaire were used for analysis. This study is descriptive in its nature, we have used frequency distribution and bar graph technique to obtain the results. There were 694 (51%) males and 672 (49%) females participated. It was revealed from findings that both male and female prefer YouTube and Facebook for social networking. On the basis of results, various recommendations were made; online marketers, vendors, executives and marketing managers should deeply understand advantages, benefits and tools of social communications. Moreover, they should apply social media effectively and efficiently to promote their products, sustain their existing customers, attract more potential buyers and increase their sale in order to achieve their ultimate goal i.e. profit.

Suyashaa Rao

Social media has revolutionised the ways of communication and sharing information and interests. The rapid growth of social media and social networking sites, especially, in developing country like India is providing marketer a new avenue to contact customers. The study attempts to assess the impact of usage of social media on purchase decision process. The study finds that the social media is most widely used in information source for entertainment, networking, and information on new brands. Also, the social media reviews and opinions affect the purchase decision process; however, tendency of share their experiences post purchase is surprisingly good.

Manisha Sherpa

Purpose: The study contributes to multidisciplinary research on social media by empirically examining the impact of social media on the buying behaviour of Indian customers. It aims to provide information on the factors that influence sustained consumer behaviour. Findings: The factors affecting consumer's online buying behaviour can be divided into Research Implications: It is important for e-marketers to understand the factors that affect the consumer's online behaviour so that they draft superior and sustainable social media marketing strategies to engage and deliver their customers on the online platform. Originality: the study attempts to capture the impact of social media on the buying behaviour of Indian customers. Various studies have been done to understand social media as an additional channel of delivery but the Indian perspective is clearly missing when it comes to the impact of different factors on the consumers' online buying decisions. The study uses secondary data to capture an exhaustive list of the factors that impact online buying decision. Focus of the Study The focus of the study is to understand the customers' online buying behaviour through examining the individual level characteristics of the customers that impacts their purchase decision making process and the market level analysis of social media that will help give a

Sony Varghese

Saudi Journal of Business and Management Studies

Thejani Hewage

2018, Global Journal of Management and Business Research: E Marketing

The study intends to investigate how social media characteristics impact on each stage of the consumer buying decision process in the Sri Lankan context. For the study, a quantitative research method was used, and a sample of 147 respondents was selected by snowball sampling method. Primary data was used for achieving research objectives and self-administered, structured questionnaires were used for the data collection. The research reveals that social media characteristics influence on all the stages of consumer buying decision process while the biggest impacts are on post-purchase stage, information stage and evaluation stage respectively. The research explains the role of social media as a current trend, impact of social media on consumer buying decision process and implication for marketers. Abstract-The study intends to investigate how social media characteristics impact on each stage of the consumer buying decision process in the Sri Lankan context. For the study, a quantitative research method was used, and a sample of 147 respondents was selected by snowball sampling method. Primary data was used for achieving research objectives and self-administered, structured questionnaires were used for the data collection. The research reveals that social media characteristics influence on all the stages of consumer buying decision process while the biggest impacts are on post-purchase stage, information stage and evaluation stage respectively. The research explains the role of social media as a current trend, impact of social media on consumer buying decision process and implication for marketers.

IJRASET Publication

2022, International Journal for Research in Applied Science & Engineering Technology (IJRASET)

The purpose of this research is to empirically explore the role of social media in the consumer decision-making process. Quantitative research looks at how using social media can change your experience. Today, outsiders in developed regions are overwhelmed by customer feedback on products and government, and as a result, influence conclusions in unrelated areas. Web-based social networks attract shoppers because advertisers have no control over the content, timing, or repetition of online discussions between shoppers. The results show that the use of social media influences consumer satisfaction during the information retrieval and alternative evaluation stages, and satisfaction increases as consumers follow the final purchase decision and post-purchase evaluation process. Indicates that it will be done.

