Canadians have an average of five “brand friends” across social networks like Facebook and Twitter according to new data from TNS’s comprehensive “Digital Life” study.
Canada exceeds the global average of four brand friends, and is ahead of China (two brand friends) and is tied with Northern Europe. Social media participants in Latin America have an average of six brand friends, said the report.
Rajaie Matuk, research director for TNS Canada in Toronto, predicted that the number of brand friendships is only going to increase as mobile habits become more entrenched.
“I think the increasing move to mobile will push people more toward social media interactions,” he said. “As opposed to PCs or other big devices, social media is more optimized for mobile.”
The data is based on a study of online behaviour conducted by TNS in 46 countries including Canada, the U.S., U.K., Brazil, Russia and China. A total of 48,804 people aged 16 to 60 were surveyed on everything from their digital behaviour to their attitudes towards digital platforms.
TNS found that the number of brand friends varies by factors such as age and gender, with women having more brand friends than men (six versus four) and younger people having more brand friends than older people (people aged 16 to 20 have an average of 10 brand friends, compared with four for people aged 45 to 60).
“Social media is where a lot of interaction between consumers and brands is happening,” said Matuk. “It’s called ‘social media’ for a reason. There is definitely an opportunity for brands to try to make connections with consumers and differentiate themselves from their competitors.”
While the report indicated that Canadians proactively seek relationships with brands to obtain information and to support and connect with their favourite brands, their primary reason for these “friendships” is more self-serving: to benefit from promotions and special offers.
“It’s about immediate self-benefit: What deals and free stuff can I get?” said Michael Ennamorato, managing director of TNS Canada, in a release.
But Ennamorato said that the relationship also benefits marketers by enabling them to generate sales through a “direct pathway” to consumers and test the appeal of new concepts or campaigns. “It’s a win-win, but only if retailers get in the game,” he said.
The study called social networks a modern day “market square,” a place where people gather for online conversations that frequently include brands. The study found that 29% of social network participants have commented on a brand, with 25% of people taking those comments into account when making purchase decisions.
The data also indicates that 26% of participants have searched for products or services within a social network and that 15% have clicked on embedded ads. “It is more than apparent that these networks can have an enormous impact on sales,” said the report.
