social commerce success

Not only does social commerce offer another avenue for sales generation, it also offers an opportunity for brands to build stronger connections with their followers.

Global sales via social media platforms are estimated to reach US$992 billion by 2022, according to Statista, and will become even more popular in the future. Social commerce sales are projected to reach approximately US$2.9 trillion by 2026.

“By 2023, not only will consumers use social media to socialize, but discoverability will improve significantly. They will actively use social media as a search engine to find niche products. Consumers can’t buy from a business they can’t find, so implementing SEO strategically on social media is important, and there are very specific ways to do it. , manipulate your bio, use hashtag strategies, create purchasable content, work with competitors, etc. Adebukola Ajao, Digital Marketing Consultant at Bdy Consult, a marketing services firm for small businesses, said: He said:

Leveling the playing field

“Traditional e-commerce is great for consumers to search and find what they need or are looking for, but social commerce allows them to discover new products and brands through social media. , a way closer to physical shopping with friends and family.Social commerce harnesses the power of social sharing and a single path to purchase from platforms such as Meta and Snapchat, allowing small-scale It has created new opportunities to level the playing field for brands to compete with larger brands.Prism Bags is a retailer of sustainably made functional bags and backpacks.

“Social shopping features on social media platforms are becoming more pervasive. More people are getting used to buying through platforms,” she adds.

Discoverability

“The nature of social commerce impacts shopping behavior and product discovery. A seamless, single path to purchase from social media apps enables faster purchases and easier sharing of new products among friends. For example, there are fewer barriers to purchase, such as not having to navigate to another site or app to complete a transaction, and the trust of friends who recommend your product can result in faster conversions and more It can encourage impulse purchases of low-priced items in the shop,” Lee says.

Collaboration with content creators

Content creators allow others to speak for your brand and are often more trusted by consumers than messages sent directly from your brand.

“Build relationships with your community, as they can be strong advocates for your brand. Especially in social media and social commerce, influencers and customers can play a pivotal role in driving sales and bringing awareness to new audiences and networks. With our brand, we’ve noticed satisfied customers endorse our products and share social proof as micro-influencers.This is powerful and has driven more engagement.

It’s important to distinguish between celebrities and influencers and more authentic content creators. “Go with creators, not influencers. Have creators create with no briefs or very limited briefs, with their own voices, keep rules to a minimum, and be more like your customer base. Shoot for the people, fame and reach aren’t always real, advises Katharine McKee, founder of digital commerce consultancy Morphology Consulting.

Nano-influencers, who have less than 10,000 social media followers, and micro-influencers, who typically have 10,000 to 100,000 followers, are growing in popularity among brands.

“Nano- and micro-influencers will continue to outperform mega-influencers in driving new and returning consumers to brands. It remains a key component of marketing.Evidence of this continues to be seen in engagement, where we have not seen any decline in engagement on platforms for nano- and micro-influencers, but not for mega-influencers.” said Ashley Lechter of Laura Alexandria Marketing, a social media microagency.

“The key to social commerce is how well it reflects the wants and needs of the customer. You can now see how people view your service in real time, the biggest and purest shift to “authenticity” marketing to date. Brands need to lean,” he says Mckee.