







A CEA study found that 24 percent of consumers who use social media say that they always or almost always refer to social media websites before they make a consumer electronics purchase. For high engagement users (13.5 or more hours per week) this increases to 65 percent.
Consumers not only turn to social media websites, they also use the information they find to shape/make their purchase decision. Thirty-eight percent of survey respondents reported that reviews or comments on social media sites by someone they know influenced their consumer electronics purchase decisions. For high engagement users this increases to 84 percent.
The CEA study also found that high engagement social media users were more likely than overall users to be influenced or strongly influenced by ads or promotions posted by a company on social media (71 percent vs. 23 percent).
What does this mean for consumer electronics companies? It means that participation in social media is vital.
Here are three examples of how your consumer electronics company can use social media:
Listen
Monitor your company, your products, and your competitors on social media. Listen to what is being said over social media and use this information to identify strategic opportunities and areas for improvement. Social media is an innovation engine.
Engage
Engage with customers on social media. Respond to questions and clarify misinformation. Make sure all engagement is timely (84 percent of Twitter users expect a same-day response), professional, and reflects positively on your company.
Educate
Become an industry leader by developing content that engages and educates consumers. By creating and distributing quality content your company will stand out from the pack. YouTube is an ideal platform for the consumer electronics industry.
Social media influences CE purchase decisions. For a CE company to remain competitive and grow their business, they need to participate in social media.
Kate Lee is Director of Research and Strategy for Fronetics Strategic Advisors