Social media and search are central to consumer research
Published February 27, 2011
While social media and search marketing are effective advertising solutions on their own, a recent report from comScore indicates that consumers are increasingly using the two channels in conjunction with each other and marketing companies need to do the same to maximize brand awareness.
"Fifty-eight percent of respondents first turned to search engines such as Google and Bing, while 24 percent visited company sites, and a mere 18 percent went to social media," Information Week reports. "During the purchase process, 48 percent of shoppers used a combination of search and social media, the study found."
Moreover, 40 percent of consumers who start their product research on search engines will later use social media to confirm findings with their friends and peers. Meanwhile, 46 percent of shoppers who begin their research on social networks will use search engines to expand their knowledge on a product or service.
Search is already one of the most heavily used digital marketing platforms, with advertisers spending more than $5 billion on the channel during the first half of 2010, the Interactive Advertising Bureau found. ComScore's new report shows search is equally as important to multichannel marketing campaigns as well.