Fahed khatib

The study aims to explain how the influence of Social Media is reflected on consumers’ purchasing decisionmaking process and if this influence differs at the various stages of this process. Quantitative research method is adapted for the purpose of this research. The primary data was gathered by sending out questionnaire to a convenient sample of 310 individuals in Aseer Region in Saudi Arabia. The study finds that the influence of Social Media differs according to the various stages of the consumers’ purchasing decision making-process. The influence was more on information post purchase stage, followed by purchase decision stage. The study also highlights implications for marketers that have the opportunities to seize the power of influence of Social Media.

Sanjeev Bansal

In order to deliver better and appropriate product to the customer, marketers do a lot of research on consumer buying behaviour consisting of need recognition, information search, evaluation of information, purchase and post purchase behaviour. Understanding consumer behaviour helps the marketers not only to identifying his potential customers but also in customer satisfaction, influence customer, creating competitive advantage, helps in making marketing strategies, increase customer base etc. On the basis of literature review, it is found that due emergence of social media marketing customers able to access the product information easily. Customer reviews, two-way communication, evaluation and comparison of alternatives on social media, effects the purchase decision of customers. There were lot of challenges in carrying out this study, which included gathering and compiling information on need recognition and information search. The social media being a recent phenomenon, very limi...

Niswatun Chaira Ismail

Social media is a virtual place which can be Blogs and different websites are used by individuals or companies to share about them and their products trough internet. Kaplan and Haenlein (2010) conceptualized social media as an internet-based program that provides a platform for consumers to express their own opinions, share information and past experiences using different social networks, blogs and other content areas. The efficiency of social media has empowered the marketers and customers with fast interaction and communication processes to enhance customer service, increase brand awareness and build strong customer–brand relationships. Using social media tools, consumers will have the chance to express their opinions to a larger number of individuals and also find the desired information quickly without incurring much cost (Severi et al., 2014). This study aimed to determine how the influence of social media for purchase making process. According to result that got from survey or questionnaire, consumer’s decision making influenced by the Informative and the alternative of social media.

Social Media is one of the best medium of connecting with the prospective consumers to the organisations. It is the medium to socialize. These new media win the trust of consumers by connecting with them to the marketers at a deeper level. Marketers are taking note of many different social media opportunities and beginning to implement new social initiatives at a higher rate than ever before. Even global companies have recognized social media marketing as a potential marketing platform, utilized them with innovations to power their advertising campaign with social media marketing. This paper discusses about the concepts of social media and social media marketing and other aspects like the growth and benefits, role and relevance of social media in marketing, social media marketing strategies. It also presents an overview on social media marketing in India.

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fuga kisasa

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Ijbmm Journal

2022, International Journal of Business Marketing and Management (IJBMM)

social media has become a component of the community that has been adopted in business operations, especially as a marketing tool in the retail fashion industry of Sri Lanka which is pushed by technological advancements. Social commerce derived through social media supports the user's comfort with occasions for seamless shopping experiences from discovery to checkout with virtual stores and in-app social commerce. Hence, the research problem of this study is to identify and analyze the impact of social media marketing that influence a person to purchase clothing brands in Sri Lanka. The research is carried out as a survey with a sample of 384 retail fashion consumers following a hypothetic deductive approach testing the hypothesis developed based on social media marketing. The results of the study reveal that social media marketing successfully influences fashion consumers to purchase clothing brands among other alternatives.

2020, IJREAM

Social media has changed the way many marketing disciplines have worked in past, including consumer behavior. Consumer behavior became prominent in 1940s and 50s as a part of the marketing area. It studies the level at which emotions, attitudes and preferences affect the buying behavior of consumers. This paper aims at analyzing impact of social media on Digital/Online decision buying behavior. We shall be making comparisons to show the growing trend of online decision making and increased use and influence of social media for making the digital decision buying behavior. Moreover, what this implies for companies and their marketing strategy to promote their product in today's competitive environment along with suggestion for the same.

