While social media users seem to pay more attention to email (26.7%) and internet advertising (28.3%) than the average adult (23.4% and 23.1% respectively), face-to-face recommendations are still the biggest influencer of online searches, according to a new study conducted by BIGResearch for the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association (RAMA). Social media influence also tends to skew based on gender: Men who use social media are much more likely than women to be influenced by internet advertising (32.8% vs. 24.1%), instant messaging (12.0% vs. 7.2%) and blogs (14.3% vs. 10.4%). However, the influence of e-mail advertising and online communities is almost identical between genders.
Which of the following triggers you to start an online search?
(Social Media Usage By Age)
Medi Social Media Users 18-34 35-54 55+
Blogs 17.6% 8.6% 6.7%
Social Networks 28.4% 19.2% 15.3%
Instant Messaging 16.4% 4.7% 2.5%
Internet advertising 31.9% 26.7% 22.4%
Cable TV 46.4% 35.7% 26.4%
TV / Broadcast 37.8% 44.0% 44.9%
Cell Phone 14.4% 4.1% 1.1%
Text Messaging 11.6% 3.2% 1.5%
Radio 32.7% 32.0% 25.9%
Face-to-Face Communication 43.6% 41.0% 36.6%
[Credit: study conducted by BIGResearch for the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association (RAMA)]
