Facebook and Twitter Important Shopping Tools

A recent Gartner Study has revealed that Facebook and Twitter are becoming important tools used by consumers to choose their purchases. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, much of this use is taking place on mobile phones.

When the internet first started, one of its first primary uses was as a source of information for purchases - the internet was where people researched their options, and thus began the era of the informed shopper - shoppers coming in the door who already knew about all the products and their prices and features, and often had already decided on what they were going to buy. Of course, the internet is still used that way, but now it is used more often than initially for making the actual purchases as well.

It is inevitable that phones assume this role. and it will be the first step in a series of steps that will take the phones through the evaluation stage to the purchase stage and even the payment stage. All of these things are at the beginning stage now, but can be expected to evolve quickly. Since apps like Facebook and Twitter are often used on mobile phones, it stands to reason they will factor into the equation. This brings in an element that might not have been there before as strongly - the advice and experience of friends. People have always made use of such advice, but not necessarily in the technological sense. Facebook and Twitter make this not only possible but easy and efficient.

For an article on the Gartner Study, click this link.