BlogHer’s annual study on women says that 81 percent of women representing the general U.S. population said they trusted blogs and Pinterest, a new social media outlet. By contrast, only 67 percent said they trusted Facebook and 73 percent said they trusted Twitter.
When asked if they made purchases based on a recommendation from one of the various sources, 61 percent of women said they’d acted on a blog recommendation and 47 percent said they’d acted on one from Pinterest. Only 33 percent said the same about Facebook and 31 percent said that about Twitter.
“[The study shows that] there’s no one a woman trusts more for advice, recommendations and guidance than another woman in her circle,” said Lisa Stone, BlogHer co-founder and CEO.
Facebook is a tool for connecting with family and friends to most women, while they read product recommendations and make purchase decisions from blogs. Among those surveyed, 77 percent said they use Facebook purely for fun and 87 percent use it to stay updated on family; just 17 percent said they use it for purchase decisions—compared to 36 percent who turn to blogs for that reason—and 24 percent said they use Facebook to get product recommendations, as opposed to 41 percent who read blogs.
When asked which social media service was most appropriate for making purchase decisions, 21 percent said Twitter, versus 18 percent who said Pinterest. However, Pinterest topped Twitter for getting product information (26 percent vs. 18 percent), finding out about new products (39 percent vs. 24 percent) and seeking advice and recommendations (30 percent vs. 29 percent).
However, just 19 percent of the general population sample indicated they use Pinterest at least weekly and 41 percent of the general population sample said they don’t “go online or to social media for a shopping decision.” However, with more than 11 million unique visitors a month according to comScore, Pintrest is an impressively fast-growing and vibrant site.
Source: AdWeek
