THE AGE OF SOCIAL INFLUENCEHOW MEDIA-EMPOWERED CONSUMERS ARE HELPING TO DRIVE SALES

Methodology

This project was part of Initiative’s Consumer

Connections global research program which now

spans in excess of 50 countries. Our study’s sample

was designed to identify those actively engaged in

social media. As a result we conducted 8014 online

interviews with consumers aged 18-54. Interlocking

age/gender and regional quotas were set to reflect the

national population in each country, the only exceptions

being China where the focus was on Tier 1, Tier 2 and

Tier 3 cities and Canada where the Nunavut, NWT,

Yukon regions were excluded. We used complex

factor analysis to identify drivers of social behavior. This

enabled us to quantify consumers’ social influence and

identify those who are leveraging their superior social

connections to influence purchase decisions.

The importance of social media has been discussed at length

for several years now. We know that in many markets time spent

online has surpassed that of TV and that daily social media usage is

continuing to increase.

We know that the once linear and transaction-centric purchase funnel

is now multi-directional, random and heavily influenced by opinion and

information gathered by consumers. And we know that because of

social media and technology, consumers can now enter the purchase

cycle at various points, and spontaneously influence others as they

travel along the path the purchase.

But do we really understand how marketers can unlock the real value

of all this? Do we know how social media works with other more

established media? And do we know how to harness the power of

social media for real commercial gain?

In order to find answers to some of these crucial questions, Initiative

set out to explore the individual and combined strength of TV, social

and mobile, and how consumer interaction with each has altered the

path to purchase. Specifically, we wanted to investigate:

• Howdoweproducegreatersynergybetweenoursiloed

media,socialandmobilebudgetsandtacticsthatresultina

greaterreturnoninvestment?

• Whataretheimpactofsocial,TVandmobileonshopper

decision-making?

• Whatroledoesconsumerinfluenceplayalongthepathto

purchase?

To do so, we conducted a global online study among 8014 web users

aged 16-54 across eight countries: Argentina, Australia, Canada,

China, Germany, the Netherlands, the US and the UK. We also spoke

one-on-one with a group of super influencers in the US and the UK to

gain a better understanding of social behavior.

THE AGE OF SOCIAL INFLUENCE

For many years, forward-thinking marketers have called for greater

integration between their online and offline touchpoints in the hope of

creating a multiplier effect that drives greater reach and scale. However,

our study found that while the integration of social, TV and mobile

has indeed altered the way consumers make decisions about brands,

it is not because of their ability to simply multiply brand messages.

Increasingly, consumers are becoming the driving force powering what,

when and where brand interactions occur. Based upon our findings,

Initiative believes that by leveraging the consumer’s natural inclination

to engage with media across multiple screens and social media, we

can create a consumer-powered media synergy effect that is both

non-linear and emotional - driving deeper engagement and trust. The

result is an acceleration of the purchase process unobtainable by any

of the three media independently.

We have identified three strategies for marketers that use the combined

power of social, mobile and TV to navigate through the complexity:

MEdIA SyNErGy ACCELErATES THE pUrCHASE prOCESS

THE SOCIALINFLUENCER

TAPPING INTOTHE POWER SOURCE

‘POINT OFINFLUENCE’

TRANSFORMING A

CALL TOACTION

INTO A

SYNERGY

OPTIMIZING TOUCHPOINTSTO PRODUCE1 2

3

Three strategies for marketers

TAppING INTO THE pOwEr SOUrCE – THE SOCIAL INFLUENCEr

First, marketers must seed messages with consumer influencers who

have the ability to quickly and effortlessly amplify brand messages

across their large social circles. While this is not a new idea, social media

has changed the size of influencers in the population and the speed

with which messages can spread. Back in 1962, sociologist Everett

Rogers popularized the Diffusion of Innovation theory estimating that

only 2.5% of a given population are innovators, being the first to adopt

new innovations and influence others to try them. We identified that

10% of online users have a disproportionate share of influence - we

focused on this group and called them the “Top 10%”. These super

influencers are defined by several key attributes and behaviors: having

higher levels of media consumption, a social predisposition and wide

category shopping; being more likely to research products online and

make recommendations to others.

These social extroverts have significantly larger social circles than

those with lower influence and a higher proportion of their regular

social contacts (every 1-2 weeks) are communicated with online.

