Social Media Influences Peoples Behaviors - Research Proposal Example

The manner in which social media influences people’s behaviors in commercial, environmental and political areas October 27 2014 The paper analysis the manner in which consumer behavior gets impacted due to social media in different field and areas like commercial, political and environmental areas Disclaimer I hereby declare that the project is my own original work and the client should not hold the writer responsible for the different findings as they are only recommendations which are provided on the basis of different factors. Further, I have ensured that all the different sources which have been provided are correct and true. Letter of Transmittal The thesis has been completed and submitted for partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree and the different details which have been included is correct and fair. The different sources used have been provided and all ethical steps have been taken to ensure that the paper is free from plagiarism and is an original work. I agree to the requirements and abide by stating that all the information is true and correct and no information has been manipulated or changed. Executive Summary The research which focuses on three significant aspects namely how the social media will influence people’s behaviours in commercial, environmental and political areas identifies the manner in which social media has impacted consumer behaviour. The overall analysis shows that social media has a huge role in determining the manner in which change in behaviour of people has been noticed with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas. Exposure, alternatives, attitude, social media growth and similar other components are important reasons which has impacted consumer behaviour in commercial, environmental and political areas. People stated that social networking sites contributed to a change in environmental behaviour as it helped to understand the manner in which different use of products were impacting the environment and having appropriate strategies to deal with those was required. With regard to the political areas respondents showed that social networking sites and other methods provide useful information pertaining to job opportunities, the social steps which organizations are taking and looking into details regarding the manner in which different activities which benefits the society can be monitored. Thus, different factors have resulted in bringing about a complete change in the manner people act as the growth and popularity of social media has changed the manner in which people think and act. Table of Contents Introduction 3 Research Objective 3 Research Question 5 Scope & Limitation of the Research 6 Research Methodology 6 Research Data & Data Collection 7 Research Design 8 Validity & Reliability 9 Data Analysis 10 Result 18 Conclusion 20 References 21 Appendix 23 Introduction Social media has become a part and parcel of our daily lives and the manner in which it influences behaviour of people in different direction is an area to be researched. The use of different social media websites along with the growing importance being given to social media in every field has increased the need and importance of it. It is true that social media has gradually influenced individuals’ life and it will lead to more changes in personal behaviours. The different social media tool has its own advantage and disadvantages but it helps to create an opportunity where online communities are developed and is totally different from the traditional methods. This research will focus on three significant aspects namely how the social media will influence people’s behaviours in commercial, environmental and political areas. It will look towards identifying the manner in which different aspect of business planning has been impacted due to social media and the importance it holds in today’s environment so that the changes it has resulted in human behaviour can be analysed. Research Objective As a marketing professional I am greatly fascinated about the use social media in different ways. To understand the manner in which social media has impacted human behaviour, their needs and wants is an aspect which needs to be analysed and looked at. Further, the use of social media in different fields and the manner in which its scope has widened and increased has made it an important area in today’s world. The importance of the study magnifies due to the fact that it will look to carry out the research three significant aspects namely how the social media will influence people’s behaviours in commercial, environmental and political areas. First of all, in terms of the commercial aspect, the research will analyse how social media will bring the changes to consumer behaviours. For example, due to the widely use of social communication tools such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, people have more chances to find new information and they enjoy the feeling to share their findings with friends. In addition, some of them will show the nice pictures and recommend products for other people. As Pandya (2013) mentioned that social media has improve the interaction between people and it has increased more business opportunities. Moreover, the company will register the social media account and manage its own brand online. Meanwhile more and more commercial advertisements will appear on the social media rather than the traditional TV programs. Therefore, people will pay more attention to the brands they like and even participant in the group shopping to obtain a cheaper price. They can shop online rather than go to the real shop which is more convenient for people to manage their time. What is more, people will more likely to travel to new places and have new experience. Subsequently, the environmental aspect refers to people have more channels to understand and learn the environment changes in the world. The social media will provide the useful information to help people to read the legislation and enhance their understanding about the environment protection (NSW Government Environment and Heritage 2014). For example, people can see the videos on the internet to have a close view about the endangered animals and plants. So they will more likely to be the volunteers to take care of them, or they will donate money to the charity to build suitable living environment. In addition, people will be more interested in protecting the natural environment. For example, they can see the report about water pollution or air pollution, and they will realize the close relationship to their life. As the result, people will work together in their community and look forward the local government for help. In a broader level, Hogarth (2010) said that the