Romindo Megawati Pasaribu

SULTANIST: Jurnal Manajemen dan Keuangan

Marketing through social media has been one of trends in recent years in marketing science and practices. Shifting from conventional marketing tools, marketers have capitalized various tools and means to attract the intention of new customers or to maintain the current customers. The purpose of this study is to identify the effect of social media marketing on intention to purchase, based on the fact that concept is raising attention of practitioners and researchers. The object of this study is customers who follow at least one type of social media application in Medan, Indonesia. The data were collected through self administers questionnaire with 152 respondents. The data is tested with correlation analysis by using SPSS 15.0 version. The results of the study indicated that social media marketing is positively correlated to intention to purchase when social media marketing (1) contain relevant information (2) offer relevant benefits (3) comparable with other products. The result...

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ICEI - 2023 (Volume 11 – Issue 05)

Impact of social media on consumer purchasing decision making.

• Article Download / Views: 714
• Authors : Rashmi H B
• Paper ID : IJERTCONV11IS05064
• Volume & Issue : Volume 11, Issue 05 (ICEI – 2023)
• Published (First Online): 07-07-2023
• ISSN (Online) : 2278-0181
• Publisher Name : IJERT

Rashmi H B , JIT,Davangere, India

Social media has played a significant role as a communication tool. People all over the world use social networking sites to communicate with other people or organisations. Social networking site usage is growing, particularly while developing nations such as India, giving advertisers a new channel to reach consumers. Reviews and opinions posted on social media today have started to affect how consumers decide what to buy. Customers can make suggestions and compare products on social media by receiving status updates. It enables the satisfied Customer will enthusiastically suggest the goods to other potential customers. Based on social media, industries are aiming to capitalise on expanding consumer trends for their purchases. The purpose of this article is to investigate the social media's influence on customer purchase decisions. The primary goal of this study is to identify the component that results in consumer purchase decisions on social media, as well as to analyse the impact of respondents' demographic variables on purchasing decisions via social media.

Descriptive research with 100 respondents was done in three sectors in Chennai.

Convenience sampling was employed. The ease of use and eWord of Mouth are two variables that influence social networking sites .The results show that social media significantly affects how consumers make purchases. Customers are at the centre of the company universe thanks to social media marketing, which gives businesses new tools for engaging with customers and

merging them into brand identities in novel ways. Marketers must first understand how social media has affected consumers' buying habits. Social media marketing, as opposed to traditional media, is the contemporary aesthetic of marketing, emphasising increased opportunities for marketing companies to sell a good or service. Businesses are using social media techniques as a result.

Studies show that businesses use social media advertising to reach their customers. As a fresh approach to communicating with customers and influencing their purchasing decisions, social media advertising was chosen. People utilise social media to communicate their thoughts on virtually any issue that their "connection" or friends find interesting, as well as opinions, assessments, facts, advice, cautions, and suggestions. Social media is a tool used by marketers to advertise their goods.

Keywords: Consumer Buying decisions

,Social media marketing ,consumer income level ,

1.INTRODUCTION

A growing number of people are already buying goods through various social media platforms. The widespread use of the internet and the surge in social media usage have forced marketers to look for new ways to interact with customers.

People may now provide feedback and discuss their views and ideas on the use of such items and services more easily and quickly thanks to social networking sites. It also allows the user to encourage internet transactions and provide a different comparison of goods and services. These marketing methods have varied effects on the purchase behaviour of women.According to numerous research, social networking significantly affects how people decide which products to buy. This study focuses on issues from earlier research, including

Do customers' purchasing decisions change as a result of social media?

How may ease of use and electronic word of mouth (e- WOM) affect women's purchasing decisions?

