Our study clearly shows that social media users are aware of retail trends and follow them religiously. Retailers who offer certain discounts only to their fans can rely on fan loyalty for their brand.

1. Tonic media
India HQ:
Tonic Media, B 102 Nestle Apts., Malad (W),
Mumbai - 64, India.
Contact: 022-40035328/9833973364
PO Box 487177, Unit P12 Rimal, The Walk,
Jumeirah Beach Residence, Dubai, U.A.E
Website
www.tomicemedia.in
www.tonicbuzz.com
www.tonicmedia.in/blog
www.facebook.com/tonicbuzz
www.twitter.com/tonicbuzz
A Whitepaper by Tonic Media

2. CONTENTS
Socialinfluence
Customerjourney
Onesizedoesnotfitall
Theriseoftheconnectedcustomer
Bolstersalesthroughthesocialvehicle
Cheatsheet
Thelastword
2
4
8
10
12
14
16
1
Credits
Chetan Asher
CEO, Tonic Media
chetan@tonicmedia.in
Apeksha Harihar
Communication Manager,
apeksha@tonicmedia.in
Tonic Media
The Whitepaper research is carried out by Tonic Media, a digital
agency based in Mumbai. The survey was carried out among
enthusiastic social media users in January 2013. Based on the study,
we have uncovered certain statistics in the Indian social media space
decoding consumer behaviour in the retail segment. The study
showcaseshowretailbrandscanboostsalesusingsocialmedia.

3. SOCIAL
INFLUENCE
Socialmediainfluencebringsalonganamazingpower
ofcredibilityandconfidenceinthecustomermainly
becauseitisthedirectresultofwordofmouth.Social
customersbecomebrandadvocateswithinnotime
throughthemulti-directionaluseofvarioussocial
mediachannelsastheytravelalongthepathoftheir
purchase.Thedriversofsocialbehaviourinvolving
retailsaleswasdecodedthroughasurveycarriedout
byTonicBuzzamong200activesocialmediausers
basedinIndia.Wefoundoutthatalotofsocialmedia
usershavebeenexposedtoanumberofretailbrands
latelyandsocialmediawebsiteshavebecomeahubfor
increasingnumberofbrandstoshowcasetheir
offerings.
Likethetableillustrates,asubstantial
portionofsocialmediausersactively
followtheirfavouritebrandsonsocial
mediawebsites.Thispercentageisa
hugeopportunityforbrandsto
capitalizeupon.Conversionsthrough
socialmediahoweverisasubtlepush
ratherthanhardselling.Hardselling
hasneverworkedpreciselybecause
peopledonotgetontosocialmedia
websiteslookingforbrands.Theydo
sotointeractwithfriendsandsharea
socialspace.Tappingthissocial
spacetomakesalesisanintelligent
processwhichmustbemasteredby
marketersbeforejumpingintothe
mesmerizingworldofinteractions
andengagements.Takeatourof
usingsocialmediamarketing
effectivelyforboostingonlineand
offlinesales.
Socialinfluencecanbedefinedasatypicalbuying
behaviourthatisimpactedduetoreferralsfromfriends,
familiesandotherexternalfactors.Socialinfluenceis
oneofthetopreasonsformarketerstogetexcitedin
thesocialmediaspace.Howeverexcitingthepotential,
marketersstillneedtounderstandtherelationship
betweensocialinfluenceandonlinesales.This
relationshipisviewedincontextofvariousfactors.For
instance,whenauserengagesonasocialmedia
website,friendsconsciouslyorunconsciouslyhavean
effectonanother'sbuyingdecision.Socialinfluenceis
oneofthekeyfactorsthatisdrivingretailsalesand
boostingfootfallsintheretailindustry.Postinga
productpurchaseorrecommendingabrandhas
becomeaverycommonpractice.Thus,social
influenceinrecenttimeshastransformedtosocial
mediainfluence,withtheriseofFacebook,Twitterand
Pinterest.
