Baby boomers and social shopping in Singapore | WARC | The Feed

Baby boomers and social shopping in Singapore

Social media is not only a fixture among the younger set, with social shopping – driven by livestreaming – gaining acceptance among baby boomers as it is a convenient way for them to make buying decisions and interact more closely with their favourite brands, according to WorldPay from FIS’s Generation Pay research findings.

Why it matters

Livestreaming is gaining traction as it allows for instant, seamless purchasing within an immersive social experience, and ahead of the holiday sales season, a strong social selling strategy is a must-have for brands, which should embrace the connection between authenticity and customer loyalty.

Key insights

• Over a third of Singaporeans (39%) have purchased an item directly on social media, with Gen Y (57%) significantly more likely than other generations to have done so.
• One-quarter of boomers in Singapore (25%) have made purchases directly on social media, while 22% have not purchased anything but would be open to doing so.
• Facebook (67%) and Instagram (48%) are the most used platforms by Singaporeans when making these purchases.
• Livestreaming is a growing trend in Singapore and the top motivation (38%) influencing boomers’ social media purchase.
• Trust is a key consideration for boomers, with 38% who have purchased on social media saying they are more likely to purchase from brands they know.
• 47% have not bought on social media as they prefer to buy only from retailers they know and trust, with 43% uncomfortable sharing payment details with a brand they don’t know.
• In the next 12 months, Singaporeans in general are most likely to purchase electronics and apparel (45%) on social media.

Quote

“The pandemic has highlighted the importance of the social aspects to commerce. People naturally turned to social media when the face-to-face commerce they’d relied on was put on hold. From our Generation Pay research we find that, increasingly, consumers of all ages, including the [Baby] Boomers, are engaging with social media to make purchases in categories such as groceries, electronics and apparels.” – Phil Pomford, general manager for global e-commerce APAC, WorldPay from FIS.