The social media revolution has altered the marketing environment and strengthened marketing communication. The customer has more authority than ever before to begin, drive, and influence the entire purchasing process. This low-cost method has not only helped firms enhance brand awareness, but it has also significantly improved brand loyalty and consumer happiness by allowing them to acquire superior market insights. As consumers spend more time on social media, an increasing portion of communication takes place within these social network contexts. This means that brand-related interaction and marketing campaign exposure are increasingly taking place on social media. The evolving communication setup has thus converted consumers from passive marketing players to active makers and influencers (Kozinets et al., 2008). According to a social media marketing industry research, the social media arena is

more than a passing fad to which marketers are increasingly drawn; 83% of them place a high value on social media for their organisations (Stelzner, 2012). Consumer purchasing attitudes are not only influenced by traditional channels, but social media also plays an essential role in the consumer purchasing behaviour process, which is now heavily influenced by peer evaluations, social networks, blogs, and so on.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Murray & Fodness, 1977

Dynamic techniques involving various quantities and types of information sources have been utilised because individuals cannot try out travel-related goods and services before buying them. Many travellers used social media as a tool for vacation planning, according to numerous studies. Reviews of destinations, accommodations, modes of transportation, food, or restaurants can significantly influence travellers' choices. Travel agencies and businesses have used social media to interact with their customers by posting travel-related information, photos, alerts, and advice, as well as reviews left by actual travellers. These factors may affect future travel plans and even opinions of a destination. These factors may affect future travel plans and even opinions of a destination. 58% of US web tourists used reviews to find out about their trips: 49% merely glanced

Venkatesh, Speir, and Morris (2002)

revealed how the proposion of social inuence aects people's opinions. People who use social media Condioning are generally held in communies and appear to be socially impacted by community

members.According to Venkatesh, Speir, and Morris (2002), social inuence is the extent to which a person believes another person will engage in a parcular behaviour. According to social proposion, social media has come an important inuence on a person's decision- makingprocess., they need conrmaon on what they decide is stylish.

Krishnamurthy & Dou, 2008s

Based on consumers' internet behaviour, social media activities of users have been discovered. Consumers today use the internet as a tool to accomplish their goals. When making decisions, they could be motivated by old friends, their profession, or reviews. Because consumers want to get the most for their money, they turn to reviews on social media as second-hand tools to support their decisions. Reviews on social media influence not only pricey things but also cheap items. Reviews on cosmetics, novels, automobiles, hotels, and even nail polishes are available for public viewing. These testimonials might encourage purchases or aid consumers in making decisions by making it seem more sensible to spend the money on it.

Simpler, 2012

Social media helps in other academic or professional domains, such as politics or jury impartiality and fair trials, in addition to influencing consumer purchase decisions for goods and services. Due to the Internet's accessibility in the setting of the legal system, jurors are now able to use an online social media source to improve their decision-making and discussons. Jurors can express their opinions about current court proceedings on social media. Jurors understand the value of information or evidence that can back up their judgement

and help them come to a judgement. The most important platform for disseminating recent news and information is Twitter. Although the accuracy of this material cannot be confirmed, it will at least give the jury decides

Lehmann, Ruiter, & Kok, 2013

The results of this study indicate that social media and news media use different tones when communicating. While social media is more critical of Internet users' behaviour and may affect the success of vaccination efforts and medical advice, news media coverage has a tendency to be more objective and non judgmental.Another study used the dissemination of health information on news and social media to examine the impact of social media on decisionmaking. The study examined the coverage of influenza vaccination on Dutch news websites and social media platforms. The promotion of influenza vaccine regimens was carried out by Dutch news organisations and social media platforms throughout the months of February, March, and April of 2012.

But based on this study, eHealth announcements were only getting started. News on social media get more responses media than in conventional news sources. It is seductive, influencing people's choices owing to the Internet, and may be a useful source of health information.

M Shaheen,RN Lodhi-Journal of Business Strategies,2016

In the field of marketing, "social media marketing" has drawn a lot of attention.. Businesses all over the world are rethinking

how they offer their products and services. Many businesses in Pakistan have also embraced this rapid change in marketing. The majority of online time is spent on social networking sites (SNS) like Facebook and Instagram.

According to Rockendorf (2011) As marketers strive to understand consumer purchasing behaviour and gain insight into why customers feel the way they do about specific topics, social media has evolved into a market information hub. This article looks into SMM tools, the impact of online advertising, online communities, and E- word of mouth on consumer brand loyalty and purchase intentions.

