Marketers turn to owned brand communities as social media declines

A new study by TINT, the Community Powered Marketing platform, finds 60% of marketers are concerned about losing access to their brand’s fans on social media due to increasing fragmentation, dissatisfaction with platform content, and changes in social algorithms.

“2024 is the year of owned brand communities and Zero Party Data,” said Sameer Kamat, TINT CEO. “We have seen how quickly social platforms can change and fall out of favor. Brands are taking back their relationships with consumers.”

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67% of consumers feel more connected through community than social.

The study finds that 47% of brand marketers surveyed already own or are in the process of building an online brand community distinct from social media.

Consumer participation in online communities is trending upward, increasing 9% year-over-year as people seek more active involvement with the brands and organizations they frequent. Community-centric marketing builds direct, emotional and engaging relationships, serving as the bond that drives choiceful spending, authentic advocacy, and enduring brand loyalty.

“It is important to own this relationship because we increasingly don’t own our brands,” said Tiffany Pegues, Head of Social, Search, and CRM at Church & Dwight Co . “Consumers will adapt them as they want to or need to.” She adds that communities are part of the omnichannel journey that bridges the gap between digital and physical experiences.

Additional Findings

• 82% of consumers are more likely to purchase new product varieties because of an online brand community.
• 69% of consumers prefer to purchase brands that they interact with in an online community.
• 59% of marketers struggle to get consumers to provide Zero Party Data.

The data for this report was gathered using online surveys between October 25 – November 15, 2023. Data was collected from a peer influencer consumer community, Smiley360, by 2,386 U.S. respondents and from 220 global marketers.

TINT’s Community Powered Marketing platform helps brands find new consumers, hug the ones they have, and leverage their voices everywhere. Over 5,000 brands in 173 countries trust TINT to identify, engage, and mobilize their consumer community to increase advocacy & engagement, create authentic UGC and reviews, boost sales & conversions, and foster lasting loyalty.

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