Complain as we might, most people love Facebook. Yes, there are a lot of things that tick people off about the ubiquitous social media site, however, for most people the benefits outweigh the costs. One interesting thing to consider is how much the social media site influences purchases.
This informative infographic by PPC Associates will help you navigate Facebook, and give you a broad understanding of the American social media landscape.
Turns out most people don’t take Facebook recommendations into account. Now that I think of it, I can’t recall ever making a purchase due to Facebook either. Females are more likely to make a purchase due to a Facebook recommendation than males. For example, 13.46 percent of females aged 25 to 34 reported having made a purchase, while only 4.5 percent of men in the same age group reported the same.
I figured that Facebook’s influence would decrease with age, but looking through the charts, it looks like purchasing behavior tends to swing up and down randomly. For example, only 3.8 percent of men aged 45 to 54 reported making a purchase based on a Facebook recommendation. That number suddenly jumps to 6.3 percent for men aged 55 to 64. I wonder what spurred the increase!
There are also some slight regional variations. For example, “only” 64 percent of Northeasterners use Facebook (lowest in the country), but some 12.9 percent in the region report making a purchase based on a friend’s Facebook recommendation (highest in the country). Also, rural people are the most likely to use Facebook (just over 82 percent).
