Study: Consumers influence other consumers

Retailers who can get consumers to generate social and online content about them have a decided competitive edge.



According to the new “CGC Index” from social marketing technology provider Bazaarvoice, consumer-generated content (CGC), or digital content that people create about a product or service they have experienced, used, purchased, or considered, can have a significant impact on retailer performance.



For example, when a retailer’s customer engages with CGC (which can include videos, photos or comments), their conversion rate is 97% higher than a customer who does not engage with CGC. Similarly, average order value increases 10% and revenue per visitor more than doubles at 106%.



Looking at how CGC influences buying decisions, the index also finds that for every $1 of online revenue a retailer generates, another $6.50 0f revenue is influenced by CGC.



Bazaarvoice also surveyed its retail clients to find out how many of them are using CGC tools in various customer engagement efforts. Results indicate that 57% of retailers use CGC in social media campaigns, 18% in advertising on third-party sites, 27% in print advertising, 43% in-store (such as endcaps and shelf tags), 18% in product packaging, and 2% in TV or radio advertising.