How clever social media tactics make us spend

SHOPPING addicts who can’t control their online spending urges are advised to do a social media stocktake, as brands increasingly tempt us around the clock.

As spending at a keystroke continues to surge, up to 50 per cent of traffic to retail websites can be driven by social media and digital marketing.

Retail brands are increasingly using clever tactics to lure shoppers, including influencers, YouTube videos to “educate” consumers on products and harnessing big data for targeted advertising.

To rein in spending, experts recommend unfollowing favourite brands, setting up alerts for sales, and researching to get the best deal.

In late 2018, about 15 per cent of traffic to Amazon Australia’s website came from socials and emails, while 14 per cent of The Iconic’s visitors were from social media and about 8 per cent from emails, new Hitwise data reveals.

Fashion company ASOS enticed 20 per cent of its shoppers from social media – including YouTube, Instagram and Twitter – and about 2 per cent by emails.

Crowd Media managing

director Judy Sahay said social media sites Facebook and Instagram were the biggest platforms pushing online sales and changing purchasing

behaviour, making it easier for shoppers to satisfy their desire for “instant gratification”.

“Algorithms understand what your interests are,” she said. “You are advertised to directly and then, with a click of a button, you receive the product in a matter of days.

“This process gets refined with every passing day, making it easier for brands and businesses to reach potential consumers and have them purchasing within seconds.”

Ms Sahay said social media platforms had leveraged big data to make shopping experiences highly personalised, like retargeting users with display ads on products they browsed.

Alexander Meyer, chief marketing officer at The Iconic, said more than half of its sales stemmed from digital marketing channels.

“Whether it’s clicking through to the site from an email newsletter, social post or opening an app push notification, our customers engage with us in many different ways, which is … why having a strong digital marketing strategy is so important,” he said.

Mr Meyer said it was not uncommon for customers to spot a product they liked in a morning email, “wish list” it on the mobile app on the way to work, browse other products on their iPad or mobile at night, then place an order.