REGULARFACE TO FACE CONTACT

BUT NONE ONLINE

REGULARFACE TO FACE CONTACT

PLUS ONLINE

REGULARONLINE CONTACT

BUT NONE FACE TO FACE

2110387469

TOP BOTTOM10%10%

INFLUENCERS INFLUENCERS

Average number of people in my social circleBase: Web users aged 16-54 years of age

Focus your marketing on the most influential

1

TOP BOTTOM10%10%

LAPTOP98% 97%

TABLET53% 5%

SMARTPHONE86% 30%

OTHER MOBILE25% 46%

DEVICES OWNED

Talk on a smartphone

Send or receive email

Text on a smartphone/mobile

Access a social networking site/microsite

Chat using instant messaging services

Read an online forum/discussion

Send an MMS/picture message on a mobile

Socialise with others at home

Contribute to an online forum/discussion

Socialise with others outside the home

Participate in online gaming

Video conference

88%

84%

84%

77%

77%

60%

58%

58%

52%

52%

48%

38%

25%

64%

26%

47%

9%

14%

2%

27%

7%

12%

9%

2%

More thanonce a day

Oncea day

More thanonce a week

Every1-2 weeks

Every3-4 weeks

Less often Never

22%

1% 1% 1% 2% 1%

25%

69%

30% 31%

9%5%

2% 1%

FREQUENCY OF RECOMMENDINGA PRODUCT OR SERVICE ONLINE

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES ON AND OFFLINE

INFLUENCERS INFLUENCERS

Base: Web users aged 16-54 years of age

The Top 10% are “Media Mavens” who skillfully navigate between

the offline and online media, from reading both printed and digital

magazines and newspapers to accessing the mobile internet – which

72% of them do once a day or more, compared to only 18% of the

Bottom 10%. When it comes to technology, the Top 10% are also

more likely to own smartphones and tablet computers, as well as

use technology as a social tool. The frequency with which the Top

10% use technology such as Skype, instant messenger (IM), mobile

and social networking to supplement face to face conversations is

also higher across the board. Their influence comes from their above

average use of social media, with 79% using it more than once a day

(vs. 29% of the Bottom 10%) and spending on average three hours a

week engaged with it.

But, most importantly to marketers, 99% of these influencers say that

their friends ask their opinion before making an important purchase,

compared to just 13% of the Bottom 10%. They are also extremely

active during the zero moment of truth - more likely to research or

talk about their forthcoming purchase online using social media and

mobile before making their purchase decision. Compare this to the

“Bottom 10%”– as many as 29% failed to research any products/

services online before purchasing versus just 1% of the Top 10%.

The Top 10% are more likely to discuss certain types of high

engagement product categories such as mobile, travel, fashion, music

and even beauty and personal care. Marketers should monitor these

discussions and create platforms for positive sentiment to be used to

influence other consumers in the consideration stage.

By leveraging their influence, marketers can inject a trusted voice into

the path to purchase with the ability to influence in real-time.

Implications for marketers

• Don’tignoresocialinfluencers.Theycanbecomeyour

biggestbrandadvocates,standingbehindyourbrand

withconviction.Showrespecttoinfluencersandthey

willrespectyourbrand.

• Engagewithsocialinfluencersearlyandoften.They

havethepowertomakeorbreakcampaigns.Testbrand

messageswiththempre-launchandcarefullymonitor

theirfeedbackduringthedurationofthecampaign.

• Investinsocialinfluenceprograms–earnedmedia

comesatacost.

Case study: Stimorol Stimorol in Denmark was planning to launch a new “senses” flavor gum: the “Mega Mystery Gum”, targeted at 18 – 25 year olds. In order to target “social influencers”, IUM Denmark decided to use Stimorol’s Facebook page as the platform for the campaign. Leveraging Stimorol’s association with music, IUM engaged the brand’s Facebook community with a contest where six Danish cities battled for the chance to win one of three Mega Mystery club parties, featuring famous club DJs. This would see social influencers on Facebook and other social platforms leading the activity to drive support for their city’s bid to win a party. Supported with TV, radio and PR the campaign saw the Mega Mystery Gum become the best selling of all Stimorol’s senses flavours and entered the top five gums across COOP supermarket chain.

Media synergy also demands that marketers re-evaluate how they

perceive media and its role in the purchase process. Too often,

media is relegated to driving awareness, consideration and buzz, but

if planned properly media can make a much bigger impact. When

selectively combined, TV, social and mobile create a dynamic path to

purchase that speeds up the overall decision-making and purchase

process, while making shoppers feel good about their choice.

