AP Thesis

The Impact of Social Media on Consumer Behavior

Case of Kosovo

Student Supervisor Professor:

Arta Hasani Kapllan Halimi

September, 2020

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 Table of contents:

- Cover page……………………………………….…..…………………………………………..1

- Table of contents…………………………….…..………………………………………………2

- List of tables/List of figures……..……………………………………………………………….3

- Abstract/……………………....……………..…………………………………………………..4

- Introduction……………………………………………………………………………….……..5

- Delimitation………………………………………………………………………………….…..5

- Problem statement……………………………………………………………………….….…6-7

- Literature review………………………………………………………………………..…....7-10

- Methodology……………………………………………………………………………..…10-11

- Findings &Analysis…………………………………………………………………............12-22

- Discussion…………………………………………………………………………………..23-24

- Conclusion &Recommendations………………………………………………………...….25-26

-References……………………………………………………………………………...…....27-28

- Appendix…………………………………….……………………………………………...28-31

List of tables/ Figures

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-Methodology……………………………………………………………………..…………10-11
Gender of the sample / Figure1.0…………………………………………………...………….10
Age group of the sample /Figure1.1……………………………………………...……………...11

-Findings &Analysis……………………………………………………………………......12-22
Access on the internet /Figure 1.2……………………………………………………………….12

Users of Social Media /Figure1.3………………………………………………..…….………..12

Time spent on social media/Figure1.4…………………………………...……………………....13

Social media preferences and usages/ Figure1.5…………………………………………..…….13

Information sources before purchasing/Figure1.6……………………….......………………….14
Reliable sources/ Figure 1.7………………………………………………………………...……14
Reliability of social media/Figure1.8………………………………………………….…………15
Following favorite brands/Figure1.9……….………………………………………………..…..16
Relation of social media and product knowledge/Figure2.0…….…………..………………….16
Purchase made impacted by social media/Figure 2.1……………………...…………………….17

Impacts on making a purchase/Figure2.2………………..…………………………….………..18

Impact on different products/Figure2.3………………………………………………………....18

Viral product on social media effect/ Figure2.4……………………………………………..….19

Satisfaction with the quality of the products that were purchased affected by the social media

/Figure2.5…………………………………………………………………………………..…….20
Level of satisfaction ways of expression/ Figure 2.6…………………………….………………20
Impact of social media in purchasing process/Figure2.7……………….……………………..…21
Processes/Levels where consumers are affected by the social media /Figure2.8………………..22

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Abstract

This paper explores if there is a impact on consumer’s behavior by the social media in Kosovo.

Seeing the popularity and power of Social Media Channels nowadays, businesses are looking to

different types of social media networks in order to target their audiences. On the other hand,

consumers are exploring a lot to see where they can find the best choices for themselves. This

research is done in order to see if there is a correlation between consumer’s behavior and

products exposed in the social media. There are used both primary and secondary data and it is

done a survey with 70 participants. There is seen a huge level of usage of social media in Kosovo

as the first country in Balkan list countries. Based on the research done 47.1% of social media

users in Kosovo spent more than 4 hours a day on social media platforms and 91.4% of them are

impacted by the social media before doing a purchase, mostly on decision making process and

recognition of the need. Consumers do express their satisfaction/dissatisfaction on social media

channels by likes/dislikes, reviews, comments and they do take into account them before making

a purchase. In general, there is a huge impact of social media on consumer behavior in Kosovo,

which should not be underestimated by both pairs, businesses and consumers.

Introduction

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We all know that we all belong to the age of technology and we cannot avoid it at all, but the

way we use it, then leads us to one negative side of the road or the other positive one. We cannot

see social networks either only as negativity or only the positive sides, but we should try to use

them on the right way. Social media has changed the game for many industries and disciplines,

including consumer behavior. Based on Deloitte report, 49% of consumers in USA seek

guidance from social media influencers before making a buying decision, whereas consumers

who are influenced by social media are 4 times more likely to spend more on purchases.

