What is Social Proof?
Social proof is the idea that people are more likely to do something when they see others doing it. It’s based on the theory that humans are naturally social animals, and we look to others for cues on how to act in any given situation.
It’s one of the most powerful tools in marketing, and it can be used in various ways.
Social proof causes us to follow trends, buy products, and even make purchases we might not otherwise have made. It’s not just about copying what other people do; social proof encourages us to adopt behaviors that we might not have considered or even thought were possible.
Social proof can also influence how we perceive and interpret information.
The most common form of social proof is the usage of testimonials. These are usually written by ordinary people who have experienced some kind of benefit from using a product or service.
See Social Proof Definition; Turn Marketing Psychology Into Your Favor for further details about social proof and examples.
More Than 40 Social Proof Statistics That You Should Know
There are many statistics related to social proof, and these can help you to improve your business. By exploring these social proof facts, you can better understand social proof’s influence on businesses.
Social Proof Statistics about Buyer Decision Process
The buyer decision process is vital for your customers to purchase your products or services. Social proof plays a significant role in the buyer decision process.
Here are a few interesting statistics related to social proof and buyer decisions:
➤ According to Trustpulse, 97% of consumers read customer reviews before making a purchase. In addition, online reviews of products increase sales conversions by 270%.
➤ Customer reviews greatly influence buyer decisions, and according to Business2Community, nearly 82% of consumers in the USA consider their friends and family members’ opinions before buying products.
➤ As stated in HubSpot’s blog post about social proof, a typical visitor reads ten online customer reviews before deciding to buy something.
➤ Customers will spend 31% more at a company with favorable evaluations. (Source: Invespcro’s post about customer reviews.
➤ According to Northwestern Medill Spiegel Research Center’s study, customer reviews for higher-priced products have a significant influence on sales conversions.
With lower-priced products’ reviews, the conversion rate increases by 190%. On the other hand, for higher-priced products, the conversion rate increases by around 380%.
It can be said that seeing positive reviews on expensive products encourages people to buy them more.
➤ Likewise, according to Trustpulse, higher-priced products need at least five reviews to impact sales conversions. However, lower-priced products can have 2 or 4 reviews and a noticeable increase in conversions can be seen with these reviews.
➤ According to Wyzowl’s testimonial statistics, 79% of consumers have viewed a video testimonial to get more information about a business, product, or service.
After watching a video testimonial demonstrating how a company, product, or service has benefited someone similar to them, two out of three individuals said they’d be more likely to make a purchase.
➤ 98% of Yelp users say they’ve bought something from a company they found there. (Source: Podium’s article about the worth of online reviews.
Social Proof Statistics about Customer Reviews & Testimonials
Customer testimonials and reviews are the most crucial elements of social proof. In addition, reviews and testimonials can shape how a person thinks about a business, so that’s why your company’s reviews and testimonials are crucial.
Here are a few statistics about testimonials and customer reviews that you can find interesting:
➤ 61% of customers read customer reviews online before deciding on buying a product or service. (Source: Econsultancy’s study about e-commerce reviews
➤ According to HubSpot’s research about customer reviews in 2021, having at least a 4-star rating on a product or a service is crucial. 57% of customers buy a product or service with a 4-star rating.
➤ In the same research of HubSpot, it was also stated that %57 of customers visit a business’s website after they encounter positive testimonials and reviews.
Therefore, it can be said that people are encouraged to visit the company’s website by seeing positive reviews about a service or product.
➤ Trustpulse states in their article that 94% of people shopping online avoid visiting a business’ website if they encounter a negative review.
➤ According to Trustpulse, 83% of customers believe reviews older than three months aren’t reliable and relevant.
➤ As Retail Touchpoints stated in its study, consumers from 18 to 24 years old demand 203 customer reviews averagely on product pages. This number changes in all age ranges, and they find 112 reviews per product sufficient when shopping online.
➤ According to BrightLocal’s local consumer survey, positive reviews about local businesses can encourage 68% of customers to choose these businesses.
➤ After seeing a 4-star rating on a local business, 92% of customers choose these businesses. (Source: Podium’s article about online reviews’ worth.
➤ According to Harvard Business School’s study about Yelp, a one-star improvement on Yelp results in a 5-9% revenue boost.
Social Proof Statistics Related to Building Trust
Social proof can help you to build trust in your business. By building trust, you can interact with your customers properly and form better relationships.
Let’s see a few social proof statistics related to building trust:
➤ According to Nielsen’s study, 70% of consumers trust a recommendation from a person they don’t know.
