4 Ways to Boost Sales Through Social Commerce
With the rise of social shopping, there’s no denying that social media platforms are evolving the way we shop. According to McKinsey and Company, globally, the social-commerce market is expected to grow to more than $2 trillion by 2025.
Social media platforms are on the road to propelling the e-commerce industry forward through various features like curated shoppable feeds and in-platform affiliate programs. Read on to discover our favorite social media tools and tactics evolving the e-commerce experience for consumers and boosting sales for brands.
SIMPLIFY THE PURCHASE PROCESS THROUGH IN-PLATFORM PRODUCT TAGS
Instagram made a shift into the e-commerce space back in 2020 with the introduction of Instagram Shopping, a feature allowing brands to sell their products within the platform. This allows businesses to meet their audience where they’re at and provide an immersive storefront for customers with digital product tags. By clicking on the shopping tag, you can learn more about the individual product and even purchase the item without ever having to leave the Instagram app.
If you checked out our 2023 Social Media Trend Predictions blog post, you may remember us mentioning “zero click content.” To understand this strategy, we have to first acknowledge that Instagram is a business that runs on ads. In order to get users to view more ads, Instagram’s goal is to keep users in the app for as long as possible. As a result, the algorithm rewards accounts that are able to do so.
So what does this mean for brands? In 2023, brands should prioritize content that requires zero clicks - meaning everything they need is available to them within the platform as opposed to being linked out to a third-party website. One way to implement this is through the encouragement of in-app purchases via IG Shopping with “Tap to shop!” CTAs as opposed to the classic “Link in bio.” This strategy is not only advantageous algorithmically but it also creates fewer steps in the purchase process, which lowers the chance of losing a potential customer somewhere in the conversion funnel.
Instagram’s not the only social media platform this strategy can be implemented on! As reported by Pinterest, 450 million users use the platform every month to find ideas and inspire their next purchase. By adding product pins to your Pinterest account, you’re setting your products in front of people on the platform who are already looking for ideas and things to buy.
Like product tags on Instagram, Product Pins contain pricing information, availability, product title, and description. When a user has found a product they’re interested in, they can click the pin and be sent directly to the landing page of the product to purchase it, increasing sales and website traffic overall.
TIKTOK
From the infamous Amazon leggings to carpet cleaners, #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt has taken the platform by storm. According to Social Pilot, consumer spending on TikTok has surpassed $2.5 million globally.
Near the end of 2022, TikTok quietly began to roll out TikTok Shop, its long-awaited, in-platform shopping feature. Like Instagram Shops, TikTok Shop enables merchants, brands, and creators to showcase and sell products directly on TikTok through in-feed videos, LIVEs, and the product showcase tab. Like Instagram and Pinterest, be sure to tag your products to shop in TikToks to boost discoverability and streamline the purchase process for consumers.
ADD USER-GENERATED CONTENT TO YOUR INSTAGRAM SHOP
User-generated content is any type of content created by real consumers. UGC includes written reviews, photos, videos, audios, and so on, that are shared across social and digital platforms. Instagram recently released the capability for brand accounts to include UGC they have been tagged in in their Instagram Shop. Using this content brings authentic lifestyle imagery created by the brand’s community into the social shopping experience, helping people feel confident in making their in-app purchases.
At Homemade Social, we regularly go through our e-commerce clients’ tagged photos and add any fitting photos to their IG Shop. To do so:
Select an eligible tagged post and click “Request” next to “Feature in Your Shop.” Most posts are eligible for brands to request with the following exceptions: the post already has products tagged, the account is private, or multiple brands and businesses are tagged.
Pro tip: avoid using photos that also feature competing products.
Select the product featured in the photo in your Product Catalog.
Submit the request to feature the image in your IG Shop. Once the creator accepts, the image will automatically be added to your IG Shop.
PARTNER WITH INFLUENCERS THROUGH IG’S AFFILIATE PROGRAM
Influencers are another powerful tool to driving your social commerce sales. As influencer marketing continues to grow, one of the easiest ways to combine your strategies is to implement an an affiliate program. Instagram’s affiliate program allows creators to share and tag products with their followers and earn commissions for the purchases they drive — all within the Instagram app.
Once brands have gone through the process of creating an affiliate program on Instagram, they will be able to manage commission rates, easily view creator content promoting their products, explore insights, and monitor sales. Keep in mind that unlike shopping tags from standard users, brands are unable to remove shopping tags from affiliate posts.
HOST LIVE SHOPPING EVENTS
Live shopping started as a huge trend in Asia and is now on the rise in the United States. Live shopping combines live video, social media, and e-commerce.
Although live shopping may sound a lot like just switching the channel to QVC, it offers an even better experience than TV shopping as shoppers get personalized attention and convenient purchasing. If a consumer sees something they like through live shopping, they can click on the product and purchase it right then and there.
Live streaming your product or partnering with influencers to stream your products is one of the best ways to make your e-commerce business stand out. Some of the benefits of live shopping include:
Fewer returns
Interactive content
More social media engagement
Brand awareness
Customer accessibility
Though Instagram recently announced the removal of this feature, other platforms that remain on the live shopping trend include YouTube, Twitch, and soon to be, TikTok.
We hope you found this blog post on how to boost sales through social commerce helpful! For more social media tips, be sure to follow us on Instagram and subscribe to our digital marketing newsletter.
xx,
The Homies