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

New research from StoryStream and IMRG shows that 91% of consumers are more likely to remain loyal to brands they deem authentic in their marketing

BRIGHTON, England--(BUSINESS WIRE)--StoryStream, the visual commerce platform for authentic online shopping experiences, and IMRG, the U.K. eCommerce association, today 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 (i.e. buy from them again) that they find trustworthy and authentic, and 73% of respondents said that User-generated Content (imagery shared on social media, reviews from customers, etc.) has 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.

Additional findings from the report:

- 95% of millennials are more likely to remain loyal to a Brand that they find trustworthy and authentic, versus 84% of Gen Zs.

- 73% of respondents said that brands that share User-generated Content are more trustworthy than brands that do not.

- When choosing what to buy, User-generated Content has the most impact on consumers: 62% of respondents said that UGC was the most impactful content they saw on a brand’s website, versus 38% for brand-created assets.

- Online video plays a role in 75% of consumers’ online decision-making process, with a quarter of respondents proactively seeking out User-generated video content as part of their research.

- 75% of Gen Zs have watched at least one Live Video Shopping stream in the past 12 months.

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.”

Survey Methodology

In coordination with IMRG, an online survey was conducted on a panel of potential respondents 18 years of age and older from the United Kingdom, on the week running June 10th – June 17th, 2022. There was a total of 1001 respondents. The sample was provided by Pollfish, a research panel company with a margin of error of 4%.

About StoryStream

StoryStream is the visual commerce platform for authentic online shopping experiences.

Specialising in User-generated Content and Video Commerce solutions, the SaaS-based technology is used by leading brands including Sainsbury’s, John Lewis, Porsche and Homebase to transform audience engagement and grow revenues while creating a more trusted customer experience.

About IMRG

For over 20 years, IMRG (Interactive Media in Retail Group) has been the voice of online retail in the UK. We are a membership community comprising businesses of all sizes – multichannel and pureplay, SME and multinational, and solution providers to industry. We support our members through a range of activities – including market tracking and insight, benchmarking and best practice sharing. Our indices provide in-depth intelligence on online sales, mobile sales, delivery trends and over 80 additional KPIs. Our goal is to ensure our members have the information and resources they need to succeed in rapidly-evolving markets – both domestically and internationally.