➤ Nielsen states that 92% of customers trust advice from their peers in the same study.
Peer pressure is real, indeed!
92% of customers trust non-paid advice rather than paid advertisements. Seeing that a person is being paid to recommend a product decreases the reliability and trust of potential customers.
➤ 63% of customers want to hear company claims 3 or 5 times before they believe in them, as was stated in Marketing Blender’s article about B2B statistics
➤ According to HubSpot’s article, 88% of customers rely on user reviews as much as they trust personal recommendations.
➤ 73% of visitors choose to read written reviews rather than seeing star ratings, as Trustpulse stated in its article.
➤ As Econsultancy states in its article, customers find product reviews 12 times more reliable than product page copies.
Social Proof Statistics about Influencer Marketing’s Effects
Influencer marketing has grown a lot, and its significant effects are undeniable. It can be seen as social proof since people follow and give importance to influencers’ recommendations.
Explore these social proof statistics about influencer marketing’s effects:
➤ According to Tomoson’s study about influencer marketing, it is considered the fastest growing consumer-acquisition channel compared with organic search, email, paid search, and display advertising.
It is also stated that businesses that spend money on influencer marketing earn $6.50 for every $1 they spend on influencer marketing campaigns.
➤ The influencer marketing industry is now worth $13.8 billion, more than doubling its growth since 2019. (Source: Statista’s study about global influencer market size.
➤ According to Influencer Marketing Hub’s statistics about influencer marketing, nearly 67% of companies use Instagram for their influencer marketing strategy.
Additionally, 6/10 of YouTube subscribers consider their favorite YouTubers and favorite TV or movie characters’ advice while deciding what to buy.
Also, approximately 40% of users on Twitter stated that they purchased something after they saw a tweet from an influencer.
89% of people stated that influencer marketing activities’ ROI is better than other marketing channels.
➤ Sprout Social states in its social proof article that 49% of Twitter users also count on Twitter influencers’ comments and recommendations.
➤ In 2020, 51% of marketers stated that influencer marketing allows them to acquire a better customer base. (Source: SmartInsights article about influencer marketing facts.
It can be said that influencer marketing helps companies to reach their target customers and audience correctly. By seeing product recommendations from their favorite influencers, people can quickly decide on buying a product.
➤ Statista’s research that was carried out in 2018 shows that 45% of micro-influencer followers expressed that they tried the products or services that influencers recommended.
➤ Twitter users are 5.2 times more likely to buy after seeing promotional posts from influencers. (Source: Adweek’s content about performance marketing
Social Proof Statistics in 2024 Infographic
We prepared an infographic that includes quick statistics about social proof! You are welcomed to use our infographic on your website to display statistical data.
Wrap Up
That is all for social proof statistics you must know in 2024! We brought social proof statistics about the buyer decision process, customer reviews and testimonials, building brand trust, and influencer marketing together.
By seeing the effectiveness of social proof statistics, you can properly apply specific strategies to your business. For example, you can use social proof tools to make your job so much easier, and get the most out of your marketing campaigns.
A little reminder: Using social proof popups on your website can benefit your business in so many ways. You can increase your user engagement and sales conversions and reinforce customer trust with social proof popups.
Using a popup builder like Popupsmart, you can include social proof popups on your website to quickly achieve your goals!
Frequently Asked Questions
How Effective is Social Proof?
Social proof is a form of persuasion that makes an argument based on the actions of others. It’s a powerful tool because it appeals to our natural human need to conform and be accepted by our peers. We’re more likely to take action if we know what other people are doing, especially if they’re similar to us.
Social proof is used in marketing when marketers want to convince you to buy a product or service by showing you how many others have bought it.
This type of persuasion is effective because it helps you feel like you’re making an informed decision about whether or not to purchase a product. If you see that many others have already purchased it and rated it highly, there must be something good about it!
What are Examples of Social Proof?
Social proof is a marketing technique that uses testimonials, reviews, and endorsements to demonstrate that a product or service is trustworthy. Social proof is used to increase the confidence of potential customers in a particular brand or product.
An excellent example of social proof is seeing many people wearing the same thing at an event or party. You might be more likely to buy that item if you see other people wearing it because you feel like it’s probably a good choice.
Another example of social proof is when someone writes a review on Yelp or another site about a business they’ve visited. If they say they had an excellent experience there, other people might choose to go there too because they trust the opinion of someone who has been there before.
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