New research by influencer marketing business Social Soup has revealed that informative content, not entertainment, has the most sway in influencing consumer's purchasing decisions. The findings were unveiled at Social Soup's second annual Influence Upfronts event in Sydney.

The study identified the top five types of content that influence consumers as informative, relatable, authentic, creative, and friendly. 52% of respondents indicated that informative content had the most impact on their purchasing decisions. This was followed by relatable content (40%), authentic (35%), creative (35%), and friendly (32%).

Contrary to popular belief, entertaining and humorous content was not as influential as expected. Only 18% of respondents said entertaining content influenced their buying decisions, and a mere 7% said funny content did.

"At first glance, the findings of the research are surprising. Some of the most-watched content on social media is funny and entertaining, but that isn't going to work as well for brands and marketers as content that you might think as comparatively dull, that is, content that is informative and relatable," said CEO of Social Soup, Sharyn Smith.

The research also highlighted the power of social media platforms in driving purchases. 81% of respondents had made a purchase through Instagram or TikTok in the past 12 months due to content they had seen. But purchases weren't necessarily driven by a relationship with the content creator - 27% of people had never followed the social media account that prompted them to make a purchase.

Video content proved to be the most influential in driving purchases, with 36% of people saying Instagram Reels had swayed their buying decisions and 26% citing TikTok.

"What we are seeing is the evolution of social content from a commercial point of view. Traditional creator and campaign content and strategies are not going to work as well with consumers as they did a few years ago," Smith said.

The study, conducted in April 2024, surveyed 1,176 people across Australia, providing a representative sample of the national population.

"We're seeing a return to real, grassroots influence. People want less aspirational and more relatable content than ever before. Big, aspirational, entertaining, mass-media ad campaigns might work with some consumers on some occasions, but that isn't the case when it comes to social," Smith said.