Sources : Deccan Chronicle

Date of Publishing:29/7/2010

Location:Hyderabad

Social networking websites such as Facebook and Twitter are gradually emerging as important shopping tools as the majority of users now rely upon them to help make their purchasing decisions, a new survey has found.

The survey by Stamfordbased research firm Gartner Inc. discovered that most of the users take suggestions from their friends through social networking sites before buying any product.

The Gartner survey of nearly 4,000 consumers across 10 key markets, also found that these social networks often include people, who play different roles while recommending products to people they are connected with.

On the basis of its findings, Gartner is now advising various companies to actively engage with different types of people on social networking sites which have become a “critical, but underutilised, aspect of the marketing process”.

— PTI

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