Shoppers Contend With Socialnomics

"You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need."

~ Vernon Howard

I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving and have charged full steam into the CHRISTmas spirit. If you haven't been a part of the kickoff events for the CHRISTmas season, you have missed out on some great fun and fellowship with our community. Not to worry though. We have a lot more in store and many, many more opportunities for you to be engaged and surrounded with holiday cheer! I encourage you to be a part of the community this holiday season and invest your time (and money) in making this CHRISTmas season extra special for someone in our community. Also let's remember to help out the less fortunate and donate a little bit more of our time and money to charitable causes that need our contributions this CHRISTmas season. 

On the topic of investing money in the community, were you apart of the American Express Small Business Saturday? What about Black Friday? I have to admit I am not much of a shopper but I was unfortunately indoctrinated into the Late Night Thanksgiving Shopping "Extravaganza" - not of my own choosing of course. I had to go to Wal-Mart in Carthage (MS) on Thanksgiving night. I had gotten something in my eye and it had almost swollen shut. All the other stores were closed and Wal-Mart was my last option (believe me we looked). Anyway, Rebekah and I had to wait in line until the cash registers of the local Wal-Mart were unlocked from headquarters in Bentonville, AR. No one could purchase anything until 9 pm. It was one of the craziest things I have ever seen. If you got some good deals and that type of "shopping" is your thing, congratulations but I think I'll wait and spend a little extra a day or two later. 

I do want to share with you a new experience for me this year. I know online shopping is nothing new, but online shopping and social media truly changed the way I shopped this year. I have purposefully chosen to try to buy all or the majority of my CHRISTmas gifts locally and in smaller stores. For months Rebekah and I have been looking at tricycles for Ethan for Christmas (I am safe in that he can't read this newsletter, but I am trusting none of you will tell him what he is getting). We found the one we wanted in a local store a few months back and have been tempted to buy it almost every time we have been in the store. The day finally came and I went to pick it up. No go. Not a single one in the store. I asked the manager and none were expected to be shipped. I could have changed my mind and thought of some other gift he would like just as much but that didn't happen. I whipped out my smart phone and "Googled" the tricycle. I found the same model in another store and about $8 bucks cheaper. Score! 

I went to the second store. Same story, none in stock and none expected to be shipped. With that I started to get suspicious. What if it has been recalled, was it safe, why would all the stores have pulled the product or sold out right at CHRISTmas time and not chosen to restock? Again, I pulled out my handy-dandy smart phone and began reading reviews of the tricycle. I did find out the tricycle has not been recalled although the reviews were mixed about the product. The majority of them leaned negative for Ethan's age. 

This story does have a happy ending though, again due to the internet and reviews from buyers, I was able to find another tricycle with all the features we wanted (and more) for about $20 bucks cheaper. Double Score! Ethan will have his fun on CHRISTmas morning tearing up the roads on his new trike and I will have my fun on CHRISTmas Eve putting that and his other toys together! 

I tell you this story not to showcase what a frugal and awesome shopper I am (Rebekah can attest to the opposite), but to get you thinking about social media, internet sales and how even in "small town" Jones County, internet reviews play a part in what people are purchasing in our stores. They may even be making people's decisions as to whether or not they even visit our stores. Do you know what people are saying about your business online? Is it positive? 

A friend forwarded me this video. It talks mainly about Social Media and the Socialnomics (Social Media + Economics) revolution. I want to point out a few things from the video and have you ask yourself how this affects your business:

• Over 50% of the world's population is under 30.
• In ten years, over 40% of the Fortune 500 companies will not be here.
• Facebook tops Google in weekly traffic in the US. 
• 1 in 5 couples meet online. 
• 1 in 5 divorces are blamed on Facebook. 
• What happens in Vegas stays on Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, YouTube, etc. 
• An education study revealed that online students out performed those who receive face-to-face instruction 
• Kindergartens are learning on iPads, NOT chalkboards. 
• 50% of mobile traffic in the UK is for Facebook (imagine what this means for bad customer experiences.) 
• Over 37million people watched the VW Darth Vader Super Bowl Ad on YouTube (The child actor had never seen Star Wars). 
• Generation Y and Z see email as passé. 
• Some universities have stopped distributing email accounts. 
• 69% of parents are "friends" with their children on Social Media. 
• GROUPON will reach $1 Billion in sales faster than any company in history. 
• There are 1.5 Million real farmers. There are 80 Million Farmville farmers. 
• Social gamers will buy $6 Billion in virtual goods by 2013. Movie goers will only buy $2.5 Billion in real goods. 
• Word of Mouth is on DIGITAL STEROIDS. 
• 34% of bloggers post opinions about products and brands (do you like what they are saying about your brand?) 
• 90% of consumers trust peer recommendations, only 14% trust advertisements. 
• 93% of marketers use social media for business.  

Click Here for Video