Forbes and Vespoli (2013) assert that social media can affect consumers' decisions to buy any kind of service or good. Customer purchase decisions may be influenced by quality, brand, advertising, and cost. The results of this study show that consumers make purchases of either cheap or expensive goods depending on recommendations made by their contacts or acquaintances on social media.

Research gap :-

literature review makes it clear that numerous research studies have been conducted on this subject and on a specific group of people, but there aren't many well- organized studies that look at how consumer purchase decisions are impacted by interactions between SM users and marketers. Therefore, this study was created to close this gap.

3.Objectives:

Determine whether clients depend on information offered by social media channels.

To determine which social media marketing strategy is more effective.

To determine whether specific social media marketing is preferred by age groups.

To investigate if feedback systems in social media sites influence customer purchasing decisions.

4.Research Methodology :

In this research process, where quantitative data is analysed, a Conclusive Research Design would be used. The goal of the study is to ascertain whether there is a meaningful connection between social media marketing and consumer purchase choices. A survey of social media users would be undertaken as part of our research. It's possible. Also examined was the distribution of surveys to our target clients and subsequent data analysis. The questionnaire has 14 questions that pertain to the many basic characteristics of both the customer and the seller when it comes to social media as a marketing tool that influences their decision. Along with these questions, the questionnaire gathered data on the variables that a marketer must consider when using social media as a marketing tool.

Sample Design: Target Population: Our target people are social media platform purchasers, particularly those aged 15 to 45.

Sampling Technique: The technique utilised here will be both probability sampling, where we will use cluster sampling, and non-probability sampling, where we will use convenient sampling.

The sample size will be 105 respondents who will be invited to complete out questionnaires.

Analysis of personal characteristics of respondents.

Table-01 personal characteristics of respondents

20 (14.4 percent), 31- 35 years aged were 25(16.6 percent), and 35 and above aged were 15 (11.6 percent), and 5(10.8 percent) respondent belonged to less than 18 years old. The educaon level of respondents out of 105 respondents, 40 (37.5 percent) were postgraduates, 30(27.5 percent) were graduates, 20 (20.75 percent) were up to higher secondary holders, and the rest of 15 (14.25 percent) were for professionals.

Informaon search Table number -02

Informaon searches.

From Table number 01 the researcher was interested to establish the personal characteristics of respondents for the use of SM out of 105 respondents 35 (26.5 percent) were female and 70 (73.5 percent) were males. Concerning age, 19 to 25 years were 40 (26.6 percent) 26 to 30 years were

The study examined how SM impact on information search stage of Pre-purchase decisions making the process of consumers in table number -05 in that most of the respondents agreed that searching for information is easy ( mean of 4.11), SM helps to try new brands by reviews in SM (mean of 4.05), and SM helps to collect opinion about new and existing products, and user searched information in SM before the purchase of goods both are equally influenced.

Evaluaon of Alternaves

Table number – 03. evaluaon of alternaves.

believable because its standard deviation is more.

To know the impact of SM during purchase decisions

Table number – 04 sm creates consumers atude at purchase stage.

From the point of alternative evaluation, table number 06 obvious that, SM highly impact on consumers by providing information about competing brands (mean of 3.76), they agreed that interaction through friends, peer helps to verify the goods attributes through SM ( mean of 3.73), and also it provides reliable information (mean of 3.49), but their agree on SM provide credible information than traditional media on goods is not

Table number 07 depicts SM create an attitude with SM user in purchase decision of consumers most of the customers agreed that shopping through the SM is easy (mean of 4), reviews and ratings in SM creates positive or negative attitude towards goods (mean of 3.9), rating by friends and Peer helps to create a good attitude towards the product (mean of 3.81) and followed by shopping through SM is useful (mean of 3.75), and other

variables are numeral about creation of attitude with highest standard deviation.