There is a lack of research for this topic in Kosovo and not too much is known, but what we do is

that we are really huge fans of different social media networks on which we spent daily time.

How much do people in Kosovo use social media, how reliable are social media channels to get

information for the products, which platform do they use more, is their purchasing process

impacted by the social media at all and how it is impacted? What will happen if a product goes

viral on the social media? The answer of all of those questions will be founded in this paper.

Delimitation

I have chosen this topic because I believe that there is a lack of the research in this area. Social

media is influencing us every day so I wanted to have some real statistics on how us, consumers

are affected by social media channels, and in which stages. I also was curious to know where

should business concentrate on promoting and where should consumers look for information and

products to purchase. This paper will not discuss about exact percentage of usage of social

media in Kosovo (only based on second hand data) and also not percentage of usage for each

social media platform(just for some specific ones) .

Problem statement

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There has been a huge transformation on our lives with the invention of the internet and its

massive usage. Internet in general, but social media in specific affect our everyday lives in

positive or negative way. Talking about the positive side, it gives us the opportunity to

communicate with the others, share our interest, collect more information or find different

alternatives but also helps businesses to sell or engage with the customers. Businesses are using

social media as a tool to either sell or promote their products and it seems to have a huge positive

impact on the businesses around the world.

Talking about business in Kosovo, in the past they used more the mass media (TV, radio,

newspapers) as tools to promote their products. This was reported by The Independent Media

Commission in Kosovo, when 70% of the businesses followed this practice in 2013. As times are

changing, the practices may have changed too. As social media has a huge impact in our lives

and are part of our everyday life, a little was done to see how it affects the consumers. Does it

affect them on the recognition of the need, evaluation of the products, in decision making process

or it does not affect the consumers at all, is an issue we all are curious to know. That is why this

research is done in order to evaluate the impact that social media has on consumer behavior in

Kosovo.

General question:

What impact do social media have on consumer behavior in Kosovo?

Sub questions:

How much do people living in Kosovo use social media?

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Which type of media is more reliable for them?

Do they follow their favorite brands in social media?

Did they make any unplanned purchase just because they saw the product on social media?

If yes, in which phase/process do social media impact consumers?

Literature Review

Social Media

People are using the social media platforms more and more day by day. The Social media

revolution has changed the way we interact with the world and with each other. It has allowed us

to use these social media to connect with people wherever they are, near our city or in another

continent. Social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Twitter have affected

our way of living. We use these platforms to share our daily lives, our achievements, our

opinions in different matters, creating online movements and raising our voice for different

world issues. But these social media have also changed the way we do marketing today. You

cannot be a functioning company or organization without having your own web-page or social

media platform page. It is simply necessary to connect with your customers and stakeholders

alike. Companies today use social media to show off new products and lure customers with many

ads shown in these platforms. The customer today is bombarded with information from social

media platforms about new products, offers, sales, and upcoming projects of companies. Many

people have made the social media platforms they go to place to be informed about their favorite

brands. Every company has their social media tied to their online shop web-page so it is only one

click away for the customer to buy their products or services. The customer today is under the

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influence of buying what is trendy and cool and social media has the power to make even the

simplest thing like a t-shirt with some branding on it, to be the most requested product in the

world. The social media platform has reduced the time of going to an actual shop or building to

buy things or require services. It has improved communication with the company since most of

the companies and organizations today have Live Chat support or complaint system intact with

their social media pages and web-pages. Review systems have also made it easier to judge items

and products and most importantly you do not even have to leave your comfort of home, you can

have almost everything delivered to you today and you are only one touch or click away.

Consumer Behavior

Consumer behavior is the actions and the decision processes of people who purchase goods and

services for their needs. It is a very complex process and it includes a lot of other processes from

within. It studies why consumers make a purchase, what do they buy, how often, from where are

they impacted, what drives them to buy the product and will they buy again that product and so

more. For a company is crucial to understand the importance of the consumer behavior in order

to be successful and to know what to sell in the present, and which products should be launched

in the future. Every consumer is different, and companies have to adopt to consumers and to the

market. Consumers from Arabia may not have the same behaviors for a specific product with the

consumers in USA with the same product. Planning not based on consumer behavior can be a

plan to a failure.