emerging social media can raise more attention about the global environment issues such as global warming. People can see the situation in different place and they will reduce their consumption in fossil fuel, instead, they can increase the budget in new clean energy. For the political aspect, social media plays the significant role in delivering information, and it is regarded as an effective tool of political communication due to the advantage in flexibility and speed. It will reduce the risk in the conflict in the face-to-face communication, so people can have more chances to know the truth and disclose the information to the public. As Shirky (2011) pointed out social media can greatly increase the political participation, and people have more channels to access the extensive and in-depth reports on specific events. Even sometimes people can hold the opposite attitude against the local government. For example, university students will use the social media to organize demonstration to protest the policy in increasing university tuition fees. In addition, more and more local people will use the social media to express their willing in increasing more job opportunities and limiting the number of new immigrants (Joseph, 2012). Therefore, it is reasonable to argue that social media is a key tool in bringing more concerns about the political issues and plays the remarkable role in our society. Research Question The research questions which have been identified are as 1. How do social media impact consumer behaviour with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas? 2. What are the differences witnessed while marketing using social media in comparison to other traditional media? 3. How does change in consumer behaviour due to social media determines the long term prospect of social media? Scope & Limitation of the Research To understand the objective of the research the perspective which the consumers have is important and will determine the manner in which the behaviour of people gets influenced. There are numerous reports and research which concentrates on identifying the manner in which social media has influenced business but very little research is done to understand the manner in which social media impacts consumer behaviour with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas. The limitation of the research is that different factors like technology, infrastructure, culture, values, and norms varies across different countries and continent so that finding of the study might not have its relevance to all fields and countries. Secondly, there are very few literature and past research associated with the manner in which consumer behaviour is influenced in different areas like commercial, environmental and political areas which thereby restricts the overall process of gathering data and creates difficulty to find appropriate backing for the research which has been carried out. Research Methodology The objective of the research as already identified is to find out the manner in which social media has impacted consumer behaviour with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas; will thereby look towards adopting an elaborate approach in identifying the manner in which consumer behaviour gets impacted. The dominant approach of the research looks towards development of a rigorous test so that a theoretical framework which is associated with consumer behaviour can be identified and controlled. Secondary data on the other hand substantiates the findings of the primary data and provides supporting evidence regarding the manner in which consumer behaviour gets impacted. The primary data process looked towards carrying out the research through the distribution of questionnaires and survey among people. The theoretical framework has already identified and presented the manner in which consumer decision making process and consumer behaviour gets affected and altered due to different social media networking sites. The process has also identified the manner in which social media marketing provides clarification regarding the manner in which consumer behaviour gets impacted. The empirical part will focus on presenting the manner in which consumer behaviour gets impacted due to social media with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas. By looking to garner a general perspective on the manner in which social media impacts consumer behaviour will help to provide new insights with regards to the different demographic and the impact it has on consumer behaviour (Bassford & Ivins, 2010). The research will thereby help to find out the manner in which consumer behaviour has been impacted due to different social media networking sites and the impact it has on commercial, environmental and political areas. Research Data & Data Collection The quantitative data for the study has been gathered through a survey carried out through the distribution of questionnaires where a large sample size from the population is selected (Saunders et al, 2009). Since the scope of the research is to find out the manner in which consumer behaviour has been impacted due to social media on on commercial, environmental and political areas the research looks at having people from different age groups and gender. The sample size of the questionnaire is very high which has thereby ensured that the reliance on in-depth interviews is reduced as the presence of both close and open ended questions will help to understand the perspective of the people with regard to consumer behaviour. This will thereby help to understand and garner better response with regard to the impact social media has on consumer behaviour with reference to on commercial, environmental and political areas. Research Design As already highlighted the research will look towards carrying out the survey through the use of questionnaire so designing the questionnaire in a proper way and precisely meeting the different objectives of the research is essential (Saunders et al, 2009). The questionnaire which has been attached in the appendix has been closely built by looking into different directives and analysing the manner in which consumer behaviour has been impacted by social media and the effect it has on commercial, environmental and political areas. Further, to ensure that the length of the questionnaire is appropriate and the respondents are willing to fill the different questions careful planning has been done and all aspect which could have been included in the research has been looked at. The beginning of the research looks towards establishing a relationship between the social media and consumer behaviour from a commercial perspective. The research then looks towards establishing the relationship between environmental and political behaviour so that the different dimensions which