73.5% of respondents were male, 26.6% were belongs to 19-25 age groups, 37.5% were postgraduates.

20.75% of respondents were up-to higher secondary,14.25% data collected from profesionals

SM advertisement attracts to purchase products and SM stimulates to recognize the need for something about products.

searching for information using SM is easier. It helps to try new brands with the help of friends reviews and also it helps to collect the opinion about new and existing brands or products

SM provide information about competing brands, interaction through friends, peer helps to verify the goods attributes through SM and SM change initial choice after obtaining information about the purchase of goods

purchasing through SM is easy and interesting. SM creates a negative or positive attitude by ratings, reviews, and information obtained about products.

its standard deviation is higher and it has a negative and negligible link with other variables, SM plays an essential role in generating need awareness, so the marketer provides information about what,

where, and why to acquire the products.

Marketers strive to deliver more credible information on product features, guarantees, warranties, and so on. Because it has a high standard deviation in alternative appraisal and the least link with modification of initial choice after learning relevant information about the purchase of products.

Due to its large standard deviation, SM might foster a negative attitude, so marketers must ensure the security of using cards to make purchases.

Since the majority of respondents understand brands based on updated information, it is preferable to provide updated information on social media.

Social media feedback influences future purchases, therefore marketers must quickly address customer issues in order to build a positive reputation.

We can draw the following conclusions about the research based on the analysis and results shown above: Assessing the effect of SM on the pre-purchase stage is the research's primary goal. The conclusion is based on the findings. The effects of SM on need recognition are strongly correlated with Information search and alternative assessment. Implies SM advertising entices consumers to buy the goods. It encourages buying the thing. SM makes it simple to find information compared to other forms of mass media. Reviews and ratings are useful for

gathering information. Social media (SM) works as a source of information as well as a resource for information about competing brands and helps to verify product attributes through interactions with friends.

Examining the effect of SM at the purchasing stage is the study's second goal. The discussion above has demonstrated the important role that social media plays in influencing customer attitudes, motivation, and perception. It was claimed that using social media to make purchases was simple, fun, and that user reviews of products affected how consumers felt about them

Scope for the further study

Basic information about the effect of SM on consumers' decision-making processes is provided by this study. Since SM cannot be used to purchase all things, the study can be expanded to include certain products. Due to the fact that it also influences how people use social media, it can be examined among specific demographic groups.

Some of the items in this case had higher standard deviation and little or no association. Therefore they may be examined while comparing the individual consumer traits, making more precise recommendations than possible.

Limitations of the study :-

Because it is based only on an online survey, those who are illiterate may find it challenging to respond. Online surveys make it feasible for respondents to complete the form without carefully reading the questions; this can be prevented by using a direct survey.

References:-

Chgarity Pradiptarini( 2011), Social Media Marketing Measuring Its Effectiveness And relating The Target Market, VW- L Journal Of Undergraduate Research Pp. 1- 11.

Faraz Farooz and Zohaib Jan( August 2012), the Impact of Social Networking to impact The Marketing Through Product Review, International Journal Of Information and Communication Technology Research, ISSN No.2223- 4985.Pp.627- 637.

Abdul Sarwar, Ahasanul Haque, And Farzan Yasmin( September 2013), The operation of

Social Networks as A Marketing Tool Malaysian Muslim Consumers Perspective, International Journal of Academic Research In Economics and Management Science, Volume- 2,No. 1, ISSN-2226-3624. Pp93- 102.

Ghania Bilal, Mirza Ashfaq Ahmed, and Mirza Naveed Shahzad (Part of Social Media And Social Networks in Consumer Decision Making: A Case of the Garment Sector, International Journal of Multidisciplinary Science and Engineering, Volume 05, No. 3, March 2014, Pp. 19).

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How social media influence 71% consumer buying decisions

What’s the impact of social media on consumer buying decisions? How does social media buying look today? How can it change in the future? Founder and CMO at SEO PowerSuite and Awario, Aleh Barysevich answers all these questions.

