Study: Christmas shoppers trust social networking for gift inspiration

More than a quarter of consumers highly value their friends' recommendations via social networking sites when shopping for Christmas gifts, according to a survey of 393 U.K. Christmas shoppers conducted by Empathica, a provider of customer experience-management (CEM) solutions.

Recommendations from friends via social networking sites were perceived to be of more value than information provided by an expert on a review Web site (24 percent), advertising on TV (20 percent), information on company Web sites (17 percent) and articles in the media (16 percent).

The survey found 27 percent of shoppers rated a recommendation from a friend through Facebook or a similar Web site as the second-most valuable source of information after traditional word-of-mouth (50 percent) when choosing to buy a gift.

"Social media sites are an excellent way for consumers to share their experiences and evaluate products and services for the benefit of those in their network," said Gary Edwards, Empathica's executive vice president of client services. "When given a recommendation from someone you know and trust, that recommendation is highly valued. Because more individuals are participating in these social networks than ever before, that traditional word-of-mouth brand advertising must also be available online. Retailers absolutely cannot afford to ignore this important channel of communication."