Hungarian customers are easily influenced by media

Hungarian customers are more likely to be influenced by advertisements and commercials than most other nations in Europe. Nielsen market research company carried out the survey in 55 countries.

The online world is increasingly reflecting the offline world, with the web’s 50 most-popular brands consisting more than ever of businesses established in the ‘real world’ and sites serving the interaction between ‘real people’, according to a UKOM/Nielsen study of how the profile of the web’s most-visited sites has changed since 2004.

Names such as Freeserve, Lycos, Demon and Kelkoo, which once appeared among the web’s elite, have now been replaced in the Top 50 by brands such as Facebook, Twitter, Sky and John Lewis.

The rise of social media and traditional offline brands
UKOM general manager James Smythe explains: “Over the last seven years, we see two broad developments: first, huge growth in the use of sites built on social content, where we mostly find contributions from people we trust; and second, websites with a high-street or ‘real-world’ presence translating the strength of their offline brands into online audiences.”

In January 2004, only one web brand among the Top 50 – Friends Reunited – was powered by social media. Now there are 10, including sites like YouTube, Wikipedia and Tripadvisor.

Meanwhile, seven years ago, only 18 of the top 50 sites had an established offline presence, such as Argos and the BBC; this has now increased to 25.

Smythe continues: “The web has always made it easier for people to feed their fundamental desire to socialise, but the critical element of trust in social online environments has now become mainstream. Likewise, traditional brands have successfully harnessed the trust and confidence consumers have had with their established businesses offline, by migrating them to their sites on the web.”