50%
6%
44%
Howactivelydoconsumersfollowbrandson
socialmediawebsites?
"VeryOften-50%
"Moderately-44%
"NotatAll-6%
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4. Today'sconsumersareafarcryfromwhattheyusedto
beevenhalfadecadeago.Theyarenowperhapsa
differentbreedaltogether! Theyareassertive,
outgoing,liketoindulgeandmostimportantlylove
everythingdigital.
Ifyouthinkpopularsocialmediasiteslikethe
Facebook,Twitter,FoursquareandPinterestarejust
placestopostmusingsandconnectwithfriends,you
wouldbequitewrong.Infact,thesesiteshaveopened
adoorofopportunitiestocompaniesacrosstheworld,
bybecominganextensionoftheirretailoutletsand
enhancingtheirbrandvisibility.
Intheworldofsocialmedia,aconsumer'sjourney
throughthewebofbrands,allenticinghiminsomeway
ortheother,mainlycrosspathwiththatoffriends,
familyandacquaintances.Wesaythisbecausethe
primarybrandinteractionwiththeconsumerdigitally,
mostoftenthannotisthroughchatsofbrand
purchasesbyfriends.Asillustratedbythetable,most
userslovesharingtheirrecentpurchasesonsocial
medianetworks.Mostareeveninfluencedbythe
purchasesoftheirfriends.
CUSTOMER
JOURNEY
54
%
40
%
30
77%
%
7
23%
Howawareareconsumersaboutthepurchasestheirfriends
postonsocialmediawebsites?
"Awareness+ActiveSharing+Commenting-30%
"Awareness+ActiveSharing-7%
"Awareness-40%
"NotatAll-23%
3%%
58.6
%
38.4
97%
HowactivelydoconsumersfollowFacebook
notificationsabouttheirfavouritebrands?
"VeryOften-58.6%
"Moderately(onlyduringleisuretime)-38.4%
"NotatAll-3%
Aconsumerhoppingontothesocialmedia
vehicleconsciouslyorunconsciouslystops
byseveralinfluencersinhisjourneytowardsa
retailpurchase.Theseinfluencersactasa
subtlepushandareembeddedthroughout
thesocialmediarealm,offeringthebranda
chancetocapturetheconsumer'smind,
therebyacceleratingbrandpurchase.
Facebookbeingtheprimeinfluencer,offers
anarrayofopportunitiestobrands.
Notificationareasandpostanofferfeatures
areextremelypopularamongconsumers.In
today'sdayandagemostcustomersfollow
Facebooknotifications,forinformationabout
theirfavouritebrands.
Alotofretailbrandsarecomingupwith
uniquewaystomarketproducts.Tweetswith
directlinktoabrand'sofferpage,ora
promotionalvideocanbuildacompany's
brandquotient.Ontheotherhand,pictures
postedwithapricetagonPinterestandan
embeddedlinktothewebsitecanalsouplift
theretailawarenessandvalueofproducts.
Pinterestcurrentlyhasonlydollartags.

5. Oursurveyshowcasedsomeinterestingresultsin
termsofconsumerbehaviorinthesocialmedia
space.Wecameacrossquiteafewfactorsthat
influenceonlineconsumerbuyingdecisions.
Topmostamongthemarenewtrendsandproducts
hittingthemarketplace.Thecoreinfluenceremerged,
asastaggering66%ofsocialmediaenthusiasts
revealedthatdiscounts,offersandcouponsenamour
themthemost.
Discountsandofferstemptconsumerswhilemaking
brandpurchasesinawaylikenothingelsedoes.
Tonicsuccessfullyexecutedacampaignforafast
foodretailchain,drivingahugefootfallattheiroutlet
launchonlythroughanoffersorientedFacebook
campaign.Thecampaignofferedanirresistibleoffer
toallthefansontheofficialFacebookbrandfanpage
andpromotedthisofferduringthelaunchofanew
outletinCoimbatore.Theoffercreatedalotofbuzz
amongfans,encouragingthemtosharetheoffer
amongfriends,increasingthe'talkingabout'ofthe
newstoreandspreadingawarenessforthesame.On
theopeningday,300peoplewalkedintotheoutlet
andclaimedtheoffer,makingthecampaign
extremelysuccessful.Itwaseasytomeasurethe
returnoninvestmentbecausetheofferwaspromoted
onlyonFacebookandeachonewhoclaimedithadno
doubtcomefromFacebook.
