F-Factor is new retail buzzword

Amongst the all the talk and speculation about our new social media and commerce world, there’s a new term beginning to circulate that sits right at the centre of all media connectivity; the F-factor. Referring to the friends, fans and followers who

are becoming ever more powerful in influencing consumers on purchasing decisions, brands now must wake up to the need for the F-factor.

The F-factor is all important as it offers the promise of a consumption arena, that is more efficient, more relevant, and more interesting than before, where consumers either had to spend endless time and effort on trying to discover the best of the best, or had to rely on sources that were distant, unknown or untrusted (i.e brand-driven), and therefore potentially unreliable.

The F-factor reach now cannot be underestimated. Dominated by Facebook, where over 500 million active users spend over 700 billion minutes a month on the site, and where three quarters of users have ‘liked a brand,’ designers such as Juicy Couture have found their product purchase conversion rate increased by 160%. “Luxury and premium fashion brands must embrace and facilitate this sharing of information and create experiences that drive sales within social networks,” says James
Gardner, CEO of leading digital creative agency, createthegroup.

In a study by trendwatching.com, five important ways that the F-factor had influence include; F Discovery, how consumers discover new products by relying on social networks, F-rated, how consumers will increasingly receive targeted ratings from their social networks, F-feedback, how consumers can ask their friends and followers to improve their buying decisions, F-together, how shopping is becoming increasingly social even when consumers arent physically together, F-me, how consumers social networks are literally turned into products and services.