Editorial Articles

Anton Gething, Co-Founder & Product Director at nToklo on why social relationships matter to brands and consumers

The demand for multiple retail channels has seen online sales grow by 18 per cent between 2010 and 2011. More bricks and mortar retail outlets now have an online presence where almost anything may be purchased and, with advances in technology expanding the reach of ecommerce, consumers are now able to shop from their desktop, their mobile or tablet - even through their TV.

So much choice means that product consideration is an important factor in the purchase decision-making process. Content relevance, search, discovery and recommendations are becoming more important in the retailers’ fight for brand awareness.

Retailers have identified the benefits of social media not only in reinforcing links between their high street and online presence, but also for brand awareness, reach, and influence in consideration and decision-making throughout the purchase process.

Traditional recommendation engines, though, show little or no regard for a customer’s social circle, relying primarily on product behaviour and users’ historical activity. When it comes to social integration they’re simply pushing their social commodity (ie their customers’ activity) offsite to sites such as Facebook and Twitter, rather than including it within their own site data where it could be used to assist in customers’ purchase decisions.

I’d argue that they should leverage their customers’ activity in order to provide relevant content recommendations which include users’ social behaviour, engaging and connecting those customers who share similar tastes and opinions. Retailers should, of course, use customers’ social networks, but include this activity within their own site to bolster its social functionality, providing better social discovery and a more satisfactory, engaged and relevant experience with the brand.

This will enable customers to enjoy a more social relationship with the brand and its community, improving brand awareness, loyalty and advocacy both on and offsite, and helping the user during the consideration process of the purchase funnel. As a result, retailers will be able to retain more customers and grow their influence and presence in the decision-making process.