Derrick Metzler: Social Media Innovation

Posts Tagged ‘Local Business’

I agree the opinions of strangers only carry so much weight and am excited about the idea of recommendations from friends having more influence on what I purchase online. This phenomenon already happens regularly in person, why not make it commonplace online. I think social commerce also presents exciting, new ways for local businesses to connect with people in their community who may not frequent the store, but are still interested in knowing when you receive new products or are about to discount old ones. While cheaper options may be presented by online retailers, they will ultimately fall short of the intimacy available from local stores. The introduction of social commerce is proof that personal relationships between retailers and customers is still important and sites like Groupon are great ways to encourage locals to check out new restaurants and services available in their city at a discounted rate.

I was thrilled the other day when, while searching for apartments online, a friend provided me with a link to a demographics map created by The New York Times. The map provided useful insight into the segregated areas of Philadelphia and explained sharp differences in rent from one block to the next. While the information was somewhat upsetting (the map shows very clear lines of segregation) it helped me chose an area to start concentrating my searches where I can find lower rent and still be provided the type of community I’m looking for. I look forward to a day when these personal recommendations appear automatically on e-commerce sites every time I shop online.