The numbers are far from a majority, but new research from comScore Inc. shows 28 percent of consumers have had their holiday season purchases influenced by social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.
"Social media really appears to be emerging as an important marketing channel this holiday season," said Gian Fulgoni, chairman and co-founder of comScore, in a press release. "On the one hand, its emergence is being driven by increased consumer adoption of these technologies and the exponential growth in digital word-of-mouth that is occurring over this medium. On the other hand, having a social media marketing strategy makes sense for retailers in this environment because it's cost-effective and shows an effort to get closer to one's customers. I think we are getting our first real glimpse at the impact social media will play on commerce as we enter the next decade."
The types of social media communications influencing purchases included consumer reviews (13 percent), expert reviews (11 percent), a Facebook fan page consumers follow to special offers, status updates on a friend's Facebook page (six percent) and a tweet by a friend on a product (three percent).
Retailers and brands are jumping on the social media bandwagon to try and take advantage of its influence. J.C. Penney is among those companies.
"Our customers are spending a lot of time connecting with each other in these online communities, and we want to be there," Nick Bomersbach, director of jcp.com, told Bloomberg News. "Oftentimes they're talking about brands and J.C. Penney, and we want to have an open avenue to have that dialogue."
Discussion Questions: Where do you see the greatest opportunities to influence consumers through social media? Are there aspects of the social media experience where retailers and brand marketers should be treading most carefully?