Usersofsocialmediaareexposedtoarangeofbrandsevery
secondtheyspendonasocialmediawebsite.Withover
1billionmembersonFacebookalone(officialfigures),and
overhalfabilliononsiteslikeLinkedinandTwitter,nearly
20%oftheentireworldpopulationmaketheirpresencefelt
ontheseInternetwonders.Isthereanybettermediumto
marketproducts?Probablynot.
Otherthandiscounts,plentyofusersreadreviewsof
productsonline.AccordingtoastudyconductedbyNielsen,
nearlythreequartersofactivesocialmediauserswritetheir
ownreviews.Foreveryconsumertoday,socialmediaplays
animportantroleinhowtheydiscover,researchandshare
informationaboutbrandsandproducts.
Thepossibilitiesofsocialmediaasamarketingplatformis
endlessanditsusersareincreasinglybecomingthe
determinantsofmarkettrendsandmostimportantlysales.
Thetimeisnowtohookandcaptivatetheirattention.
CUSTOMER
JOURNEY
SURVEY
SHOWCASED
66%
52.3%
11.5%
7.6%
5.3%
Whatattractsconsumerstonewbrands?
"Discounts,OffersandCoupons-66%
"NewProductsandTrends-52.3%
"PurchasesbyFriendsandOpinionMakers-11.5%
"FriendsCheckinginatOutlets-7.6%
"GameApplications-5.3%
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6. Foursquarehelpedinraisingthepopularitylevelsofasmallerfoodjoint
effectivelyusinganothersuccessfulstrategy.Acupcakevanincreased
itssalesbycheckinginonFoursquareeverytimeitwasstationedata
particularlocation.Peoplefollowingthecupcakevanknewexactly
whenandwherethevanwasonaparticularday.Therefore,social
mediaisapotentiallyundiscoveredplatformformostmarketerswho
believethattheycanapplythesamestrategythatanothercompany
executesinordertoachievesimilarresults.Innovationistheneedof
thehoursinceonesizedoesnotfitall.
Retailerstodaycanexploreamongvastcreativeopportunitiesto
markettheirproductsonsocialmediawebsites.Therehavebeen
manysuccessfulcampaignsthathaveprovedtobeextremely
beneficialtoboostonlineaswellasofflinesales.Thesecampaigns
haveledtobetterbrandawareness.Duringsummerthisyear,
Starbucks,aleadingbeveragechainbasedinUSA,incorporatedthe
useofFoursquaretoraisecharityfundaswellaselevatethebrand
statusbymakingpeoplefeelthattheyareinvolvedinsomegoodwork.
Starbucksoffered$1foreverycheck-inonFoursquareatany
Starbuck'sjointbetween1stto10thJune2012,raisingupto$250K.
OwingtoStarbuckspopularity,thegoalwassurpassedinamatterof
days.Customersinturngottoearnsomesocially-consciousbrownie
points.Thisstrategyhowever,wouldnotworkforasmallerfoodjoint
owingtopopularitylevels.
ONE SIZE DOES NOT FIT ALL
9
Socialmediausersgenerallycheck-inonFoursquareandFacebook
whentheyenterarestaurant,cafeorotherretailoutlets.Thisfeature
worksonmostusersmainlybecauseitisafunwayoftellingtheir
friendswheretheyareonaparticulardayandtime.Everytimeauser
checks-intoyourbrandoutlet,yourbrandisexposedtoother
connectedusers,therebyincreasingbrandvisibilityimmenselyatno
extracost.Foursquareisabighitamongshoppersingeneral,witha
vastmajorityofshopperscheckingineverytimetheyvisittheirfavorite
outlets.Somecheckinoccasionally,ifservedareminderoroffereda
freegift.
