The word of friends and family has the most influence over a person's buying decisions, found a survey conducted by Opinion Research Corp. for ARAnet. When asked the importance of 14 different information sources, almost 60% cited their personal network, more than TV broadcasts (40%) and search engines (39%).
However, social networks don't rank as highly. Just 18% of respondents cited them as a preferred source of recommendations for products and services. While an increased preference for online media was apparent among young adults aged 25 - 34, social media remains the least popular with 31% compared to search engines (50%), online articles (39%) and retail emails (32%).
When income is taken into consideration, the survey found that higher income earners are embracing online sources. Among those making $75,000 or more, search engines are preferred by 49% vs. 39% for all respondents.
"The eyes of young people 18 to 34 and the most highly educated Americans are looking online - search engines, online articles, online ads, e-mail offers and social media - to a degree that is head and shoulders above the average citizen," said Scott Severson, ARAnet president.
The word of friends and family has the most influence over a person's buying decisions, found a survey conducted by Opinion Research Corp. for ARAnet. When asked the importance of 14 different information sources, almost 60% cited their personal network, more than TV broadcasts (40%) and search engines (39%).
However, social networks don't rank as highly. Just 18% of respondents cited them as a preferred source of recommendations for products and services. While an increased preference for online media was apparent among young adults aged 25 - 34, social media remains the least popular with 31% compared to search engines (50%), online articles (39%) and retail emails (32%).
When income is taken into consideration, the survey found that higher income earners are embracing online sources. Among those making $75,000 or more, search engines are preferred by 49% vs. 39% for all respondents.
"The eyes of young people 18 to 34 and the most highly educated Americans are looking online - search engines, online articles, online ads, e-mail offers and social media - to a degree that is head and shoulders above the average citizen," said Scott Severson, ARAnet president.
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