Based on Consumer Behavior, A European Perspective by Solomon,J, Barnossy,G, Askergard,S

and Hogg,M. (2006) consumer behavior may be influenced by different factors as:

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1. Personal factors which can be a personal interest based on age gender, culture and so on

2. Psychological factors which are influenced by the attitudes and perceptions of the

individuals

3. Social factors which might include family, friends, education level, social media and so on.

Social media have changed the game in every industry, including the one of doing business

too. How much do social media have impact on the consumer behavior, at which stage of the

decision making process which includes: Need recognition, Information search, alternative

evaluation, Buying and Post-purchase remains to be seen in the sections below.

Based on Datareportal report “Digital 2020 July Global Snapshot”, more than half of the

world now uses social media and 4.57 billion people around the world use the internet, of those

users,  346 million new users have come online within the last 12 months. Like everywhere in

the world, the internet penetration and usage of internet has been increased a lot in Kosovo too.

Based on the publications of 2019 by Agency of Statistics of Kosovo, 93% of the population in

Kosovo use internet, which is more or less at the same level with the European Union countries

and half of the internet users in our country have access to the internet through their phones.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown, the number of the social media users have

been increased all around the world. This increase on social media is also seen in Kosovo where

according to Zëri newspaper, people of Kosovo are the first in the Balkan countries list to

massively use social media (in relation with its population). According to the a Guide to

Implementing Social Media in Support of Kosovo’s EU Integration Process prepared by the

Ministry of European Integration of Kosovo in 2013 one third of Kosovar Internet users (around

75%) are Facebook users, statistic which most probably might have increased until now. When

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social media has become integral part of our lives, it should never be underestimated by buyers

and sellers. Based on Deloitte report, 49% of consumers in USA seek guidance from social

media influencers before making a buying decision, whereas consumers who are influenced by

social media are 4 times more likely to spend more on purchases. Moreover, the influence can be

so high that 29% of consumers are more likely to make a purchase on the same day of using the

certain social media platform. Similarly, the study also noted that nearly one in three U.S.

consumers are influenced by social media in their purchases. On the next sections we can see if

the same impact of social media is happening in Kosovo too. Based on Digital Vidya, there are

different types of social media but the main ones are: Social Networks (Facebook, Instagram,

Snapchat and others), Microblogging (Twitter, Tumblr) and Video sharing (YouTube, Facebook

Live, Periscope, Vimeo). Later on, in findings and analysis we will see which type of social

media is more used in Kosovo, which are more impactful and reliable by the consumers in

Kosovo.

Methodology:

There were needed different types of data for completing this research. There are primary data

which were gathered directly from the people and were quantitative data, whereas the secondary

data were qualitative type of data taken from reliable resources. Regarding the primary data, they

were gathered by using an online survey and the target population was people who live in

Kosovo from all cities, all type of ages and who use social media. The total number of

participants in the survey was 70. The results are presented as tables or charts in order to have a

better view of the presentation.

Gender of the sample

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 Figure 1.0

There were 70 participants in the survey where 47.1% were males and 52.9% females.

Age groups of the sample

Figure1.1

67.1% of the sample was aged from18-30 years old, 18.6% were 31-60 years old, 8.6% were

over 60 years old and only 5.7% of the sample was under 18.

Findings & Analysis

Results of the survey:

Access on the internet

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 Figure 1.2

All of the participants have access on the internet.

Users of social media

Figure 1.3

98.6% of the participants are social media users, whereas only 1.4% of them do not use social

media.

Time spent in social media

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 Figure 1.4

47.1% of the sample spent time on social media more than 4 hours per day, 40% spent 2-4 hours

per day and 8.6% spent up to 1 hour on social media per day.

Social Media preferences and usages

Figure1.5

98.6% of 70 participants are users of Social Networks, 34% of them are users of Microblogging

(Twitter, Tumblr), Video Sharing (Youtube) is used only by 2.9% of the participants.

