TurnTo Customers Thrive on Social Shopping During the Holidays

NEW YORK, Jan. 26 /PRNewswire/ -- TurnTo Networks, a leader in social shopping, today announced holiday performance data from three of its customers – Jomashop, ChristianCinema.com, and eParty Unlimited.

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Through TurnTo, consumers can connect to friends from Facebook and other top social networks while shopping at dozens of online stores, making it easy to get truly trusted advice.  Internet Retailer 500 site Jomashop (www.jomashop.com), a leader in the wholesale and retail trade of luxury goods, saw a direct correlation between the deployment of TurnTo and its recent success over the holidays; shoppers who interacted with TurnTo converted at a rate over 6 times higher than those who didn't.

"When people shop for watches and jewelry online, they're doing a lot of research.  They want to know they're buying from a credible site and that they're making good product decisions.  TurnTo gives our visitors this extra confidence and helps them make decisions they're comfortable with," said Chaim Posen, Marketing Manager of Jomashop.  "We do a high percent of our annual sales over the holidays so we monitor our tools closely, and TurnTo really delivered."

ChristianCinema.com, a DVD eCommerce site dedicated to Christian and family films, also thrived. Over this holiday season, ChristianCinema.com increased its sales conversion rate more than 8 times over baseline for visitors interacting with TurnTo.  Average order value went up by 14% for these visitors.

"Our partnership with TurnTo is indicative of our commitment to giving customers a great shopping experience," said Jared Geesey, VP of ChristianCinema.com.  "When holiday shoppers face such a tremendous selection of products, it helps to see what friends and neighbors chose.  We're delighted with the results, and the numbers show our customers appreciate the service, too."

eParty Unlimited (www.epartyunlimited.com), a leading provider of entertainment-related products and party supplies, had similar results.  By connecting customers to trusted sources of advice, eParty Unlimited saw conversion rates for shoppers who interacted with TurnTo more than 8 times higher than their baseline.

"The holiday season represents a tremendous opportunity for us to maximize sales and build a loyal customer base," said Jimmy Weng, Founder and CEO, eParty Unlimited.  "TurnTo helped make the 2009 season a big success by building a connection in shoppers' minds between their friends and our brand."

Experts on social commerce agree that TurnTo's data are noteworthy and presage a big year for social shopping in 2010.  "Leading retailers implemented social shopping in 2009 and are starting to report significant return on investment, as TurnTo's results show," said Marc Osofsky, VP Marketing, Optaros.  "2010 is likely to be the year when social shopping becomes a must-have feature."

"We take great pride in having helped our partners succeed during the holiday season," said George Eberstadt, CEO and founder of TurnTo.  "Adding the trust that comes from personal relationships into the shopping process delivers benefits for both customers and merchants."

About TurnTo

TurnTo bridges the divide between social networks and ecommerce.  Internet Retailer 500 companies, including Jomashop, Dog.com, and LionBrand Yarn, use TurnTo to convert visitors into buyers by showing them which friends are already customers.  Measured across product categories, the conversion rate of visitors who use TurnTo is 2-4 times higher than it is for those who don't.  TurnTo is a white-labeled, SaaS offering that can be integrated in a few hours. TurnTo supports Facebook, Twitter, and other top social networks.  More information about TurnTo and its partner sites is available at www.turnto.com.

SOURCE TurnTo Networks, Inc.