A further 29% of Chinese social media users are ‘Commenters’ – people who may not initiate, but who do react and comment on other people’s views. They are also the ‘accelerators’ of new ideas, giving them momentum and wider acceptance.
The largest group, comprising 45% of social media users, are ‘Gawkers’ who quietly browse, observe and look for entertaining ideas and brands that are already popular.
Wanna be ‘Frands’?Notably the study also found that the days of clear lines of delineation between one activity and ‘life part’ and another are over. In a social media environment the distinction between brands and friends is blurred. One manifestation of this is that social media users are no longer discriminating between ‘brands’ and ‘friends’. They are simply identifying a third group that they can engage with – ‘frands’ – a new term coined in the report.
And what are netizens doing with their frands online? 71% are watching commercials on video sharing sites such as Youku, 51% are downloading branded applications to their phones, while 43% are ‘friending’ brands. 21% are even making and sharing videos about products or brands. Only a minority of consumers (24%) say they don’t want to interact with their favorite brands online.
Finally, the data also shows that social media users are generally highly desirable ‘alpha’ consumers because 74% prefer to pay more for quality and unique experiences, and 48% say they trust advertising and are very open to being persuaded to make impulse purchases. Clearly, engaging social media users through relevant online methods is high ROI marketing.
Source: designtaxi.com
