The Affect of Social Media on Paid Search

It is undeniable that we take the suggestions and recommendations of our friends seriously. If a friend suggests a new restaurant, we are more likely to try that restaurant than if we had only seen a commercial about its opening.

Recent studies (Harris Interactive, June 2010) show that 71 percent of those surveyed said that the recommendation by a friend or family member did "influence your decision to use or not use a particular company, brand or product."

According to Econsultancy, 90 percent of those polled trusted the reviews from people they knew while only 70 percent trusted the recommendations of unknown users.

In a study by ROI Research for Performance, 53 percent of Twitter users will suggest a company or product via tweets. In addition to this, 48 percent of these users actually went through with their original intent to purchase the product.

This is proof of the importance of social media to spread the word about your product or company. The close relationships we have with friends and family have already established trust. It is this trust that makes it easier for us to take action on a recommendation by someone we know over a simple advertisement.

This trust goes further than friends and family, however. Just as we’re more likely to take the suggestions of a friend seriously, we’re also more likely to click on an advertiser that we trust or that our friends have already liked online. Yet another reason social media is becoming increasingly important for small businesses who have built relationships with their existing customers.