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Information sources before purchasing

Figure1.6

92.9% of the participants seek information on the internet before making the purchase, 7.1%

seek the information on traditional media, whereas 17.2% research on both before making a

purchase.

Reliable sources

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 Fi

gure 1.7

Social media and others (as sources on the internet) are seen as reliable source of information

before making a purchase for 75.7% of the sample and 24.3% of them believe on the traditional

media.

Reliability of social media

Figure 1.8

(Participants had the option to choose more than 1 option)

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67.1% of the participants claim that Facebook is a reliable platform. After Facebook, Instagram

is the second most reliable platform based on the sample with 61.4%. Youtube is considered

reliable for 44.3% of the participants, whereas Twitter has been chosen as reliable platform by

only 10% of the sample and LinkedIn by only 1.4%.

Following favorite brands

Figure 1.9

95.7% of the sample does follow their favorite brands on the social media platforms, whereas

4.3% of them do not do the same.

Relation of social media and product knowledge

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 Figure 2.0

From 1 to 5, 48.6% of the participants do consider that social media increase their knowledge on

the (new) products on the highest level, on the 4th level are 42.9% , as neutral, on the third level

are 7.1% of the participants whereas 1.4% of the participants do not consider that social media

increase their knowledge about different products.

Purchase made impacted by the social media

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Figure 2.1

The majority of 94.3% have made a purchase impacted by the social media, whereas 5.7% of

them were never impacted by the social media regarding purchasing.

Impacts on making a purchase

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 Figure 2.2

Before making a purchase, 57.1% of the sample consider the look of the product, 54.3% of the

consider the reviews made by the others, 50% of the participants are impacted to buy a product

because they want to be at the same step with the trend and 41.4% of them are affected by the

likes and comments made by the others for the specific product.

Impact on different products

Figure 2.3

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If there is a product exposure on the social media, the impact will not be the same. 87.1% of the

sample admit that there will be an impact to their decision in case of clothes as products are

exposed, 54.3% are for the jewelry and accessories, 44.3% for food and a little less with 42.9%

on phones. Travel tickets or offers exposed on the social media may impact 41.4% of my sample,

cars with 38.6% and cosmetics with 37.1%. The least impact would be on medicines with 21.4%

Viral product on social media effect

Figure 2.4

If a product goes viral on social media,67.1% of the sample would consider the possibility to

buy it, 25.7% of them would buy it, 2.9% will not buy the product, 2.9% will suggest it to the

others whereas 1.4% of the sample say that it depends on the products which goes viral.

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Satisfaction with the quality of the products that were purchased affected by the social media

Figure 2.5

54.3% of the sample admit that they are satisfied with the products that they have purchased

affected by the social media, 31.4% are neutral, 10% are highly satisfied whereas 4.3% of the

participants are dissatisfied with the quality of the products purchased.

Level of satisfaction ways of expression

Figure 2.6

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The way that the participants of the survey express the level of satisfaction is as follows:

54.3% of them do it on the reviews, 52.9% on likes/dislikes and comments, 44.3% complain in

the shop if there is a low level of satisfaction, 11.4% have no reaction whereas only 7.1% use

email as a tool to express their level of satisfaction.

Impact of social media on purchasing process

Figure 2.7

91.4% of the participants in the sample confirm that in general, there is a impact from social

media on purchasing process, whereas 8.6% are not impacted.

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Processes/Levels where consumers are affected by the social media

Figure 2.8

60% of the sample says that there is a impact from the social media in purchasing decision,

55.4% seems it impactful on the recognition of the need, 50.8% in the product evaluation and

41.5% of them in information for the alternatives.

