95% of Young Instagram Users Purchase Goods Popularized by Influencers

Only 5% of Latvian Instagram users of the age 18 to 35 never buy the products that influencers write about, according to a survey conducted by the A.W.Olsen & Partners Communication Agency in the spring of this year. "Moreover, 39% of respondents often and very often buy goods described in influencers’ posts," - says Marija Vorkule, Project Manager at A.W. Olsen & Partners. International researches show that the efficiency of classic advertising channels is dropping from day to day - people not only consume media in a different way, but also more critically perceive what they are "told" by brands. "The credibility of advertising, which we see on TV, in magazines and newspapers, has declined by 24%, 20% and 25%, respectively, in two years. At the same time, 83% of consumers believe that the recommendations of friends and relatives are much more reliable than any advertising, and this figure has increased by 18% in the last five years, even though friends can certainly not be experts in any matter. Moreover, 2/3 of the respondents who participated in the Nielsen research indicated that they consider the opinion expressed about the brand on the Internet to be one of the most trustworthy sources of information," says M. Vorkule, adding that more than half of the respondents (59%) purchase only those things that other people have already tested, and 52% always search for information about the purchased product. Consumers in the age of 18 to 35 became the most economically active generation history has ever known, and 58% of Latvian residents of this age using Instagram regularly, often, or very often purchase goods that have been seen in influencers’ posts. Even if we consider those who behave this way rarely (27%) and very rarely (9%), it should be noted that these people are influenced by Instagram-celebrities. More than half (55%) of the surveyed Latvians indicated that influencers’ posts regularly (17%) or even often (38%) motivate them to search for additional information about the product, and almost ¾ pointed out that the posts of influencers about cosmetics and clothing caused interest in them. "Of course, this is due to the fact that the primary audience of Instagram is women", - explains the A.W. Olsen & Partners Project Manager, adding that more than half of the respondents (57%) listen to the opinion of the influencers. "One of the reasons why bloggers and Instagram-celebrities have such influence is the fatigue from information noise. People are too overwhelmed by the information flow and it is difficult for them to choose among hundreds of similar products and brands the one that would suit them. Therefore, 41% of Latvians agree with the statement that the recommendations of the influencers facilitate their life, helping to cope with the flow of information."