WhileFoursquareisagreatcheck-intool,Twitterservestobeagreat
customerservicetoolforretailers.Twittercanalsobeagreatdiscount
andoffersannouncementplatform.The140characterscanutilize
spacefornewsthatacompanywantstosharewithitsfollowers.Dell
hasbeenextremelysuccessfulonTwitter,claimingtohaveearneda
coupleofmillionsinsalesthroughthischirpychannel.
HowoftendoshopperscheckinatBrandOutlets?
"Always-58%
"Sometimes(whenincentivisedwithoffers/discounts)-23%
"Never-19%
8

7. Shoppinganddiningarecompletelysocialactivities.Thisisoneofthe
majorfactorswhyretailexperiencesareenhancedbysocialmedia.
Theconsumerstodayaremoreconnectedthaneverbefore.Retailers
havelongsoughtandcherishedconsumerfeedbackandsocialmedia
providesarichveinofconsumerthinkingforthoseadeptenoughto
interpretit.Gonearethedayswhenreviewsposedtobeathreat.
Rather,thebrandgetsachancetohearouttheircustomerand
improvetheirofferings.Listeningtothecustomerisessentialandmust
notbeignored.Theentireprocessofinteracting,engagingandtaking
feedbackresultsinatrustbuildingactivity.Increaseinonline
consumerconversationprovidesopportunitiesforretailerstousethis
platformtogatherinsightsintoconsumerthinkingandattitudes,and
evenintegrateuserproductreviewsintotheirphysicalstore.Theriseof
theconnectedcustomerisindeedaboonforretailers.
Brandscantakebackalotfrommeasuringandtrackingsocial
mediasuccess.Socialmediaprovidesshopperswithaplatform
todiscusstheproductsandstorestheyloveorhate.However,
likesarenotnecessarilyequivalenttosalesanditisnecessaryto
postconstantupdatesandkeepyoursocialmediaproperties
aliveandvibrantamongfanstoconvertthematsomepointin
futureifnotimmediately.PostinganofferonFacebookisawayto
temptthecustomertomakeapurchase.65%socialmediausers
claimedanofferonFacebook.
Facebookhascertainlyemergedasthemostpopularwebsitefor
marketingretailproductsandservices.95%usersrevealedthat
theyaremostlikelytofindthelatestproductsaswellasdiscounts
onFacebook.Companiescanstartwithlaunchingsmall
campaignsthatcouldincludecompetitions,discountsorfreebies
andtracktheeffect.Howmanyconsumers'liked'yourpage?
Howmanyconsumersredeemedthediscountsin-store?How
muchtrafficdiditdrivetothestore?Trackingandmonitoring
resultsisextremelyusefulinunderstandingyourcustomer.
THE RISE OF
THE CONNECTED
CUSTOMER
10 11

8. Increasingbrandawarenessthroughsocialmediaisgreatbutitisa
sheerwastetousesocialmediaifitcannotturnfansintobuyers.
Especially,whenyoucanuseittodriveconsumerbehaviour,inturn
addingaconsiderableamounttothebottomline.
Companiesacrosstheglobehaveconceptualizeduniquecampaigns
touptheirsalesnumbers.Amongourclients,amajorice-creamco.,
boosteditsretailfiguresbycreatingaviralvideofortheirongoing
offers.Itcreatedenoughbuzzforcustomerstoflocktheirstoresall
overthecountry.Usingsocialmediatobolstersalesshouldbethe
ultimateaimofanyretailmarketer.
Oneofthefirstcompanieswhichsuccessfullyusedasocialmedia
campaigntochurnitssalesfigureswasDell.Inlate2008,Dellcreateda
campaign,whereinitgaveitsTwitteraccountmembersanopportunity
tocustomizethedesktopsystemsalongwithalucrativediscount.
