A study by ad:tech Chicago and Q Interactive finds that three out of four women who engage with brands via social networking sites say they are not influenced to purchase based on what they see online.
The research, which surveyed 1,000 women online, found nearly 22 percent were somewhat influenced in purchasing decisions after visiting social networking sites while three percent reported being greatly influenced.
"Although women are socializing a lot more with each other, they are not interacting with brands more. The brands are falling behind in this game and they are not opening dialog with women in this arena," Matt Wise, president of Q Interactive, told Brandweek. "We're seeing a divide right now of where the women are leaping ahead of the brand and the brands are struggling to find how best to interact with them."
Although 52 percent of survey respondents report having "friended" a brand, most encountering brands online were either neutral (64 percent) or had a negative reaction (19 percent).
"Brand marketers still have a fundamental misunderstanding of what a social environment actually means - people are communicating on their own terms," Jonathan Ashton, managing partner for Agency.com, told Brandweek. "[Marketers] need to find a way to disassociate the brand from product and associate the brand with lifestyle or something that has more meaning on a personal level. The selling opportunity will come on after you ultimately create a relationship with someone in these environments."
Discussion Questions: Are you surprised at all by the numbers in the ad:tech Chicago and Q Interactive study showing the influence that social media sites have in the purchasing decisions of women? Do you see this number changing in the future and are there ways for brands to more effectively communicate with and influence female consumers?