FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

Top 10% of users have high effect on others

Top 10% of users have high effect on others

Ten per cent of Thai online users have a disproportionate share of influence on their peer consumers, according to the latest global study by Initiative, "The Age of Social Influence: How Media-Empowered Consumers Are Helping to Drive Sales".

The media communications company has uncovered some interesting trends about the tech-savvy Thai consumer, one of the more powerful findings being the influence of this group.

Initiative said it would push to help clients engage this new area and harness the power of this segment of the population to connect them further with their brand.

The global online study featured more than 8,000 Web users aged 16-54 across Europe, Asia and the United States.

The emerging influencer group has been called the "top 10 per cent" and can be defined by several key attributes and behaviour.

These include having higher levels of media consumption; a social predisposition and wide-category shopping; and being more likely to research products online and make recommendations to others.

SOCIAL EXTROVERTS

These Thai social extroverts have significantly larger social circles than those with lower influence, and a higher proportion of their regular social contacts – every one or two weeks – are communicated with online, according to the study.

Based on the new findings, Initiative believes that by leveraging the Thai consumer’s natural inclination to engage with media across multiple screens and social media, a consumer-powered media synergy effect can be created that is both non-linear and emotional – driving deeper engagement and trust.

The study revealed that technology-driven media convergence is seeing television, social media and mobile working in combination to empower a new group of Thai consumers who are having a profound influence on brand choice across many different categories.

Khanokkhan Prajongsangsri, Initiative’s business director for strategy and innovation, said the "age of social influence" revealed a significant shift in consumer behaviour, which in turn required a significant shift in marketing.

Advertisers should now look to define the highest value consumer by their ability to exert influence, rather than by demographics. Influencers are not just consumers, they are co-marketers, and should be considered as a communication channel – which requires funding and fuelling, she said.

The top 10 per cent own multiple digital devices, allowing them to stay constantly connected with their expansive network of friends and skilfully navigate between the offline and online media, from reading both printed and digital magazines and newspapers to accessing mobile Internet.

above-average use of media

The frequency with which the top 10 per cent use technology such as Skype, instant messaging, and mobile and social networking to supplement face-to-face conversations is higher across the board.

Their influence comes from their above-average use of social media, with 93 per cent using it more than once a day.

Most important, 84 per cent of these Thai influencers say that their friends ask their opinion before making a purchase.

The study also revealed that 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.

Each medium examined in |the study was found to have |core strengths, with TV excelling |at communicating a basic brand message, mobile at relaying detailed information about the brand, and social media at enabling consumers to spread the message themselves.

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