Move over search as Gen Z shoppers use social this holiday season
80% of Generation Z shoppers plan to use social media to find gifts this year, with 41% set to use it for most or all of their holiday shopping, according to research by SimplicityDX.
The company surveyed 1,000 US online shoppers, including 500 Gen Z’s (under 25s).
It found that 93% use social media as part of their buying process.
51% think social media is a great place to learn about new products, while 22% think it’s a great place to buy new products. 74% prefer to check out on the brand site and not buy on the social platform itself.
And 60% of the shopping activity is covered by two platforms, Instagram and TikTok.
“The majority of the next generation of consumers start their shopping at the edge and finish by checking out on the brand site,” says Charles Nicholls, Co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer at SimplicityDX.
“Their preference for using social media for shopping should be a wake up call to all brands targeting Gen Z. and an early warning that the way consumers buy is changing.”
The most important factor triggering a potential holiday purchase for Gen Z is the availability of promotions. However, these shoppers place a lot more emphasis on customer experience than older consumers.
SimplicityDX’s research shows that returning products is a major friction point, and only 17% of shoppers that bought and returned a product through a social media platform would be willing to shop on social again in the future.
“The prevalence of scams, fake news, and inauthentic influencer endorsements has conditioned Gen Z to be wary and to seek out authenticity,” Nicholls says.
“The strong preference to buy on the brand site is driven by several factors: 1) trust in the brand is important, 2) product availability and assortment frequently differ on social, 3) returns, and 4) critically over the holiday period, promotions on the brand’s site are frequently not reflected in social media product catalogues.”
Trust remains a big issue with 61% of Gen Z stating that either 1) they don’t trust social networks, or 2) they think that social networks are abusing their personal data.
Trust is a much bigger issue for Gen Z than just trusting the social network.
The research also highlights scepticism among Gen Z about influencers. Almost two-thirds think that influencers are most useful for finding out about new products, while nearly half think that they are most useful for recommendations.
But when it comes to buying, 36% consider influencers to be less trustworthy, and 59% prefer to buy directly from the brand site, not from the influencer.
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