Navigating the Social Commerce Landscape, Part 2

1. Control rests with consumers. Fifty percent of all purchases — in-store and online — involve researching products online first.
2. Research starts with search but ultimately happens on retailers’ sites. Social media isn't top of mind for search. While the majority of consumers (57 percent) begin research with a search engine, research primarily occurs on retailers’ sites (e.g., Amazon.com).
3. Consumers expect social tools for their research experience, but still engage mostly with the basics. While consumers have come to expect social tools, the basics continue to have the greatest impact on buying behavior — namely customer reviews, Q&As and community forums.
4. Consumers seek a variety of voices throughout the research experience to feel confident when making a buying decision. Friends and like-minded consumers have become more influential than experts. The top three online voices that have the biggest influence on purchase decisions are friends, “people like me” and experts.
5. Facebook is emerging as the social platform for researching/shopping. After the basic social tools (e.g., customer reviews, Q&A), Facebook features (e.g., wall, fan pages) were ranked to have the biggest impact on purchase decisions.

Pehr Luedtke is CEO of PowerReviews, a provider of social commerce solutions, including customer reviews, to retailers.