Social Media Lags Further As Online Sales Driver

Social media is lagging as a direct traffic source to e-commerce websites and as a driver of online retail purchases, despite despite brand investment, according to research by Monetate, an online customer experience engine. Monetate's data from online shoppers in the first quarter of 2013 found that social media represented just 1.55% of all e-commerce traffic, way behind search (31.43%) and trailing e-mail (2.82%). Even more disappointing for marketers, social media traffic numbers in the first quarter of 2013 were actually down from the same quarter of 2012, when they were at 2.36%. The data leads researchers to question brand retailers' approach to social marketing. "We know that social media plays an important role in influencing social purchases. To what degree brands are able to leverage social to build loyalty is the next big question," stated Blair Lyon, vice president of marketing for Monetate, in a PRNewswire release. For more research findings, see the Multichannel Merchant report at http://multichannelmerchant.com/crosschannel/social-media-declining-for-online-purchases-22052013/#_