needs to be included is analysed and looked at (Bosch, 2009). The usage of closed ended questions was very important as it helped to analyse consumer behaviour from an objective perspective as using only open ended questions would have provided different response from different respondents and understanding the manner in which consumer behaviour gets impacted due to social media on commercial, environmental and political areas would become possible. The questionnaires were distributed to around 150 people who included all type of people. Care was taken to ensure that the sample selected out of the population represented the entire population and helped to carry out the research in the most correct manner. Further, the participation towards the questionnaires was voluntary and no undue pressure was made on any respondents to take part in the survey. Validity & Reliability To ensure the validity of the research the questionnaire was pilot tested so that the different questions which were present was properly refined and the different respondents don’t have problems in answering or providing suggestion to the different questions (Saunders et al, 2009). The analysis and conclusion of the research was carried on actual numerical data and facts so that the results which were obtained can be verified and the reliability of the data can be ensured. The reliability of the result can be seen from the fact that analysing the data which was collected will provide similar and consistent results thereby ensuring that the research was reliable and provided corrective answers. The total questionnaires which were sent were received by response from 108 respondents and the response which was received was complete and provided different factors and variables which have an impact on consumer behaviour thereby improving the manner in which different reliable decisions were made. Data Analysis The questionnaire which was sent to 150 respondents was replied by 108 respondents ensuring that the response rate was 72%. In total the number of questionnaire which was present was 21 which was further divided into different stages and included aspect of consumer behaviour on commercial, environmental and political areas. The details of the analysis is as The breakup of people who responded to the questionnaire consisted of 62% females and 38% males. Further a breakdown of the population based on age shows that 8% were in the age bracket of 18 to 21 years; 68% were in the age bracket of 22 to 25 years; 18% were in the age bracket of 26 to 30 years and the remaining 6% were in the age bracket of 30 above. Since, the research has people from different segment and demographics it will thereby look towards finding out the manner in which consumer behaviour gets impacted due to social media with regard to areas like commercial, environmental and political areas. Some of the factors which has been identified and attributed towards the change in consumer behaviour with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas are as Exposure: Exposure was one important component which was identified by the respondents for being one of the reasons which has impacted consumer behaviour in commercial, environmental and political areas. The respondents stated that 98% of the people used social networking sites which have helped to bring forward different activities to the limelight the details of which is as People stated that social networking sites contributed to a change in environmental behaviour as it helped to understand the manner in which different use of products were impacting the environment and having appropriate strategies to deal with those was required. With regard to the political areas respondents showed that social networking sites and other methods provide useful information pertaining to job opportunities, the social steps which organizations are taking and looking into details regarding the manner in which different activities which benefits the society can be monitored (Dowdall, 2009). It was also seen that the different respondents also provided different qualitative information regarding the manner in which their behaviour was being shaped and impacted due to different social media developments. The respondents stated that having different sites which allow to reach every nook and corner at the quickest possible time helps to provide useful inputs regarding the manner in which different changes are taking place (Gunawardena, Hermans, Sanchez, Richmond, Bohley & Tuttle, 2009.). In addition to it the ability to follow people, groups and other activist and looking towards the manner in which different activities and things are carried out by them helps to provide useful understanding of the actual realities and shapes the manner in which consumer takes decisions Attitude: Attitude was another important factor which was identified to influence consumer behaviour and impacted the manner in which different decisions were taken with regard to commercial, political and environmental areas. The different factors which has influenced the manner in which social media acts towards bringing a change in consumer behaviour is shown below It is evident that 28% of the information is gathered from mass media whereas 72% looks at gathering the information through the internet. In addition to it other modes also have an impact on the consumer behaviour and bring about a change in the manner consumer acts. The respondents clearly highlighted that mass media and internet has helped them to find out different information about the product, the experience of past customers, and other experiences which has thereby helped to take commercial decisions in the required manner. With regard to the environmental behaviour respondents highlighted that mass media and internet is very active regarding different environmental concerns, the steps which people need to take to protect the environment and other aspect has helped to bring about the required change in the manner consumer act and has made people to take steps differently. With regard to the political behaviour it was seen that people became more educated about their surroundings, better awareness of government policies were available, the manner in which different activities can be carried out at a quick pace was ensured. This along with the use of technology provides information from far off places and helps to ensure that the overall mechanism helps to understand the role social media has on consumer behaviour and the manner in which the future style will be altered due to it. Availability of Alternatives: The availability of different alternatives has helped to multiply the options for people as searching for different information before taking their decisions can be guided by it. The different options which respondents have