Most HR Buyers Turn to Internet First When Seeking Products and Services

For the first time since HRmarketer.com began its series of buying trend reports, a majority of human resource executives say they turn to the Internet first when searching for HR-related products and services.

Released today, the 11-page Internet Research Behavior Survey (part of our ongoing Trends in HR Marketing report series) focused specifically on how Internet, Web 2.0 and social network technologies are impacting the purchasing of products and services for HR and employee benefits professionals.

The key trends outlined in this survey reveal much about the online HR buying process. Highlights include:

• 64% of HR buyers turn to the Internet first (even before turning to peers) when searching for HR products/services they are interested in purchasing;
• Over half of HR buyers surveyed use an Internet search engine at least once per week to search for information related to human resources;
• While many buyers say they visit the Internet “daily” for HR information, they do not rely on any single web site; instead, they visit several sites;
• Nearly half of the HR buyers surveyed participate in an HR-related webcast at least once per quarter;
• Nearly two-thirds of HR buyers read at least one white paper/research report each quarter.
• The most popular “business” social networking service for HR buyers is LinkedIn, followed by Facebook and MySpace; Twitter also made the list for the first time.

Enjoy the new HRmarketer Trends in Human Resource Marketing (no registration required - share it with whoever you want).