Yet behind your back, social commerce is seeing explosive growth. A research by Accenture predicts that by 2025, online sales would have increased from $492 billion in 2021 to $1.2 trillion.

That lucrative market is only accessible to those that transform their business into a social commerce platform. You’ve come to the perfect site if you’re curious about the inner workings of socially-driven business.

What exactly is online social commerce?

The term “social commerce” refers to the practise of making direct financial transactions using social media platforms.

Note that social commerce is distinct from social media marketing. In contrast to social media marketing, social commerce allows users to directly buy things or peruse a catalogue of offerings without ever leaving the social media site.

Using social commerce, consumers are able to complete every step of the purchase process without ever leaving the social networking site.

What are the upsides of online social shopping?

Have a look at some of the following advantages your company will have once you start implementing social commerce strategies.

As an outcome, the customer’s journey is simplified

Online shoppers typically jump through several hoops before completing a purchase. In a standard online purchase, a consumer clicks on a social media ad, is sent to an e-commerce site, searches for and selects an item, adds it to a virtual shopping cart, and then completes the purchase by entering their billing and shipping information.

Customers may complete the transaction in fewer steps and (usually) without leaving the social media site when using social commerce. Even better, this is all accomplished without distracting the client in any way from their social networking experience. You can get what you want quickly and easily this way.

It improves retention and loyalty

Your own branded virtual stores may be made with the help of most social commerce capabilities. You may advertise and display your wares in visually appealing and interactive ways on such shop windows.

Most importantly, clients may interact with you in real time by asking questions or offering suggestions.

Conversion rates are increased

Sales are typically impeded by friction.

The Baynard Institute found that lowering friction may save US firms $213 billion annually. A research by Bizrate Insights found that although 44% of social customers completed their purchases directly on the platform, 56% used a social media site to find the goods they wanted and then made the purchase there.

By reducing points of consumer frustration during the purchasing process, you may not only keep your customers’ interest, but also engage them in ways that are more likely to result in a sale being made.

Aids in increasing one’s influence

With social commerce, you can talk to other people as you shop. Your engagement stats will increase significantly when customers engage with you through likes, comments, and reviews.

The platform’s algorithm will take note of the increase in engagement, which will boost your brand’s exposure to its intended demographic.

Top 2023 social media shopping platforms

There is a dearth of social media sites that support social commerce right now. Yet, you can count on it to alter as social commerce grows in popularity. Currently, the following are 2023’s top social media networks for online retailers to use.

Retail on Facebook

Using Facebook Shops, companies can set up virtual stores on their Facebook pages. Users of your social media platform may shop for your wares directly from the app once your online store is set up and ready for business. Your product portfolio may be shopped by customers without disturbing their social media activity.

With little tweaks, Facebook Stores can become a branded social buying destination. The Shop Builder is where you can make changes to the look and feel of your online business.

Create collection pages and arrange your stock to facilitate your customers’ perusal of your product catalogue. Then, interested parties will be able to learn about your offerings through their feeds, the “shop” tabs on their Facebook profiles, and even push notifications. People on social media will be displayed your wares in response to their own tastes.

Instagram Stores

With Instagram’s emphasis on visual content, the purchasing experience it facilitates through its Shops feature is extremely immersive. It’s a great method for companies to promote their goods and increase exposure and sales.

With Instagram Shops, companies can promote their wares in a number of different ways, including normal posts, Stories, the explore button, and a dedicated store page on their accounts. As soon as a company has uploaded their Instagram Shop catalogue, goods may be instantly tagged in posts such as images, videos, and stories.

If a follower sees the post and likes the item, they may tap the image for additional details, select a size and colour, and then complete the purchase.

Akin to Facebook Shops, Collections allow you to categorise your products in a way that makes it simpler for customers to search your inventory, compare pricing, and read up on specific items of interest.

Pinterest

Pinterest is unique among social media shopping sites since its users often come to the site with the intention of making a purchase.

An eMarketer poll found that more people use Pinterest for online purchasing than any other social network. Furthermore, 89% of site visitors are in search of retail motivation.

Now we can talk about Product Pins, a special kind of rich Pin that includes shopping information so that people may buy what they see in real time on social media. The only difference is that these Pins also have space for other details like cost, availability, title, and description.

Slideshow for Collections, a new tool on Pinterest, elevates this concept to a whole new level by enabling stores to automatically produce a slideshow of goods from a catalogue that are specifically suited to each consumer.