Aegis Media Investigates the Influence of "Likes" / Balancing Quantity and Quality

Aegis Media, part of Dentsu Inc. Aegis Network, collaborated with the University of Cambridge to scientifically measure the influence of Facebook "Likes" on consumers. They presented the findings at Social Media Week in London in September, emphasizing the importance of balancing the quantity and quality of fans, as reported by Ad Age.

The study was led by James Cage, Head of Social Strategy at Isobar, part of Aegis Media. A fictional furniture brand, "Ashwood Furnishings," was created and positioned as a brand with 150 years of history in the UK planning to enter the US market. A Facebook page was set up. Pages with varying numbers of "Likes" (ranging from 2 to 2 million) were shown to different groups of test subjects to gauge their reactions.

The results showed that as the number of "Likes" increased, so did evaluations of the brand's interest, trust, consideration, recommendation, and importance, while the estimated price of the furniture also rose. However, the positive effect plateaued once the number reached around 200,000. Differences were also observed based on gender and frequency of Facebook use. Women showed higher recall and more positive reactions to large numbers of "likes" compared to men, and similarly, heavy users were more strongly influenced. The researcher stated that this suggests the potential for more detailed targeting has increased.

On the other hand, the danger of over-relying solely on the number of "likes" was also pointed out. He explained that it is precisely when "likes" surge that it becomes necessary to distinguish between future customers and users driven by mere curiosity. Facebook itself has highlighted the characteristics of both a company's core target audience and others, urging businesses to discern the "real" "likes."

James Cage, Isobar

Source: AdAge→ http://bit.ly/19KXvTY

Aegis Media Probes the Influence of Facebook
But Marketers Need to Balance Quality with Quantity of Fans