We discovered that each medium examined in our study was found to

have core strengths (see right). We also found that certain countries

had a greater affinity for social and mobile as a marketing vehicle. For

instance, in Argentina, online users are more likely than other countries

in our study to think social media “helps you share important info

about a brand with others,” (70%), “find out more about a brand that

you are interested in,” (57%) and “provides you with an unbiased and

trusted recommendation about a product/service or a brand,” (51%).

On the other end of the spectrum, online users in the Netherlands had

the least favorable perceptions about social media’s role in marketing.

Only 24% believe that social media provides unbiased and trusted

brand recommendations and a little over a third (36%) think it is helpful

for sharing brand information.

When it comes to internet-enabled mobile, Chinese online users

have a greater affinity for mobile with 77% having personal use of a

smartphone compared to 58% of total online users in our study. Their

mobile usage is also more varied as they use their smartphones in the

following ways more than once a week: 63% - wifi access, 61% - mp3

player, 57% - video camera, 41% - instant messaging, 40% - video

player.

It is no surprise that they also rate mobile more favorably as a vehicle for

interacting with brands. For them, mobile provides basic information

about brands (41%), is a way to find out more about a brand that you

are interested in (40%) and share important information about a brand

with others (38%).

Media planners and buyers are well versed in the role of media as

a communication vehicle, but now must expand their expertise to

include how different combinations of online and offline media perform

as a point of influence.

OpTIMIzING TOUCHpOINTS TO CrEATE SyNErGy 2

Case study: Carling Carling Black Label wanted to get consumers to reappraise the brand. The beer brand signed a five-year sponsorship deal with South African soccer giants Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates to leverage the fanaticism around football and engage with nearly 90% of its target audience. With the critical insight that “everybody wants to be a coach” Carling Black Label organised a match between the two Soweto giants and let the fans choose the teams. Driving both awareness and participation would be critical for the success of the campaign. Initiative Media used a combination of TV and print to call for the “couch coaches” to choose players. Social media was then used to encourage interaction between the fans, and mobile and online advertising was used to drive people to the brand’s Facebook page. Over 10.5 million team votes were recorded and over 11 million bottle tops were redeemed. Carling Black Label had the highest awareness of promotions advertising in the beer market during the campaign.

56%MAKING YOU

AWARE OFNEW BRANDS

50%HELPING YOU SHARE

IMPORTANT INFORMATIONABOUT A BRAND

WITH OTHERS

37%HELPING YOU

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT A BRAND

32%HELPING YOU

FIND OUT MORE ABOUT A BRAND

33%INCREASING YOUR

LOYALTY TO AFAVORITE BRAND

36%PROVIDING YOUWITH A TRUSTED

RECOMMENDATIONABOUT A BRAND

48%PROMPTING YOUTO TRY OR BUY

A BRAND

46%INCREASINGTHE APPEAL

OF THE BRAND

43%GIVING YOU

BASIC INFORMATIONABOUT A BRAND

TV ADConvincing consumers of their wants and desires

SOCIALInfluences byleveraging peerand expert advice

MOBILEInstantly connectsconsumers to in-depthproduct information

Q: Thinking about the range of different resources - social media, internet enabled mobiles/smartphones, TV shows and TV ads - which of the tasks shown here are these things good at?Base: Web users aged 16-54 years of age

Media synergy: How touchpoints work together

40%

Mobile phones& services

PC, laptopsor tablet

computers

Travel, flightor hotel

Householdappliances

Homeentertainingequipment

Fashion,clothing &

accessories

Beauty orpersonal care

products

30%

20%

10%

RESEARCHED OR TALKED ABOUT ONLINE BEFORE BUYING

PURCHASED THROUGH A SOCIAL MEDIAWEBSITE

RESEARCHEDUSING SOCIALMEDIA

Web

use

rs*

Q: Which of these products/services have you ever...* Percentage of web users who have shopped for the listed categories in the last two years and used social touchpointsBase: Web users aged 16-54 years of age

Social media’s sphere of influence

TrANSFOrMING A ‘pOINT OF INFLUENCE’ INTO A CALL TO ACTION

Consumers are organically having conversations about brands prior

to purchase, but marketers are not always using these conversations

as a distinct point of influence on the path to purchase. We also found

that these points of influence occur across categories.