have endured a change in people behaviour with regard to commercial, political and environmental areas. The different factors which has influenced the manner in which social media acts towards bringing a change in consumer behaviour is shown below It is clearly evident that out of the total respondents 72% people felt that using different social media has influenced them more in comparison to the mass media and has brought about a complete change in their behaviour. This has created a new landscape where people are able to act in a different manner and have undergone phenomenon change in their attitude and style of work. Different respondents showed the manner in which usage of communities, online forums and blogs has created a complete change in the people look at alternatives and has thereby impacted the manner in which different decisions are taken. With regard to the environmental change it is seen that availability of different alternatives and options has increased the sources through which different information can be gathered. This has helped people to updated about the different developments and are in a place where changes can be easily determined. In a similar fashion the changes in the political environment can be monitored as availability of options and using it as a platform to communicate with people helps to understand the views of different people. This provides an opportunity where people are able to look at different alternatives and analyse the entire manner of taking decisions in different ways. This has thereby brought about changes in the mindset and is getting reflected through a complete change in people behaviour. Impact by age: The manner in which people are witnessing a change in behaviour is completely different for different groups of people as the impact of a decision is likely to have different bearing for different groups. This will thereby have a different impact on the behaviour of people as shown below The above values bring forward the fact that people who are younger and more prone to witness a change in their behaviour that people who are aged. This was seen from the questionnaire as people below the age of 30 were witnessing higher changes in their behaviour with regard to change in environmental, political and commercial areas in comparison to people above the age of 30. This will primarily due to the fact that people below the age of 30 are more prone to different social media and are constantly on the touch with one or another media. This has thereby influenced them and has an impact on the manner in which different decisions are taken by them. Further, the manner in which social media has grown and looks to cover different things under its ambiguity has also impacted the decision making ability and has thereby resulted in brining a complete change in the process of thought making (Haridakis & Hanson, 2009). This has been reflected on the overall change in consumer behaviour as people have started to act differently and the result of which is that the different things and behavioural changes are common. When people were asked about the role of social media and the manner in which changes were seen in areas with regard to commerce, environment and political areas people responded in the following way It is evident that more than 90% percent of the respondents agree that social media has led towards transformation and is transforming lives of people. This transformation is such that its impacting maximum number of people and has brought about a complete change in the mindset of people in all areas. The growth and popularity of the social media and growing importance being given by towards social media has provided a new platform through which better results are achieved. People also stated that the manner in which technology has been integrated and provide an opportunity to be communicated over long distance at the shortest possible time and with most effectiveness has resulted in altering the behaviour of people. People are further optimistic that future developments will take place on similar lines and will provide an opportunity where further developments will take place and bring about a complete change. This will thereby have even bigger impact on the future and will lead towards a complete overhaul and change in people behaviour as the influence it will have on the future is something to be looked at. Thus, the manner in which social media has played its role has resulted in shaping the behaviour of people and has thereby created opportunities which can be used to develop and grow in different ways. On being asked whether social media is better than mass media and provides an opportunity to voice ones view has resulted in a change in behaviour; people responded positively to it as shown below It is evident that people stated that one of the factor which was responsible for bringing a change in behaviour of people was the opportunity to voice their views and post different things which they found important. This had impacted the commercial environment as people dissatisfied or satisfied can voice their opinion which helps other to understand the actual scenario. In addition to it solving queries and providing suggestions through it has brought about a complete change in the manner business works and has thereby changed the commercial environment. In a similar manner the political and environmental change in behaviour are witnessed as the development of different groups which uploads videos, photos, views, and other matter provide useful information to the user. This helps the user to understand the manner in which different decisions are taken and has resulted in altering the manner in which different behavioural changes are being witnessed. Result The overall analysis shows that social media has a huge role in determining the manner in which change in behaviour of people has been noticed with regard to commercial, environmental and political areas. Exposure, alternatives, attitude, social media growth and similar other components are important reasons which has impacted consumer behaviour in commercial, environmental and political areas. People stated that social networking sites contributed to a change in environmental behaviour as it helped to understand the manner in which different use of products were impacting the environment and having appropriate strategies to deal with those was required. With regard to the political areas respondents showed that social networking sites and other methods provide useful information pertaining to job opportunities, the social steps which organizations are taking and looking into details regarding the manner in which different activities which benefits the society can be monitored. It was also seen that the different respondents also provided different