Twitter’s Influence on Consumers

Ann-Marie Vazzano

Brand mentions on Twitter influence consumers, at least according to a Twitter study in partnership with the Advertising Research Foundation, FOX and DB5. The study, called “Discovering the Value of Earned Audiences—How Twitter Expressions Activate Consumers,” was conducted to determine how consumers are impacted by exposure to a brand mention in a tweet. The study found that brands are a “big topic of conversation” in the Twittersphere. Of the 12,000-plus Twitter users surveyed, 80% mentioned a brand in their tweets during the measurement period. More than half (54%) said they have taken action after seeing a brand mentioned in a tweet. Those actions include visiting the brand’s website (23%), visiting the brand’s Twitter page (20%), searching for the brand online (20%), considering trying the brand (19%) and retweeting tweets mentioning the brand (18%). GP