Social and influencer agency Social Soup has revealed that consumers are looking for informative and reliable social content when considering purchasing decisions, rather than funny vids.
The preference for information over entertainment is one of the key findings of a new survey of more than 1,000 people by Social Soup, Australia and New Zealand’s largest influencer marketing business.
The research, which was unveiled at Social Soup’s second annual Influence Upfronts in Sydney today, found that the top five types of content that influence consumers are informative, relatable, authentic, creative and friendly.
More than half of the people (52 per cent) surveyed said informative content had the most impact on their buying decisions. Relatable was mentioned by 40 per cent of people, followed by authentic (35 per cent), creative (35 per cent), friendly (32 per cent), inspiring (26 per cent) and educational (22 per cent). Only 18% said entertaining and just seven per cent said funny.
More than four-fifths of respondents had bought an item through Instagram or TikTok in the past 12 months because of content they had seen. But their buying was not always driven by a relationship with the content creator: a surprisingly high 27 per cent of people had never followed the social media account that prompted them to reach for their wallet.
Video was the most influential content in driving purchases: 36 per cent of people said Instagram Reels had swayed their buying decisions and 26 per cent said TikTok.
When asked what they did after they saw content that “swayed” them, 64 per cent of people said they researched the product, service or experience seen on social media, while 59 per cent said they bought the product, service or experience.
Social Soup CEO, Sharyn Smith, said: “At first glance, the findings of the research are surprising. Some of the most-watched content on social media is funny and entertaining, but that isn’t going to work as well for brands and marketers as content that you might think as comparatively dull, that is, content that is informative and relatable.
“What we are seeing is the evolution of social content from a commercial point of view. Traditional creator and campaign content and strategies are not going to work as well with consumers as they did a few years ago.
“We’re seeing a return to real, grassroots influence. People want less aspirational and more relatable content than ever before. Big, aspirational, entertaining, mass-media ad campaigns might work with some consumers on some occasions, but that isn’t the case when it comes to social,” she said.
The research was conducted in April 2024 and covered 1,176 people across Australia. The sample was representative of the national population.
