SOCIALMEDIA.ORG/SUMMIT2014ORLANDOOCTOBER 27–29, 2014

The return on a share:Quantifying the monetaryvalue of social sharingANDY STEVENSSHARETHIS

Andy Stevens

VP Strategy & Research

ShareThis @AndrewStevensUK

With the growth of the social web, we turn more often to friends and strangers for recommendations on where to go, what to eat, and what to buy.

2

SHARING IS THE CONNECTIVE THREAD OF THE SOCIAL WEB

3

THE

IMPACT OF SHARING IS WELL-DOCUMENTED

73% of survey respondents process information more deeply, thoroughly, and thoughtfully when they share it.

70% of people trust consumer reviews they found online.

38% During a four-week test, Starbucks’ Facebook fans and “friends of fans” were 38% more likely to make a purchase.

4

BUT HOW DOES IT ALL TRANSLATE TO

MONETARY IMPACT?

SHARETHIS COMMISSIONED THE FIRST STUDY OF ITS KIND

TO MEASURE THE IMPACT OF SHARING ON THE

PURCHASE PROCESS

PURCHASE

INTENT

RECOM-

-MENDATION

PRICE

BRAND

PREMIUM

GENERIC

LUXURY

ECONOMY

TYPE

SOURCE

STRENGTH

Family

Friend

Acquaintance

Stranger

Professional

Excellent

Good

Moderate

Bad

In-person

Social Network

Trade Publication

BRAND

PRICE

TYPE

STRENGTH

SOURCE

REC

OM

MEN

DA

TIO

N

WHICH OF THE FOLLOWING TWO PRODUCTS ARE YOU MORE LIKELY TO PURCHASE?

6

CONJOINT METHODOLOGY USES STATISTICAL MODELING TO DETERMINE THE RELATIVE IMPORTANCE OF VARIOUS

FACTORS AFFECTING THE CONSUMER PURCHASE DECISION

x

Premium Brand

10% higher

Facebook Post

Friend

Economy Brand

10% lower

Car & Driver Review

Professional

Sample conjoint survey screen

7

RECOMMENDATIONS ARE MORE

IMPORTANT TO THE CONSUMER PURCHASE

DECISION THAN BOTH BRAND AND PRICE

Recommendations account for 57% of the consumer

purchase decision:

RECOMMENDATIONS

57%

PRICE

28%

BRAND

15%

8

SIMILAR PATTERN ACROSS DIFFERENT

VERTICALS

58%

34%

8%

56%

24%

19%

56%

25%

19%

CPG Electronics Autos

Recommendations

Price

Brand

9

6.3%

7.3%

9.5%

10.6%

ONLINE SHARES ARE NEARLY AS VALUABLE

AS IN-PERSON RECOMMENDATIONS

Consumer Ratings

Consumer Reviews

In-Person Recommendations

Online Shares

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RETURN ON ‘EXCELLENT’

RECOMMENDATIONS

Highly positive shares yield a return of 9.5%

6.3%

7.3%

9.5%

10.6% 10.2%

Consumer Ratings Consumer Reviews Online Shares In-Person Recommendations

Professional Reviews

6.0

%

6.2

%

11

.2%

13

.2%

7.1

%

7.6

%

8.1

% 9

.3%

10

.5%

5.7

%

8.1

% 9.2

%

9.3

%

10

.0%

CPG Electronics Autos

11

NEGATIVE RETURN ON ‘BAD’

RECOMMENDATIONS

Negative shares lower purchase intent by 11.0%

(11.3%) (11.2%)

(11.0%) (11.2%)

(10.2%)

Consumer Ratings Consumer Reviews Online Shares In-Person

Recommendations Professional Reviews

(13

.1%

)

(13

.1%

)

(12

.5%

)

(12

.9%

)

(10

.6%

)

(10

.6%

)

(10

.5%

)

(10

.6%

)

(10

.5%

)

(10

.2%

)

(10

.0%

)

(9.9

%)

(10

.0%

)

(9.9

%)

CPG Electronics Autos

12

THE SOURCE OF THE SHARE IS

IMPORTANT

8.0% 7.7% 7.5%

12.7%

8.5% 9.0%

14.0%

9.6%

10.7% 10.5%

11.7%

CPG Electronics Autos

Strangers Acquaintances Close Friends / Family Professionals

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FOR AUTO BRANDS, AN EXCELLENT

SHARE IS WORTH $3,708

Consumer Ratings

Consumer Reviews

In-Person Recommendations

Online Shares

Professional Reviews

$2,312

$3,277

$3,708

$3,766

$4,702

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Consumer Ratings

Consumer Reviews

In-Person Recommendations

Online Shares

Professional Reviews

$22.09

$23.56

$24.91

$28.76

$32.44

FOR ELECTRONICS BRANDS, AN

EXCELLENT SHARE IS WORTH $25

$0.42

$0.44

$0.92

$1.05

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Consumer Ratings

Consumer Reviews

In-Person Recommendations

Online Shares

FOR CPG BRANDS, AN EXCELLENT

SHARE IS WORTH $0.92 That’s how much more consumers are willing to pay for the average

supermarket product if it was positively shared about by someone in

their social network.

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Key Findings

Recommendations have more impact on a consumer’s

decision-making process than brand or price

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Recommendations have more impact on a consumer’s

decision-making process than brand or price

Highly positive online shares generate a 9.5% increase in

purchase intent, while negative reviews can decrease intent

by 11.0%

Key Findings

18

Recommendations have more impact on a consumer’s

decision-making process than brand or price

Highly positive online shares generate a 9.5% increase in

purchase intent, while negative reviews can decrease intent

by 11.0%

Online sharing has a measurable effect on a product’s

prices, driving incremental value by as much as $9,623.74 for

luxury automobiles

In fact, online shares are nearly as valuable as in-person

recommendations

Key Findings

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WHAT DOES IT ALL

MEAN?

DRIVE EARNED MEDIA SUCCESS WITH

SOCIAL INSIGHTS

VIEW CURRENT CUSTOMERS AS MARKETING PARTNERS

ENABLE CUSTOMER EVANGELISM

MONITOR YOUR ONLINE PRESENCE THROUGH SHARING

ADDRESS NEGATIVE REVIEWS OPENLY AND HONESTLY

Use social signals to determine where and when to spend media dollars

UNLOCK THE VALUE OF SHARING WITH PAID MEDIA

Use social data to identify users who shared relevant content

IDENTIFY

TARGET

Align messaging with sharers’ interests and deliver media on the content

with which they engage

OPTIMIZE

Heavy-up deployment around key

events to drive conversion when

conversations are abuzz

Monitor sharing trends in real time and

capitalize on user intent as quickly as

possible throughout the purchase funnel

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THE VIRTUOUS CIRCLE OF SHARING

SHARING

INSIGHTS

OPTIMIZATION

EARNED MEDIA

LARGER AUDIENCE

THANK YOU

SOCIALMEDIA.ORG/SUMMIT2014ORLANDOOCTOBER 27–29, 2014

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