qualitative information regarding the manner in which their behaviour was being shaped and impacted due to different social media developments. The respondents stated that having different sites which allow to reach every nook and corner at the quickest possible time helps to provide useful inputs regarding the manner in which different changes are taking place. In addition to it the ability to follow people, groups and other activist and looking towards the manner in which different activities and things are carried out by them helps to provide useful understanding of the actual realities and shapes the manner in which consumer takes decisions. A combination of different factors had an impact on the manner people act and brought about a complete change in the manner people think. This process had resulted in altering the behaviour of people in different areas. It was analysed that people below the age of 30 were witnessing higher changes in their behaviour with regard to change in environmental, political and commercial areas in comparison to people above the age of 30. This will primarily due to the fact that people below the age of 30 are more prone to different social media and are constantly on the touch with one or another media. This has thereby influenced them and has an impact on the manner in which different decisions are taken by them. Thus, different factors have resulted in bringing about a complete change in the manner people act as the growth and popularity of social media has changed the manner in which people think and act. This has resulted in altering the behaviour of people and has made them to think in a manner which will get reflected in the different process and activities. The overall impact as a role has been very strong and a complete change is being witnessed in the manner people take different decisions and the role social media has played in that direction. Conclusion The research will focuses on three significant aspects namely how the social media will influence people’s behaviours in commercial, environmental and political areas identifies the manner in which different aspect of business planning has been impacted due to social media and the importance it holds in today’s environment so that the changes it has resulted in human behaviour can be analysed. It brings forward the fact that social media has increased its reach and is beyond mass media and has resulted in altering the manner in which people think and act. The overall change has been witnessed in the behaviour of people as the process of thinking and taking different decisions have undergone large changes which have thereby resulted in altering the lifestyle of people. The research helps to answer the different questions which were identified for the research and brings forward the manner in which social media has played its part and role in shaping the behaviour of people. The changes and developments due to this has been great and has revolutionized the overall process of carrying out different activities. The manner in which social media is further growing and the different developments which are taking place in different directions clearly brings forward the fact that the role of social media is bound to increase. This will thereby have a further impact on the bearing of the organization as the manner in which they function will change. The growing importance being given to social media requires that the different aspect which has a role and is associated with a change in people behaviour is properly analysed so that the effective mechanism through which better planning can be ensured is developed. References Bassford, M., & Ivins, J. 2010. Encouraging formative peer review via social networking sites. British Journal of Educational Technology, 41(5), E67-E69. Bosch, T. 2009. Using online social networking for teaching and learning: Facebook use at the University of Cape Town. COMMUNICATIO, 35(2), 185-200. Dowdall, C. 2009. Impressions, improvisations and compositions: reframing children’s text production in social networks sites. Literacy, 43(2), 91-99. Fotis, J 2014, ‘the impact of social media in consumer behaviour: Focus on leisure travel’, viewed at 2 September 2014,http://blogs.bournemouth.ac.uk/etourismlab/research-projects/phd-projects/the-impact-of-social-media-in-consumer-behaviour-focus-on-leisure-travel/ Gunawardena, C. N., Hermans, M. B., Sanchez, D., Richmond, C., Bohley, M., & Tuttle, R. 2009. A theoretical framework for building online communities of practice with social networking tools. Educational Media International, 46(1), 3-16. Haridakis, P., & Hanson, G. 2009. Social interaction and co-viewing with Youtube: blending mass communication reception and social connection. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media, 53(2), 317-335. Hogarth, M 2010, ‘Social media is going to save the world’, viewed at 1 September 2014,http://www.abc.net.au/environment/articles/2010/11/17/3068738.htm Joseph, S 2012, ‘Social Media, Political Change, and Human Rights’, viewed at 2 September 2014,http://lawdigitalcommons.bc.edu/iclr/vol35/iss1/3/ NSW Government Environment and Heritage 2014, ‘Connect with your environment and heritage’, viewed at 1 September 2014,http://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/contact/socialmedia.htm Pandya , K 2013, ‘Influence of Social Media on Consumer Behaviour’, viewed at 4 September 2014,http://www.slideshare.net/alwaysinnovative/influence-of-social-media-on-consumer-behaviour Shirky, C 2011, ‘The Political Power of Social Media’, viewed at 4 September 2014,http://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/67038/clay-shirky/the-political-power-of-social-media Appendix Questionnaire 1. Age: 2. Gender: Male / Female 3. Which Media Sites do you use on a regular basis? 4. The amount of time spent on an average on social media sites per week? 5. The amount of time spent on mass media per week? 6. Do you think social media sites impacts your behaviour? Strongly Agree/ Agree/ Neutral/ Disagree/ Strongly Disagree 7. What impacts your behaviour? Previous experience/ knowledge/ brand reputation/ information from internet/ information from mass media/ Information from peers and friends 8. How do you seek information and the manner in which it influences behaviour? 9. The manner in which social media impacts environmental behaviour? 10. The manner in which social media impacts political behaviour? 11. Is finding information on social media easier than traditional media? Strongly Agree/ Agree/ Neutral/ Disagree/ Strongly Disagree 12. Do you search for information over social media before carrying out different activities? Strongly Agree/ Agree/ Neutral/ Disagree/ Strongly Disagree 13. Your views on social media? 14. Any suggestions? Appendix 2: Response from customers Read More