Can Amazon Socialize eCommerce?
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- Author: Cristian Gonzales
- Friday, September 23, 2011
When Amazon recently announced that it was stepping up its social media efforts, I felt giddy. Finally, one of my favorite places on the Net, recently valued at $101 Billion dollars, was going to become more 'socialized' and hopefully open up a new, innovative chapter in e-commerce.
At the present time, they've already taken one step forward in social by allowing product reviews to be socially shared once you submit them. I discovered this upon reviewing a new electric toothbrush I'd purchased.
Utilizing the power of product reviews is where I see Amazon's social strength. Sharing is certainly a first step in making this happen, but from here I'm imagining and hoping for much more.
Product reviews have a major impact with consumers. A recent study by Cone Inc. reports that 80% of consumers change their minds about a product due to a negative review, and 87% of consumers find a sense of confirmation about a product after reading a positive review. The question is: how do you socialize them? I have a few ideas.
Provide sharing options for all user reviews
Right now, Amazon only has an option for users to share their own product reviews, but not the reviews of others. If a consumer likes a product and wants to use a particular review to recommend it to their friends or family, let them share it.
Incentivize power reviewers with social rewards
Encourage your most active reviewers to be your social evangelists by rewarding them with exclusive discounts, products or access when they submit and share.
Launch Twitter product launch parties
Promote new products from merchants through Twitter parties that allow consumers to participate in conversations on the item and the brand. In addition, award randomly selected users who tweet during the party to receive a product discount or the item for free.
Integrate Facebook friend recommendations
Allow users to "Like" product reviews and provide them with recommendations based on what their friends "Liked". In addition, reward the user for purchasing specific items that are popular with their friends, encouraging them to ask friends to "Like" products.
Integrate brand social networks for positive product review submissions
When a user gives a product 3 stars or above, Amazon can provide the user with links to that brand's social networks (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc.). This helps the user connect socially with the brand, and allows the brand to identify which are its most popular "social" products (among other insights).
Currently there hasn't been too much revealed about what Amazon is going to do, although one of its initiatives will be social games. Considering the fact that virtual goods bring in big money for social game makers (Zynga recently reported making $600 million from virtual goods), Amazon is making some intelligent first steps in its social marketing strategy.
But for me, the real social muscle lies in Amazon's product reviews---that's where I see its 'socialization' becoming uniquely relevant.
