Social Commerce is What You Need to More About Social Media

Globally, the operations of retailers have been radically altered by the deadly COVID-19 pandemic. In early 2020, retailers had no choice but to halt operations and find alternative methods of reaching consumers and that as well in a more efficient manner. Whether they are large retailers or local brands, all entities are under tremendous pressure to find a way to reach their customers.

A rapid increase in business across platforms occurred during the lockdowns, thanks to e-commerce platforms. Moreover, usage of social media platforms also kept rising because people were confined inside their homes; this is where social commerce suddenly came into the limelight. 

eCommerce and social media are combined in social commerce. In simple terms, social commerce is the technique of using social media to sell your e-commerce products and services. Several popular social commerce platforms are used for selling products, including Facebook Shop, Shoppable Instagram, Pinterest Buyable Pins, etc. 

We have written this blog to provide all the information you need about social commerce, including meaning, strategies, benefits, and much more. 

What is Social Commerce?

A consumer’s shopping experience on a social media platform is considered to be social commerce, which is part of the larger eCommerce umbrella. It can also include clickable links on social networks that lead to an online retailer’s website and enabling immediate purchase.

Social commerce will remain relevant in the near future, and conversions are on the rise. According to the US Social Commerce Association, the number of US social commerce buyers will grow by another 12.9% in 2021 to 90.4 million. 

Well, figures are huge and clearly signal that social commerce’s dominance will keep rising in the coming years. And remember, not only clothing and lifestyle products using social commerce, but restaurants have also joined this trend and incorporated this feature within their delivery platform because it will help them decrease “ordering friction.”

Popular food delivery apps such as Swiggy and Zomato leverage Instagram to make the food ordering process smooth. However, this feature is limited to certain countries, but they are all set to be introduced to global users. 

Fascinating Social Commerce Statistics

Source: FinancesOnline.com

Social commerce has become an unstoppable trend in eCommerce and retail marketing. 

Social media marketing will give brands more opportunities to attract potential customers by leveraging the power of social media networks in the future. No matter how you feel about SMM, you should check out these top stats that could benefit your business down the road.

• More than 87% of online buyers believe that social media platforms play a critical role in their shopping behavior. 
• Users spend most of their time on two popular networks, Facebook and Instagram, to find the best products
• One is four business owners promote and sell products through social media platforms
• More than 40% of marketers depend on social media channels to generate leads and bring repeat business
• Retailers reported that 40% of their sales came from Whatsapp in a MoneyControl article published after lockdown. With the growth of Instagram, it appears that this platform will become just as popular as others.
• More than half of Generation Z shoppers in the United States do more than half of their shopping online, and they say social media networks are influencing their online shopping habits and purchases.

The above figures clearly reflect that social media has become a center stage in any brand’s products promotion and made social commerce more viable than ever before. 

Having said that, we haven’t yet answered your question about why brands should care about social commerce? Here we go. 

Why Brands Should Pay Attention to Social Commerce

Source: Influencer Marketing Hub

Among the benefits of social media is that it facilitates sharing opinions and recommending products to friends. Businesses and marketers can use it to their advantage: word-of-mouth. 

However, social commerce is growing for more reasons than just that. 

Nowadays, buyers and sellers can both benefit from social networks. The “Buy Now” buttons, online payment features, listing, etc., are all available on social media posts. 

In short, online shopping has been transformed by social media. And businesses need to keep abreast of recent trends. 

Here are some incredible advantages social commerce has for businesses if you’re still wondering why it matters:

Social Media Users are Growing 

Social media sites worldwide attract thousands of new users every day, and millions are already active and using two to three platforms daily. Each month, Facebook has over one billion active users; new users are joining every hour, according to Statista. 

For any business, reaching and selling to its target audience is one of the most important considerations. With social commerce, businesses have an ever-increasing following and are more accessible, and they also don’t need to spend huge bucks on other marketing techniques.

Shortens the Sales Cycle

Evaluation and purchase are the final stages of the buyer’s journey. A final purchase occurs when your products are compared to competitors, and their value is determined. As a result of enabling social commerce, it is fair to say that the time between lead nurturing and purchase is shortened.

The company and its products were already available to consumers on social media to learn more about them. In the commerce function, buyers can easily make a purchase without leaving the social media channel with a few clicks.

Get More Happy Customers

If you are going out to shop with your friends, you might get their opinions before you make a purchase. Unlike if you bought it on your own, the chances of you being satisfied with your purchase are high. This is how social commerce works. 

When making a purchase decision, customers look at reviews, comments, and opinions posted on social media. This means their expectations are much clearer when they hit the ‘Buy’ or “shop” button. 

Customer satisfaction is ultimately increased as a result of informed purchasing decisions. Customers are also significantly less likely to return items that they buy when they shop at an e-commerce store.

Improve and Boost Your ROI

It is possible to earn a high return on investment by participating in social commerce. Tracking your social media metrics is vital to maximizing your social media marketing strategy. You can oversee your social commerce campaigns and make adjustments as needed to improve results using the built-in analytics tools available on most larger social media platforms.

Social Commerce Help Retailers to Boost Order Volume

In 2007, Facebook launched Marketplace, a peer-to-peer platform for users to sell to one another. The concept of social commerce has been popular for quite a while, and social shopping has taken off since the pandemic-induced e-commerce boom has enabled consumers to buy online with greater ease.

Irrespective of business size and type, every brand wants to boost sales and order volume, so brands adopt emerging marketing techniques. Do all deliver the same results? Perhaps, NO. But social commerce here proved amazing as it enables brands to increase their order volume drastically. 

You can increase sales by integrating social commerce into your existing channels. Moreover, this is a terrific strategy for increasing your average order value, the amount of money each customer spends on their order from your store. It’s a fact that social media can influence shopper behavior. How?

• The first thing you can say is how easy it is to order products. Direct access to the store via a mobile device makes it seamless for customers to shop from wherever they are.
• And second is social proof can impact the decision-making process of your customers positively. More importantly, it can influence people to purchase your brand and products. Review, testimonial, picture, and discussion are all examples.

Source: Nation’s Restaurant News

For instance, with “Pizza Hut’s chatbot,” customers will be able to make pizza and other menu items orders via Facebook Messenger and Twitter. Users no longer need to visit websites or download the app; they can stick to social media platforms and continue their activity, whereas the Pizza Hut store will start order preparation. 

Social Commerce is a GameChanger

With the explosive growth of social commerce, we are reminded that shopping has always been social. Social media is rapidly becoming the modern mall, particularly given the wealth of opportunities that brands have today to score sales.

We may not be able to see social commerce grow as quickly as a dedicated eCommerce site, but it’s an innovative way to sell online that brands should keep tabs on in the coming years when they seek to expand their business into new markets. 

Author bio

Nirav Parmar

Nirav is an online marketer and blogger having hands-on experience in crafting creative content. The skills he poses in creative writing is fantastic as his ability to write engaging content attracts the readers. His enthusiastic approach to researching the facts related to the topics is phenomenal. He knows all the latest trends of delivery business, strategies to digitalise SMEs,  changing market dynamics etc.