User-generated Content Has Biggest Impact in Driving Sales and Loyalty With Online Shoppers: New StoryStream & IMRG Report

StoryStream, the visual commerce platform for authentic online shopping experiences, and IMRG, the U.K. eCommerce association,  releases The 2022 eCommerce Content Trends Report.

The survey of 1001 U.K. consumers underlines the importance of authentic content – User-generated Content, especially – throughout the online customer decision journey: 91% of respondents said that they are more likely to remain loyal to a brand that they find trustworthy and authentic, and 73% of respondents said that User-generated Content  directly influenced their online purchase decision-making.

The report also reveals current consumer attitudes towards Live Video Shopping and shoppable video feeds: 62% of respondents said that they would like to see more Live Video Shopping streams from brands they follow online, while 57% of respondents said that Live Video Shopping would increase their likelihood of purchasing a product.

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Alex Vaidya, CEO of StoryStream: “This research shows us that, for brands looking to grow the share of revenue generated through eCommerce, authentic content is an indispensable ingredient to successful online sales growth. User-generated Content offers key social proof at crucial points of a consumer’s decision-making process – and is something online buyers proactively seek out to inform their purchase decisions. We are encouraged to see that Live Video Shopping is already attracting consumer attention, and helping brands to translate that attention into action. Though early days for the technology, it is apparent that setting and executing a strategy for video commerce represents a huge opportunity for brands.”

Andy Mulcahy, Strategy & Insight Director IMRG: “As these results show, seeing ‘authenticity’ from brands in their marketing is of paramount importance though how to interpret what authenticity means for your business is well worth some thought before you set out to achieve it. We note that video remains a popular content format among the buying public – and opportunities for building interactions between businesses and customers are definitely there. The trick is understanding how to interpret the opportunity for your business so that it becomes something that customers really find useful.”