How 18-34 Year-Olds Are Using Mobile Devices And Social Media To Shortcut Their Grocery Shopping

To satisfy their ever-evolving tastes, consumers are turning to their mobile devices for instant satisfaction, while relying on social media platforms to guide their decision-making. In fact, 36% of 18-34-year-olds say they engage with food related-posts on Facebook every week, and more than a quarter of young consumers use social media channels to find culinary inspiration.

To help marketers understand the new customer journey, Facebook IQ commissioned Accenture to survey 2,280 people in the U.S ages 18 and over, who have purchased food products in the three month period leading up to November 2019. The study revealed people’s changing relationships with food and uncovered three trends impacting food brands.

At the heart of this survey, mobile devises are transforming how consumers shop. The survey concluded the following:

• 1 in 4 18-34-year-olds are now using mobile to make food purchases.
• 40% of food shoppers use their phone to check their digital grocery lists when in-store.
• 34% of 18-43-year-olds say they use their phone to look for promotions and discounts when shopping in-store.

How Does Social Play A Role In The Food Shopping Journey?

It’s well known that consumers like to share food-related content with their friends and followers on social media:

• 44% of 18-34-year-old food shoppers post or share food related content on social media.
• 87 % of 18-34-year-old food shoppers say they discover new food products or recipe ideas on social platforms.
• 31% of 18-34-year-old food shoppers say that upon discovering a new food product online they’ll consider using it in a recipe.

Food brands must engage their audiences through visual storytelling!

Consumers are eating with their eyes, and that’s having a direct impact on their purchasing behavior. Between carousal ads, vertical videos, stories and more, social media is a particularly effective channel to satisfy digital hunger. That’s why 46% of 18-34-year-olds say they have purchased a food product after seeing a post on social media.