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THE “F” FACTOR July 28, 2011 (2 comments)
Merrick, NY—Once upon a time, F meant “fail,” and anyone who got one in school feared going home to have their parents sign that test or report card. Today, however, “F” more often stands for “friends, fans, and followers,” all of which a successful merchant—both luxury and mass—dearly wants and needs.
A recent article on Trendwatching.com, a website devoted to tracking consumer and societal trends, discusses the influence of the F-Factor on consumers’ buying decisions. Says the site: “Consumers are increasingly tapping into their networks of friends, fans, and followers to discover, discuss, and purchase goods and services, in ever-more sophisticated ways. As a result, it’s never been more important for brands to make sure they too have the F-Factor.”
While the core behavior isn’t new—people have talked about brands and services since both began—technology is both amplifying and creating new manifestations of the behavior, says the article. According to an Advertising Age/Ipsos study, three-fourths of Facebook users have “liked” a brand at some point in their use of the site.
Five key ways the F-Factor influences consumer behavior include the discovery of new brands, products, or services; ratings of brands, product and services from their peers, and feedback from peers on their own purchase decisions. It also has elevated the social aspect of shopping, even if the shoppers aren’t physically together at the time of purchase and, finally, even turned social networks into products and services.