What is social proof?
Social proof is a phenomenon that drives us to look for other people’s opinions on something when we don’t have our own. When we lack the experience that will help us choose a product, we check what the masses say about it before deciding.
In marketing, the more people back up a brand, the more social proof it has. In some cases, it can affect purchase decisions greatly. In other cases, social proof can play an informational role. For example, a good friend or a reputable expert may tell us about a product we’ve never heard of. Then, we end up buying the product simply because we’ve just learned about it.
This idea is closely tied to human psychology. We don’t trust advertising anymore — being constantly online leads to ad avoidance and desensitization to traditional marketing. But when we struggle with choice, a simple unboxing video or a recommendation from someone we know can gently push us toward a certain choice. And such things can be a part of your brand’s marketing strategy.
