The Influence of Social Media Influencers vs. Consumer Comments on Modern Purchasing Decisions

In today’s setting, knowing how social media content impacts consumer behavior is significant for the business and marketing. While some of the information being shared online is posted by paid social media influencers, the rest is created by regular consumers and thus affects the consumer purchasing decision differently. Despite both playing a role in brand image, brand identity and brand reputation, the job, extent, and impact of each are distinct and offer novel opportunities for brands, marketers, and consumers.

What is a Social Media Influencer Post ?

Social media influencers are social media users who possess sizable and active audiences on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Twitter. Many of these influencer’s target specific categories which range from beauty, fitness, lifestyle and technology, as well as gaming. An influencer post is always curated with a clear focus on both the influencer identity and readership, including striking visual appeal, authentic texts, and a sales pitch.

Companies use influencer posts as effective tools for increasing their reach, reinforcing recognition, and triggering engagement. Many of those posts are sponsored, which means that brands pay the influencers to post content that can be associated with brand value propositions. Some may be paid while others will be given certain products on condition that they post them on their page especially if the page follower ship is above a certain threshold.

The Value of Consumer Comments

On the other hand, consumer comments belong to the common or the ‘voice of the consumer’. While consumer posts are ordinary and random remarks of customers in response to content shared by an influencer, other content creators, or friends. Most of the comments are raw and natural, often stemming from real life situations; therefore the audience finds it easy to relate with the comments. 

Of course, customer comments are not as extensive as an influencer’s posts, but they still possess great influence. The consumers tend to appreciate this candidness of the comments and hence consider such opinions as persuasive to any potential buyer who seeks what is commonly referred to as word of mouth in today’s society.

Key Differences Between Influencer Posts and Consumer Comments

Purpose and Intent

• Influencer Posts:  Influencer posts aim at selling goods or services with the intention of encouraging the target consumers to take an action.

• Consumer Comments: Consumers typically submit the comments without any incentives and therefore, consumers’ comments are true to the heart and natural instead of marketing-oriented.

Audience Reach and Visibility

• Influencer Posts: Influencer content is viewed by many due to their followers, social media matrices, and often have cross-promoted content.

• Consumer Comments: More often, comments are limited to a limited group of people from a given geographical region. Despite using shares they attract attention but the numbers are limited.

Association with Brands

• Influencer Posts: To be more formal, the content of influencer posts corresponds with a brand’s purpose and aims, making it a sponsored relationship.

• Consumer Comments: Aside from brand affiliations, consumer comments are real personal opinions that reflect on actual encounters with a brand’s commodities or services making feedback genuine.

Impact on Purchasing Decisions

• Influencer Posts:  Influencers can immensely influence consumers’ purchase decisions. Consumers are also influenced to take action when they spot the seal of such personalities and the familiar logo of a brand.

• Consumer Comments:  They offer credibility, the opinion of other customers that guide buyers’ decisions in a more direct manner.

Conclusion: Managing Influence of Social Networks

It is, therefore, clear that influencer posts and consumer comments have invaluable functions in the current social media features. Influencer posts give brands an opportunity and space to post targeted messages to a large audience while the consumer posts give more authenticity, reliability and credibility. Thus, knowing these differences, brands can develop an approach to combine in-house influencer marketing and organic consumers’ feedback, which create a more holistic approach in managing the modern audiences.