This Just In: People Trust Their Friends’ Music Recommendations
Hey, did you hear about the survey that claimed eight out of 10 consumers “are turning away from professional music reviews and looking online for guidance when buying CDs or downloads”? That sounds kind of bad for people who aspire to make their living offering guidance to people who Recommendations made while browsing music stores such as iTunes or social networking applications such as I Like on Facebook proved popular for 40 per cent of respondents.
This was just pipped by the opinion of family, friends and other shoppers at 41 per cent of respondents.
Although the internet is proving a popular place for sharing music tastes, many are still divided on its effectiveness as a delivery platform.
Some 51 per cent of those surveyed said that they prefer to purchase CDs, compared with 25 per cent who opt for digital downloads.
No statistics on “turning away,” no numbers regarding people thinking less of critics (if they’re thought of at all). And the headline is “Music fans looking online for guidance,” but who are some of the people giving those recommendations on “social networking applications such as I Like”? Why, the same friends and family who make up that less-wired–and therefore non-lede-worthy–41%. So basically, from these numbers, you learn that Jane Record Buyer is looking to the opinions of her friends, and not the 75-word blurbs in Blender, for opinions on music that’s coming out. Wow, what will Avail think of next? I hope it’s a cutting look at how people are more likely to communicate online with people they know than with strangers!