• Digital Marketing
• ROI Marketing

30-second summary:

• Due to the rise of online shopping and the amount of time people spend on social media, social media impacts consumer buying decisions.
• Consumers who are influenced by social media are four times more likely to spend more on purchases.
• There are four ways in which social media has a direct influence on purchase decisions.
• Social media and online shopping shortened the customer journey.
• Social media amplified the impact of social proof or word-of-mouth.
• Social media influencer marketing is one of the most effective ways to reach your audience.
• Stories and ephemeral content are a new way to connect to your audience.
• Every social media platform is different and can be useful for different goals.

A large share of purchases are made online nowadays and in 2020 this number has grown significantly thanks to the lockdown. As the number of internet users increases and tech companies develop more ways to integrate the online world into shopping, online retail is expected to grow exponentially. Logically, many consumer buying decisions are made online as well, and where do people spend most of their online time — on social media.

According to GlobalWebIndex , 54% of social media users use social media to research products and 71% are more likely to purchase products and services based on social media referrals. I bet you yourself made a purchase decision based on what you saw in your feed at least once, be it a post from a friend or an ad that convinced you.

It’s hard to say exactly how much social media influences customers, not just what they buy, but their consumer habits in general. Social networks changed the way we promote products and even gave us new ways to advertise. Let’s talk about some factors that impact customers nowadays.

How social media influences consumer buying decisions

1. the shortened customer journey.

The first thing that you notice when it comes to customers on social media is the shortened customer journey. It used to be that people found out about a product, saw an ad on TV multiple times, and next week they may have gone shopping and finally bought the product. Now, this process can take minutes.

According to the Deloitte report, 29% of social media users are more likely to make a purchase on the same day of using social media. That means that once they see a product, they simply click on the link and buy it: there’s no need to wait before they go shopping. Moreover, the same report states that consumers who are influenced by social media are four times more likely to spend more on purchases.

The customer journey is not just shorter but it’s also more complicated now. Social media has made product research more accessible to users. For example, if your customer sees a product on Instagram, they can immediately search the hashtag to look up other reviews and decide whether they should buy it or not. As a result, customers spend more time on research and check more sources for reviews.

62% of customers say they share bad customer experiences with other people. Thus it’s extremely important to keep an eye on your online reputation and seek out reviews on social media. Remember that every review on social media is important — and that fits nicely with my next point.

2. The influence of social proof

Admittedly, social proof is not a new concept: man is a social animal, and we’ve been giving each other recommendations for centuries. The thing is, these recommendations and anti-recommendations can now be heard by hundreds of people.

Every time you tweet or post about this amazing cafe or the shampoo that did wonders to your hair, your social media followers see it and might be moved to try it as well. The same goes for negative opinions and rants. As per Forbes , 81% of consumers’ purchasing choices are influenced by their friends’ posts on social media.

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Moreover, people proactively ask for recommendations on social media (and brands unfortunately often ignore them). According to this study by Awario , only 9% of brand conversations are answers to customer questions, however, depending on the industry, there can be more than 100 people asking for recommendations on social media in one month.

As I mentioned above, social proof mostly impacts your friends and the people you know. But more and more people on social media don’t just follow their friends — they also follow influencers. That’s where influencer marketing comes into play.

3. The power of influencers on consumer buying decisions

Influencers are the social media users that have a robust loyal audience that often shares the same interests. Their opinions are naturally seen by a bigger number of people, people that trust them.

According to a study by the Influencer Marketing Hub , almost 50% of Twitter users have made purchases as a direct result of a Tweet from an influencer.

Micro-Influencers are especially effective in persuading their audience since they are usually experts in some niche and specific topic, which makes them a natural source of recommendations for this topic. If you’re selling a niche product, finding social media influencers in your niche — Instagram bloggers, vloggers, TikTokers, or Facebook group admins — is a great way to reach your audience.

Gen Z and Millenials are more likely to be influenced, with 84% of millennials saying user-generated content from strangers has at least some influence on how they spend their money.

