When it comes to understanding what media influences customers’ holiday shopping purchases, retailers are listening closely to what shoppers have to say. In a recent survey, conducted for the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association (RAMA) by BIGresearch, consumers said they rely heavily on different types of advertisements to point them in the right direction when shopping for merchandise.
Word of mouth is a key driver of electronics purchases, as 41 percent of shoppers said they were most influenced by what other people told them regarding these products. Consumers are considering not only opinions of their friends and family, but also the thoughts of complete strangers through online product reviews. In fact, 33 percent of consumers said articles and product reviews would influence their electronics purchases this holiday season. But there still seems to be a place for traditional advertising, as one-fourth of consumers (27.7 percent) said newspaper inserts and Internet advertising (27 percent) influenced their electronics purchases.
The survey also showed consumers were heavily influenced by word of mouth when it came to apparel purchases (31.4 percent), though newspaper inserts (27.8 percent), direct mail (21.9 percent) and coupons (20.7 percent) also persuaded shoppers’ apparel purchases.
While older adults continue to rely on traditional media like television, newspaper and radio, younger adults are more likely to use new types of media. According to the survey, 69.2 percent of consumers between the ages of 18-35 regularly use a cell phone, 37.9 percent regularly use instant messaging and 32.3 percent use an mp3 player. Add to that another challenge for advertisers: Twenty-three percent of this age group regularly uses Digital Video Recording, like TiVo, to record and replay their favorite television shows, often skipping commercials.