Once marketers can establish where their points of influence are for

their category and brands, we think there is an opportunity to create

social environments that transform organic community conversations

into product information portals. Once inside the portal, consumers

seeking brand information should be given the option to obtain more

information, participate in a brand experience that underscores brand

benefits, request a sample or more personalized information or link to

make a purchase.

By converting influence into action, marketers can use media more

effectively, and improve the consumer and shopper experience by

providing relevant information and expediting the shopping process. In

return, consumers are more likely to share positive experiences about

brands with their communities and hopefully become brand loyal.

Case study: Kia Optima, one of Kia’s core sales vehicles was relaunching with an upgraded product offering. Optima now had innovative and futuristic brand attributes, but was more positioned among mature drivers. We needed to attract a younger audience and get people talking about Optima in a new way. The NBA, with its All-Star game, would be an ideal platform to engage our social influencers. Kia came up with an idea that would get these key influencers talking and drive the social conversation all the way to Kia’s website. We collaborated with basketball star Blake Griffin, who agreed to jump over a Kia Optima during the All Star game. The conversation on social platforms caught fire, driven by our partnership athletes and celebrities who were all tweeting about the jump. Search and social worked in tandem and there were overlays on YouTube with a clear “call to action” driving people to the Optima Explore page. And Kia’s audience certainly heeded the call – Kia saw a 24% increase in sales following the All-Star weekend.

Implications for marketers

• Buildbrandedplatformsandtoolsthathelpamplifythe

socialcurator’svoice.

• Gofarbeyondthe30-secondspotandcreateadditional

content,suchasbehindthescenesfootage,historical

timelinesandculturalassociations.Thesewilldrive

discussionsandprovidealinktobranddiscovery.

• Enlistateamofbrandandcategoryrelevantsocial

influencerstopreviewnewproductsandcampaigns,

stimulatedialogueanddisseminatecontentalongthe

pathtopurchase.

3

Find your brand’s Top 10%In addition to the robust consumer segmentation studies conducted

by many marketers to create clusters of consumers based upon

purchasing behavior, we suggest completing a comprehensive analysis

of social influence. This would be achieved by determining which

consumers have the potential to influence the purchase decisions of

others. Our Influencer Multiplier is a proprietary scoring method that

quantifies the relationship between sociability, purchase behaviour,

and media consumption.

The Influence Multiplier can be used to optimize media plans by

ensuring that the Top 10% are adequately represented within the

consumer audience. Since they are an influential source of category

and brand information, their inclusion allows brand messages to reach

more people in less time. On a global basis, marketers can use the

Influence Multiplier to help prioritize media budgets between markets

based upon the strength of national scores. We have found that

individual market scores vary due to the different media landscapes,

stage of technological development and cultural drivers. Our analysis

suggests that a marketing message is more likely to spread quickly in

markets with a higher Influencer Multiplier score.

HOw TO CrEATE A MEdIA SyNErGy EFFECT FOr yOUr brANdS

Create immersive multi-screen experiencesMarketers can design personal brand experiences by creating

media synergy across multiple screens that provide a meaningful

and actionable brand experience. This can be achieved by carefully

studying the consumer’s media multitasking behavior, their path to

purchase, and understanding their motivations and preferences (eg,

unique content, access and experiences). By leveraging these insights,

a message broadcast to the masses on television can directly create

a personal, customizable, consumer-powered experience in search,

mobile, and social media.

These immersive brand stories are already being told by brands such

as H&M, Century 21 and GE who are using TV to direct viewers to

a richer online or mobile brand experience, as seen in campaigns

executed during this year’s US Super Bowl. For example, brands that

made the most of their Super Bowl advertising investment ($3.5m for

a 30-second TV spot) led with TV with visible calls to action, such

as a URL or Twitter hashtags. Successful brands intuitively navigated

their consumers to other paid media, such as search and mobile,

complementary owned media and earned media touch points. Social

was then used to extend the experience and brand engagement with

relevant social response. (IPG Mediabrands Digital Marketing Report

2012 Super Bowl™)

Case study: F&N Soft drink brand F&N in Malaysia had been synonymous with fun for many years, but was under attack from Fanta which was encroaching on its space and growing market share. In order to regain its territory, Initiative Malaysia tapped into the ‘dance reality’ phenomenon and created a massive ‘dance mob’ that saw TV and social working in combination across a full multi-screen experience. The F&N Custom Song & Dance was introduced via Malaysia’s first outdoor augmented reality screen (utilizing the largest LED screen in the country). People learned the dance moves and saw themselves live with the virtual dancers. The experience then extended across TV – with celebrity hosts picking up the dance moves – online through F&N’s Facebook page and then amplified with online coverage by the leading online newspapers. With 86% of the youth target engaged via the campaign, F&N saw a massive 18% increase in spontaneous brand awareness and maintained its market-leading position.