The influence of Stories on consumer buying decisions

Ephemeral content is a relatively recent trend but it’s already winning over social media users and brands alike. Snapchat was the first to use Stories as a format, but it’s Instagram that popularized it and now boasts more than 500 million daily active users.

The content shared via Instagram Stories is typically more raw and unfiltered, which allows brands to create a more genuine image. It enables companies to take people behind the scenes and show how they operate, their work culture, and the team behind the products. All this helps to foster an authentic connection to a brand.

So these are the features exclusive to social media that shape customer behavior today. But as you probably know, every social media platform is a little different. Oftentimes, brands wonder which social media platform they should focus on . Let’s go through a list of most popular platforms and see what differentiates them from one another.

Most popular social media platforms

1. facebook.

Facebook remains the biggest social media platform in the world (with almost 1.7 billion users ), even though it had its fair share of scandals and controversies in recent years.

The sheer size of the network means that you’ll be able to reach more people on there but be careful — Facebook is not as popular as it used to be. Edison Research’s Infinite Dial study from early 2019 showed that 62% of U.S. 12–34 year-olds are Facebook users, down from 67% in 2018 and 79% in 2017. This decrease is particularly notable as 35–54 and 55+ age group usage has been constant or even increased.

Still, Facebook accounts for 50% of total social referrals and a further 64% of overall social revenue, shows Business Insider .

In 2015, Facebook was responsible for influencing more than half, 52% of consumers’ online and offline purchases, shows DigitasLBi Commerce .

Lately, the company has been trying to fix its reputation by introducing more control over advertising and data management .

2. Instagram

Instagram is an amazing platform for brands since it gives you so many opportunities to show off your product: photos, videos, Stories, galleries, filters, and more. It now boasts more than one billion monthly active users.

What’s great about the platform is that it’s popular among all generations in all countries. 80% of Instagram users follow a business account. 73% of U.S. teens say Instagram is the best way for brands to reach them with new products or promotions.

Moreover, the platform itself facilitates shopping by adding shopping tags and checkout options to the posts. 130 million Instagram accounts tap on a shopping post to learn more about products every month.

Although TikTok is a relatively new platform, its rapid growth made it an important source of brand awareness for social media users, especially Gen Z.

TikTok now has 800 million active users worldwide, and 41 percent of these users are aged between 16 and 24. So, if you want to reach a younger audience, TikTok is the place to be.

TikTok’s algorithm is also amazing for niche and specific products since it curates your feed based on your interests. It makes your job of finding new followers easier — the algorithm will push your content into the feeds of your potential audience.

Moreover, TikTok recently launched new ways to advertise on the app, giving brands more opportunities to attract customers.

According to Hubspot, Twitter is a source of product discoveries for many people.

Because of its quick nature and ability to connect to basically anyone, it’s a perfect place to ask for recommendations. SproutSocial shows that 53% of consumers recommend businesses or products in tweets while a further 48% follow through to purchase those products or services.

There’s a debate on whether YouTube is actually a social media platform or more of a streaming platform or content platform. Nevertheless, it’s one of the most popular platforms out there.

More and more people are looking up product reviews on the platform. Keep in mind that 80% of people who said that they watched a YouTube video related to a product they want to buy said that they did so at the beginning of their buying process.

If you’re ready to invest your time in creating content for YouTube , it can be a highly rewarding task. Just look at the BonAppetit channel that belongs to the magazine of the same name. It has almost 6 million subscribers and more than 1,3 billion views when the total circulation for the magazine doesn’t exceed 1,600,000 copies in a year.

As you see, the data and our daily experience on the Internet show that it’s hard to argue that social media influence purchase decisions. The impact of social media on customer purchase decisions can be explained by many factors: social proof, the penetration of social media, and the availability of online retail.

However, it’s getting more and more difficult to make your brand stand out on social media. Focusing on the right platform, building creative social media marketing campaigns , and using up-to-date technologies will help you with that.

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