Just-released survey results indicate that social media users are likelier to respond to product offers that have been suggested to them by those friends and family members who are part of their networks rather than offers that are included in sponsored posts and social display ads, according to Yesmail, wrote MarketingCharts in a recent report.

The findings are not surprising when considering the larger influence of earned media when compared to shared media.

The study also breaks down the likeliest deals to be shared. Survey respondents were asked about the types of offers they are likeliest to share with their friends. They responded with the following in their top three choices:

  • Restaurants: 58 percent
  • Entertainment: 31 percent
  • Electronics: 31 percent
  • Clothing and accessories: 31 percent
  • Travel and hospitality: 24 percent

When asked about what deals they were most likely to share when considering money-off or by-one-get-one free, the respondents were clearly more interested in percent-off deals according to survey result beakdowns, as follows:

  • Percent-off deals: 36 percent
  • Buy-one-get-one free: 17 percent

In general, approximately 34 percent of all active social media users indicated that they had shared a product offer with their social networks. Facebook was ranked as the most popularly used social network, which is used by 94 percent of those individuals sharing offers. Twitter ranked in at 15 percent and Pinterest received 10 percent.

Sharing increased for incentives that involved additional savings or loyalty points—40 percent. Respondents indicated that they would be likelier to share these deals if incentivized. Of interest, 28 percent of respondents who had not previously shared indicated that they would be more likely to begin sharing if incentives were included in the offer.

Earlier in 2014, a study conducted by ShareThis and the Paley Center for Media revealed that shared online content that is shared by email or social networking, would have nearly the same level of influence as in-person recommendations, according to the eMarketer report.

The Yesmail survey was conducted among more than 500 active social media users.

Reference:

Marketing Charts. Which Types of Product Offers Will Consumers Share on Social Media? October 9, 2014.