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So we've seen the
power of social networking sites like Facebook, Bebo and MySpace.
Children are forever commenting on their blogs and on the train
to London I hear those infamous words "Do you know what
[person x] said on Facebook" and "I was updating my
Facebook and do you know who invited me as a friend."
These aren't children/teenagers
saying this. These are adults!! Half the department of my current
client have accounts and talk about it regularly. Now, people
may say that I'm mad but, I recently signed up to my own account
and thought (perhaps I'm the only one) why bother!
I'm already a regularly
contributor to Linkedin and find that site much more of a suitable
site for my own interests and requirements. Perhaps I'm not
one of the soap opera generation who find it interesting to
constantly view into other people's lives. However, I'm not
writing here to express my interest/concern about social networking.
Recently, David Crow
(The Business) wrote an article on "Social shopping sites
prepare an attack on the high street". There is a new website
called Kaboodle which allows users to use an internet explorer
plugin and with products that they are interested in they attaches
the image of a product and writes a review of that product.
The more clips that a user takes the more detailed a profile
with surprising accuracy of the user's interests and buying
behaviour.
Lets assume that this
site takes off (and it appears that it already has with site
visits increasing 300% from October 2006 to September 2007).
Advertisers should be really taking notice of this service (and
others) for seriously targeted advertising.
Perhaps, for retailers
the most frightening thing is that this is site is something
that shoppers can use for internet only and internet and retail
outlet stores. For those that have both an e-channel and a retail
shop channel it could mean that the footfall increases and that
queueing systems have to be improved because users already know
what they want.
This is certainly
one to watch.
Social
Networking - Shoppers' Power Online and Offline |