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Discussion

This research is more primary data based rather than secondary because of the lack of other

research done in this topic before. If the sample is generalized as the population of Kosovo,

based on the primary data observed and the secondary data gathered, we can confirm that people

of Kosovo have more than 93% access in Kosovo (100% of the sample and 93% based on the

Agency of Statistics of Kosovo mentioned in the literature review). We can say that there is a high

level of the social media usage with 98.6% of the people interviewed, mostly by the age of 18-

60.The most used social media are Social Networks as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat with

92.9%, followed by video sharing media as Youtube with 48.6%. Microblogging is less preferred

for people of Kosovo, so business should definitely focus on two first social media platforms in

order to reach more audience. We can also see that people in Kosovo spent a lot of time on the

social media, where 47.1% spent time on social media more than 4 hours per day and then 40%

spent 2-4 hours per day, which is a huge amount of time. As mentioned in problem statement

section based on The Independent Media Commission in Kosovo, when 70% of the businesses in

Kosovo in 2013 used more the mass media (TV, radio, newspapers) as tools to promote their

products. This statistic seems to change now, because based on the primary data collected, 92.9%

of the people who use social media seek for the information in social media for a product before

purchasing it, and 75.7% of them find more reliable social media as a source for information

rather than traditional media. Facebook(67.1%), Instagram(61.4) and Youtube(44.3%) seems as

most reliable platforms for kosovars and businesses should know change the direction and

concentrate more on those platforms that are seen as reliable sources from the consumers. On the

other hand, 95.7% of the social media users do follow their favorite brands on social media, so

there should be detailed and attractive posts of products continuously. We can clearly notice that

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91.5% of the people here do find social media as a source where they can increase their

knowledge on existing or new products, which even in this case, the posts should be detailed in

order to give consumers the needed information. Based on the data, 94.3% of the social media

users in Kosovo have made a purchase because they were impacted by their exposure on the

social media and what impacts the consumers are also the reviews on a product with 54.3%, and

41.4% of them also look forward to the likes and comments that a product has in social media.

The same impact is not seen at the same products. A bigger affect from social media exposure to

the consumers have products as: clothes (87.1%), jewelry/ accessories (54.3%) and food

(44.3%), and less impact is seen in product as: cars, phones or medicines, so the first products

should definitely have more exposure. If a product goes viral in social media than 67.1% of the

consumers in Kosovo would consider to buy it, so if a lot of effort is put to make a product viral

by a company, the chances to make considerable sales is very high. Consumer do not search in

social media channels only to buy something and end the process, the level of satisfaction/

dissatisfaction is also expressed in the social media by rather likes/dislikes or comments with

52.9% or in reviews with 54.3%. In general, social media impacts social media users mostly in

purchasing process with 91.4% in purchasing decision 60%, recognition of the need with

55.4%, evaluation of the product 50.8% and 41.5% of the participants agree that social media

serve them for information on the other alternatives .

As we can clearly see, social media is having a huge impact on the consumer behavior which

should be considered a lot by the businesses on where to promote their products, but also to the

consumers to know where they can find the best solutions for themselves.

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Conclusion

In conclusion, social media has brought a huge innovation on our planet. Affecting a lot of

spheres, it also affects the businesses and consumers too. Social media is used a lot in Kosovo on

being the first country in Balkan countries list to use social media, especially social networks as

Facebook and Instagram. A majority of kosovars with 75.7% do consider social media as a

reliable source to get information before making a purchase. The social media users do follow

their favorite brands on social media with a percentage of 95.7, and they also express their level

of satisfaction in the reviews, likes/dislikes and comments, in which they are also based if they

want to consider a purchase. A purchase impacted by the social media was done by 94.3% of the

social media users and it impacted their decision making process, recognition of the need,

information o the alternatives and evaluation of the product. We can conclude that there is a

strong relation between product exposure in social media and consumer’s behavior, and both

pairs should work together for a good common solution.

Recommendations

I would highly recommend businesses to use the most visited social media platforms in Kosovo

as a promotion tool, since there is a high level of social media usage in Kosovo, and also there is

no cost to make posts of the products as it seems to be impactful. Also to focus on the products

whose exposure leave more impact as food, jewelry, clothes, phones and so on. The posts should

always be attractive, so a good social media manager would be crucial for a business nowadays.

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Businesses should also invest more in social media marketing in order for their ads to be shown

more frequently and directly to the consumer.

