Social Media and Consumer Behavior - Essay Example

Social Media and Consumer Behavior Technology has progressed profoundly over the years, and new innovations have been introduced to the world on a regular basis. One of the most popular innovations that have been introduced to people has been social media. The increasing use of social media has dramatically changed the way how young consumers behave in regards to their purchase decision and consumption (Scoble & Israel, 2006). Social media refers to the new form of media that not only gives an individual access to information, but allows the user to communicate and interact with other users as well. The most common forms of social media are the websites that have been established on the Internet such as Facebook, Reddit and Twitter which enables users to post their thoughts onto the Internet for all or a chosen few to see. The introduction of social media to the world has affected almost every sector and the business world is not different and can be pronounced to be one of the sectors that have been highly affected by this advancement in technology (Khosla, 2010). Consumers no longer behave in a similar manner than before the advent of this new discovery, and as a result, it has also forced the business world to adapt to it. There are a number of ways that the consumer does not act similarly as before the introduction of social media during their shopping experience, these include: Prior Purchase The consumer’s behavior prior to the purchase of a product has been influenced by the founding of the social media as the buyers have learnt to adapt and use it to their advantage when considering an item. In the past, a consumer would, for example, buy their products based on the adverts that they saw on the TV, or other media trusting that information that they were receiving on the product was true. If one needed to be entirely sure, there were instances where they were able to take the product through a trial run or could ask for a demonstration at the store (Kardes, Cronley & Cline, 2011). Individuals would have been obliged to go to the store to see how a product actually worked if they were determined to erase any doubts that they may have had, but all this has changed due to the founding of the social media to the public. An individual no longer has to make the physical trip down to the store, since he can easily get them on the Internet and research the customer reviews that are present on a number of websites on the product they have in mind. Using this method, the consumer is able to determine whether the product is satisfactory depending on the number of positive reviews the product has received in comparison to negative ones (Kaplan & Haenlein, 2010). Customer reviews are written by persons who have already purchased and used the product, and therefore, do not stand to profit by lying to the public about its quality. A large number of good reviews would motivate an individual to purchase the product while the latter would put them off it. The art of window shopping has also dwindled as a result of the introduction of social media in consumer circles (Scoble & Israel, 2006). Prior to social media, an individual would walk to different stores looking for the best deal available to them when they wanted to save on money on buying a certain item. This would even happen when the customer had no money, but only wanted to look around at items available that they may be interested in later on hence the term window shopping. This has now changed thanks to the Internet and social media as one is now able to get online and ask others about any enquiries they may have pertaining to a particular item (Charlene & Bernoff, 2008). This includes the cheapest place to get it, the best model buy and other such topics without having to get up off their seat and find out for themselves. The online social interaction ensures that response can occur immediately, meaning that the individual would have saved on time as well as energy. This online interaction also has an influence on the items that an individual buys as well. For example, one may happen to hear about a certain new cell phone on the market via the social media and all the rave reviews that it is getting causing the individual to want to purchase the cell phone as well as a result of other people’s views. The individual is able to walk into a shop and ask for that particular cell phone as they already have all the knowledge needed on the product from the social media (De Valcke, Van Bruggen & Wierenga, 2009). After Consumption The customer’s behavior after the consumption of the product has also taken a turn as a result of the introduction of the social media. Whereas before if an individual was not content with the product they have bought, they would have to return to the store to file a complaint one can simply do it over the Internet now (Jepsen, 2006). This can be done by accessing the Internet to post a negative review about the product and encouraging others not to purchase it. There are a number of independent websites that have been set up to provide platforms for non biased reviews on products after it was suspected that companies may get the urge to tinkle with those on their own websites about their products to bring out a doctored, but more positive outlook on the product that they are selling (Scoble & Israel, 2006). One is also able to lodge a complaint with the company of the product via the Internet as well and receive feedback through the same medium. Individuals are now able to garner forces against a product that they feel a company should improve on in terms of quality through the use of things such as online petitions (Blackwell, Miniard & Engel, 2006). Individuals no longer have to go out to get signatures on a matter they want handled, but can instead mobilize groups from the comfort of their own homes. As a matter of fact, the groups mobilized via the social media can be much bigger and faster than the old school physical alternative way of doing things. The introduction of the social media has changed the way that consumers behave and relate with a product due to the easy access of information that is now available to them with just the click of a button (Benkler, 2006). This has allowed the customer not only to have their enquiries answered in a shorter time than was previously possible but also acquire more realistic replies than they would have obtained from the makers of the product. The onset of social media has proven to be the horizon of a new way of making one’s consumer’s decisions whereby one is able to choose to rely on the feedback of others who have already used the product as opposed to the company behind the item whose main intent is to sell as much stock as possible of the product. In conclusion, the change in behavior that has occurred due to usage of social media by the public can be pronounced to be a good one as it has made things easier for the buyer in terms of research, decision making and accurate results (Gentle, 2009). The social media can also be said to have influenced the behavior of the companies behind the products as well as they are now able to gain information on what the public truly thinks about their product and make the necessary changes if there are any. References Benkler, Y., 2006, The Wealth of Networks, Yale University Press, New Haven. Blackwell, M and Engel, 2006, Consumer Behavior (10th Ed.), Thomson Learning, Stamford. De Valck, K., Van Bruggen, G., and Wierenga, B., 2009, Virtual Communities: A Marketing Perspective, Decision Support Systems, 47 (3), 185-203. Gentle, A., 2009, Conversation and Community: The Social Web for Documentation, XML Press, Fort Collins, CO. Jepsen, A., 2006, Information Search in Virtual Communities: Is It Replacing Use Of Off-Line Communication? Journal of Marketing Communications, 12 (4), 247-261. Kaplan A.M., & Haenlein M., 2010, Users Of The World, Unite! The Challenges and Opportunities of Social Media, Business Horizons, Vol. 53, Issue 1. Kardes, F. R, Cronley, M. L. &Cline, T. W., 2011, Consumer Behavior, Cengage Learning, Mason, OH. Khosla, Swati (2010). Consumer psychology: The essence of Marketing, International Journal of Educational Administration 2 (2). Li, Charlene &Bernoff, J., 2008, Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies, Harvard Business Press, Boston. Scoble, R. & Israel, S., 2006, Naked Conversations: How Blogs are changing the Way Businesses Talk with Customers. John Wiley, Hoboken, NJ. Read More