Accordingtothecompany,thiscampaignhelpedthemgenerate
around$6million.Overthisspanoftime,Delltweetedaboutvarious
retailofferstoitsmembers,whichleadtoawarenessasmoreandmore
peoplejoinedin,subsequentlyboostingsales.
BOLSTER SALES
THROUGH THE
SOCIAL VEHICLE
ThesecondelectronicmajortofollowwasSony.In2009,thecompany
gave1500ofitstwittermembersachancetobuildacustomizedSony
Vaiolaptop,aswellasgivingthema10%discount.Itissaidthatthe
campaignhelpedthecompanyadd$1.5milliontotheirsalesfigure.
Socialmediaisbeingusedinvariouswaystopromotebusinesses.The
essenceofdigitalmarketingistokeeptheballrolling.Keepyour
company'stickermovingonthesocialwebsites;uploadasmany
postsasyoucanandtweeteveryday.Runthemebasedcampaigns
andpromoteyourproducts/servicesinaninterestingway.Donotlet
thepotentialcustomerbaseforgetyou.
Anotherimpactfulwaytowidenthetargetaudienceistocreateaforum
orafocusgroup.ThebestexampleforthisisPepsico'sMountainDew
campaign.Themountaindewdivisioncreatedaforumoffanscalled
dewcracywheretheywereinvolvedineachandeveryprocessfor
creatingitsnewdrink.Itworkedwondersforthecompany.
Identifyingloyalfollowersandinvitingthemtowritereviewsisalsoa
goodideatoboostthebrandandcreateanextensiveconsumerbase.
Innovativethinkingcombinedwiththevastpotentialofsocialmedia
canprovetobeafortunewaitingtobefoundforyourcompany.
12 13

9. Tapintotheenormousresourcesofsocialmediato
magnifyyoursalessetup.Herearesomepointers
andtipsthatyoumaywanttoconsider.
Sellexclusiveproducts:
Sellingitemswhichareuniqueandnotfoundinyour
storewillkeeptheexistingcustomersanticipatingfor
more.Thiswillalsousherinnewcustomerswho
generallydonotshopatthephysicalstores.
Createa'social'retailoutletforoverstocked
item:
Onecanreduceinventoryandcutstoragecostsby
sellingthemonsocialmediasites.Thismayboost
salesofitemsthatarenotflyingofftheshelves.Used
itemscanalsobesoldbycreatingyouronlinegarage
sale.
14 15
CHEAT SHEET
Exclusivediscountsonlyforyouraccount
members:
Givingspecialdiscountsandoffers,notfoundon
yourcompanywebsiteorstoresislikelytogenerate
bettersales.LinkingtheseofferstoQRcodeson
printedmarketingmaterialisaquickwaytokeepthe
salesregistermoving.
Gouniqueoncontent:
Originalinformation,articles,Facebookapplications
andgames,willkeepuserscomingbackformore.
CreatingaLikeUstabtoshowcasevideoand
picturescombinedwithanopt-inemail/newsletter
sign-upwillallowformoreadvertisingopportunities
aswell.
Incentivize:
Referralprograms,LikeUsprogramswhentraded
withdiscountsandofferscanleadtoabigger
customerbase.Integratingsocialmediaiconsand
linkstocompanyemailcanalsodowonders.

10. THE LAST WORD
Customersappreciateretailpostsonsocialmedia
websitesbecauseitkeepsthemupdatedofthelatest
fadsanddiscountsofferedbytheirfavouritebrand.Our
studyclearlyshowsthatsocialmediausersareaware
ofretailtrendsandfollowthemreligiously.Retailers
whooffercertaindiscountsonlytotheirfanscanrelyon
fanloyaltyfortheirbrand.Keepupwiththechangesin
thesocialmediaworldandbenefitfromcreative
strategiesthatdirectlyreachyourcustomer.Agencies
shouldcomeupwithcreativeandinnovative
campaignstofostertheneedsofretailersandgenerate
genuinevaluetotheircustomers.
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