Social Sign-On Is a Priority for Leading Retailers and Publishers: Study

Online businesses have big plans for social sign-on -- the ability to register on a Web site using an existing social identity, according to a recent report by Palo Alto, Calif.-based research firm Gigya.

While social media users are familiar with social sign on between social media sites (for example, you can use your Facebook login to sign onto Twitter), we can expect social sign-on to permeate other areas of the Web, such as retail and publisher Web sites, according to the Gigya study, “The Value of Social Sign-On and the Registered User.”

The report examines the importance of registered users and the benefits of social sign-on for both retailers and publishers on the Web. “These findings support our clients’ experience with social sign-on – that increasing registrations is just one of many business benefits,” said David A. Yovanno, CEO of Gigya. “Social sign-on also provides the foundation for sharing and community features, enabling businesses to drive more referral traffic and time spent and take full advantage of the connection between their site and the social networks.”

Two thirds of both publishers and retailers surveyed say that registered users are measurably more valuable than those who have not registered, but that their organizations are working harder than ever to drive registrations by minimizing required fields or by running costly promotions.

Social sign-on helps to overcome this challenge. Executives surveyed believe social sign-on benefits include improved targeting, positive buzz, increased loyalty and ultimately increased revenue. The vast majority also responded that these benefits are both important and achievable.

The benefits of social sign-on cited as most important include:

  • Loyalty: the ability to engage users and build relationships was the benefit deemed important by the largest percentage of online executives (84 percent).
  • Targeting: 80 percent of executives cited applying rich profile information to target and customize the site experience.
  • Word of Mouth: 77 percent say social sign-on makes it easier for customers to share information and promote the organization to their social network.
  • Revenue: 75 percent see social sign-on impacting their organization’s bottom line.

The research, conducted in July and August 2010, included in-depth interviews and a survey of 100 product and marketing executives employed by publishers with at least 100K monthly page views or retailers with annual online revenue of at least $10M.

Click here to download the full report.

 

 

 

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