To the consumers, I would highly recommend to make research as much as possible on the

social media and other sources before making a purchase, but also to consider likes, comments

and reviews because they are a real tool to measure the product and experiences of the others

with it. For the end, we are grateful to have social media in our lives and that the purchasing

process is being easier and easier day by day and we are having a variety of choices.

This research is very limited and can be further expanded by increasing the sample. This topic is

not treated as much as it should in Kosovo, so there is always a place for another research.

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References:

Datareportal,. (2020). Digital 2020: July Global Statshot. Retrieved in September 2020 from

https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2020-july-global-statshot

Zeri,.(2018). Kosovo first in Balkans for social medias. Retrieved in September 2020 from

https://zeri.info/auto-amp-tech/179749/kosovaret-te-paret-ne-ballkan-per-rrjetet-sociale/

Stikk,.(2019). Internet Penetration and Usage in Kosovo. Retrieved in September 2020 from

https://stikk.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/STIKK_IK_Report_Internet_Penetration_V3-final-

1.pdf

Insajderi,.(2019). Kosovo citizens biggest user of social medias. Retrieved in September 2020

fromhttps://insajderi.com/kosovaret-perdoruesit-me-te-medhenj-te-rrjeteve-sociale/

Solomon,J, Barnossy,G, Askergard,S and Hogg,M. (2006).Consumer Behavior, A European

Per-spective, Edinburgh Gate: Financial Times/Prentice Hall.

Ministry of EU Integration. "A guide to implementing social mediain support of Kosovo's EU

IntegrationProcess".

http://www.meiks.net/repository/docs/Social_Media_Guideline_ENG_-_FINAL_PDF.pdf, Nov.,

2013

Kakkar, A. (2018, September 12). Types of Social Media.Digital Vidya.

https://www.digitalvidya.com/blog/types-of-social-media/ 

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Deloitte Digital,. (2015). Navigating The New Digital Divide. Retrieved in September 2020 from

https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/consumer-business/us-cb-

navigating-the-new-digital-divide-051315.pdf

Appendices:

Survey questions: The Impact of Social Media on Consumer Behavior

1. What is your gender?

Male

Female

Prefer no t to say

2. How old are you?

<18

18-30

31-60

>60

3. Do you have access on the internet?

Yes

No

4. Are you a user of social media?

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 Yes

No

5. Which social media do you use?

Social Networks (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and others)

Microblogging (Twitter, Tumblr)

Video sharing (YouTube, Facebook Live, Periscope, Vimeo)

6. How much time per day do you use on social media?

Up to 1 hour
2-4 hours

More than 4 hours

7. Where do you seek for information before making a purchase?

Internet (social media and others)

Traditional media(Newspaper, TV, Radio)

8. Where do you find the information more reliable?

Internet (social media and others)

Traditional media(Newspaper, TV, Radio)

9. Which social media platform/s do you consider more reliable?

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

Youtube

LinkedIn

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10. Do you follow your favorite brands on social media?

Yes

No

11. How much do you agree that social media usage increase your knowledge about (new)

products?

From 1 to five

12. Have you ever made any purchase impacted by the social media?

Yes

No

13. What impacts/would impact your decision on making a purchase?

The reviews

Likes and comments

The way it looks

The desire to be on the same step with the trend

14. On which products would you be impacted if there is product exposure on the social

media?

Clothes

Food

Jewelry/Accessories

Travel tickets/offers

Cars

Cosmetics

Medicines

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 Phones

15. How does affect you if a product goes viral on social media?

You buy it.

You consider the possibility to buy it.

You don’t buy it.

16. How much are you satisfied with the quality of the products that you purchase affected

by social media?

From 1 to 5.

17. How do you express the level of satisfaction of a product in the social media

In reviews

Likes/Dislikes and comments

Emails

Complain in the shop if there is any

No reaction

18. In general, does social media impact on your purchasing process as a consumer?

Yes

No

19. If yes, how?

Recognition of the need

Information for alternatives

In purchasing decision

Evaluation of the product

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