31% consumers shop on social media despite worries: study

27 Sep '19

3 min read

Pic: Shutterstock

Despite over nine-tenths of consumers having concerns about shopping via social media, nearly one-third still use it as a shopping platform, according to research by MarkMonitor. Shoppers are worried about payment security (59 per cent), quality of goods (56 per cent), safety of their personal details (55 per cent) and buying a fake (47 per cent).

Worries around shopping on social media were warranted; 31 per cent of consumers say they have unwittingly bought a fake item online and of that portion, 23 per cent purchased the product via social media, said the study undertaken by the Clarivate Analytics firm dealing in enterprise brand protection.

Sixty three per cent of consumers say they don't believe enough is being done by brands, online marketplaces and social media platforms to protect them from counterfeiters, fraud and cyber criminals.

This figure is especially telling as when it comes to buying decisions on social media. Reputation of the brand is the most cited influence (55 per cent), followed by peer reviews (48 per cent) and if friends and family have liked the channel (34 per cent). Celebrity endorsement also plays a role for nearly one-quarter (23 per cent) of respondents.

"Organisations need to ensure they incorporate social media platforms in their online brand protection strategies to protect shoppers and their own reputation. Many social media platforms already have mechanisms in place to guard against the sale of the counterfeits and are constantly improving ways to detect and report fakes, but it's clear that consumers feel more needs to be done by all stakeholders moving forward," said Chrissie Jamieson, vice president of marketing, MarkMonitor.

The research also revealed that consumers do have confidence in certain aspects of shopping via social media. Two-thirds (66 per cent) of them say they trust the information shown by shopping sites on social media while 30 per cent are comfortable using their credit card to make a purchase, according to a press release from Clarivate Analytics.

And while they are happy to buy clothing, home accessories and electronic goods via social media, there are items they say they would never buy via this method. This includes jewellery (27 per cent), booking a holiday (27 per cent), health products (26 per cent) and event tickets (24 per cent).

The research was commissioned by MarkMonitor and conducted by independent survey company Vitreous World. A sample of 2,603 consumers from five countries—the United Kingdom, the United States, France, Germany and Italy—was surveyed in August to gauge their experiences and opinions around online shopping, safety and the role of brands.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS)

More E-commerce News - United States Of America...