Implications for marketers

• Anticipateonline/offlineinteractionsacrossmultiple

screens.Bereadyfor24/7connectivity,immediate

search-and-find,andon-demanddelivery.

• Setasideanemergingtechnologyexplorationbudget

tobecomecomfortablewiththeunknown.Keeping

yourfingeronthepulseistheonlywaytostayaheadof

socialinfluencers.

• Forgetwaitingtodiscussmust-seeTVaroundthe

watercooler,activateSocial+TVtogiveviewers

theopportunitytojoininrealtimediscussionand

connections.

Integrate everythingMedia synergy is not business as usual, it requires new beliefs,

practices and organizational structure. While many have adopted

integrated marketing in theory, nearly 20 years after its conception,

most organizations function in separate silos. To create a media

synergy effect, marketing departments such as brand management,

advertising, media and digital, as well as their accompanying budgets

will need to be integrated. If physical integration of a company’s

marketing departments is not feasible, then an integrated planning

approach with frequent communication among cross-disciplinary

teams is a must.

Integration is also required outside of an advertiser’s marketing

department. Marketing will need to work more closely with other

departments such as customer service or retail/trade to activate,

monitor and respond to conversations occurring at the points of

influence. Additionally, marketers will need to seek new methods

of collaboration among groups of agency, media and technology

partners that may have once seemed unimaginable. Those who are

nimble enough to adapt to new work styles or have the capability to

deploy technology solutions that facilitate integration will win.

Implications for marketers

• Trainteammemberstobecome“T-shaped”–being

specializedhasitslimitations.Marketingorganizations

needtalentwithbroadercommunicationsexpertiseand

thatabilitytocreativelysolveproblems.

• Bringtheteamtogethertocreateteamrespectthat

drivescollaboration.Encourageanagencyexchange

programacrosspartners.Designatetimeforspecialists

inmedia,advertising,design,digitalandpublicrelations

togainrespectforaspectsofbuildingconnections.

Learnhowideasareoriginated,cultivated,executed

andoptimized.

1 Target the power source. Target the top 10% of influencers in order to accelerate marketing effectiveness.

2 Engage with social influencers early and often. They have the power to make or break campaigns. Test brand messages with them pre-launch and carefully monitor their feedback during the duration of the campaign.

3 Go far beyond the 30-second spot and create additional content, such as behind the scenes footage, historical timelines and cultural associations to drive discussion and provide a link to brand discovery.

4 Enlist a team of brand and category relevant social influencers to preview new products and campaigns, stimulate dialogue and disseminate content along the path to purchase.

5 Integrate everything. Encourage an agency exchange program across partners. Designate time for specialists in all agencies to gain respect for aspects of building connections.

FIVE ESSENTIAL TAKEOUTS FOr MArKETErS

AbOUT INITIATIVE

Initiative is a performance-led media communications company.

Initiative believes that all marketing should be performance-driven. Data, analytics, insight and innovation are

central to all our services, and we hold ourselves fully accountable to client business goals. This commitment to

performance is at the heart of Initiative’s unique process and culture.

Owned by the Interpublic Group, Initiative is part of media management group Mediabrands and a partner of Magna,

IPG’s centralized media negotiation entity. Initiative employs more than 2500 talented professionals, working in 89

offices across 71 markets, worldwide.

Initiative’s comprehensive range of performance-led communications services include: research and insight, media

planning and buying, digital communications solutions, content creation, and evaluation and accountability services.

CONSUMEr CONNECTIONS

Through our Consumer Connections program of research, we are connected to 230,000+ consumers across more

than 50 markets. We interact with these consumers to understand purchase patterns and media behaviors across

continents to bring fresh insight into their lives and the role of the brands they use. The powerful single source data

we gather as part of this programme also informs planning decisions delivering enhanced ROI for our clients.

www.initiative.com