It is within this context of the increasingly pervasive role
of digital interactions in small businesses that strategies for gaining
attention and therefore sales continue to be sought. Social commerce, formally
known as e-commerce and social media, is gradually becoming a revolutionary
tool in small business marketing. Considering the recent examples of Instagram,
Facebook, TikTok, and Pinterest, companies can sell products directly within
the application without the necessity for the customers to go to other linked
web pages.
According to Accenture, social commerce sales globally are
expected to be $ 1.3 trillion in 2025. American Generation Z and Millennials
prefer to search and shop using social media platforms 50% and above. This
trend presents a tremendous opportunity for small companies to level the
playing field with big players by utilizing proper social commerce marketing
that aligns product searches and transactions.
In this blog, you will learn about social commerce for small
businesses: strategies to apply, and inspiring examples of how this approach
can transform your online shop.
What is Social Commerce?
Social commerce tends to involve the process of e-commerce
that engages the use of social media to make direct sales. In contrast with
conventional e-business, in which customers are re-routed to another website,
social commerce encompasses the complete spectrum, from consideration to
purchase.
Popular social commerce platforms include:
1. Facebook Shops: Enables organizations to open up online shops.
2. Instagram Shopping: Products can easily be found when one
does not feel like scrolling through page after page on Facebook with features
such as shoppable posts and Stories.
3. TikTok Shopping: It incorporates fun with purchase-friendly
items, images, and films.
4. Pinterest: It is an option which allows users to purchase
straight from pins.
To small businesses, social commerce makes the selling
process easier and at the same time improves the exposure by getting the
customers where they are.
The Key Benefits of Social Commerce for Small Businesses
1. Improved Customer Engagement
Social commerce converts static interaction into dynamic
engagement of customers. Services inclusive of live selling, voting and stories
with clickable artwork make customers trust the business and make purchases.
For instance, a small-scale jewelry store may conduct an
IGTV live stream where the store presents new pieces, where people can ask
questions and make orders right on the air. What is at stake cannot be achieved
solely through activity carried out through conventional e-commerce.
2. Increased Reach and Visibility
In fact, social commerce platforms are by design,
intentional in promoting visibility. Products that are bought are featured more
often since algorithms prefer them, and because social media allows one to
share content with more people.
For instance, a trendy top clothing company can use the
TikTok trends to post new clothing items in entertaining and normal videos. One
viral post, for instance, can present the brand to hundreds of thousands, or
even millions of potential consumers.
3. Seamless Shopping Experience
Another advantage of social commerce is also enhanced
through its undemanding nature in terms of purchasing. It helps cut out
drop-off rates because customers can find, research, and buy products within
the same ecosystem.
The convenience of this is especially beneficial for SMB
sellers who traditionally have high cart abandonment rates on conventional
ecommerce websites. Such options as the checkout within the application, in
case of using something like Instagram, simplify the process and boost the
conversion analysis.
4. Cost-Effective Marketing
Social commerce saves the need for developing a basic
website or expensive advertising. Using posts and other free marketing tools,
as well as low-cost advertising services, small companies can promote their
products.
For instance, Facebook Shops enable establishment-based
retail or selling points; thoughts and ideas for creating online shops are free
to the firms and businesses While targeted Advertising for firms and businesses
enables firms and businesses to reach their intended audience without incurring
high costs.
5. Access to Actionable Insights
Most platforms that fall under social commerce provide
advanced analytics which makes it easy for small businesses to analyze their
target audience. They say that such parameters as the relevance or
click-through rate, the level of engagement and even the actual purchasing
behavior aid in the fine-tuning of the marketing approach.
For instance, a small skincare brand could identify which of
its series of posts on Instagram influences consumers’ purchases and by
extension, create more such posts.
Social Commerce Strategies for Small Businesses
1. Optimize Product Listings: Clear bright images, good
descriptions, and cheapest prices have to be adopted for the buyers. Make sure
you are mobile friendly as most people accessing social media networks do so
using mobile devices.
2. Take advantage of User Generated Content (UGC): It also
means you should involve other people especially satisfied customers in sharing
photos or videos with your products. Apart from trust, reposting UGC also leads
to authenticity.
3. Select Incentivize Influencer Relations: Partnering with
influencers, as well as micro influencers can go a very long way in promoting a
brand. For small businesses, there are few better methods than using local
influencers to help gain the trust of the community.
4. Utilize Live Shopping: Other events, which can be
successfully used are live shopping events which have emerged as popular
platforms for real-time engagement and selling. Social media apps such as
Facebook and TikTok allow for easy promotion of products, responding to
inquiries swiftly, and enabling customers to make knee-jerk decisions of
purchase.
5. Stay Consistent with Branding: When implementing social
commerce the same tone, style, and visuals across the social commerce channels
should be maintained to reflect your brand. This is vital, particularly in
gaining the necessary recognition by the public.
Examples of Social Commerce Success
1. A Local Bakery's Instagram Boom: Instagram Shopping was
employed to display cupcakes and other baked products by a little bakery in
Lagos. Using fantastic photos of the products, Stories, and stickers, they
managed to raise sales by 45% in three months.
2. Fashion Boutique’s TikTok Trend: A Nigerian fashion
boutique tapped into TikTok for this campaign to promote the latest fashion
collection outlet posts with relevant sound and hashtags. The restaurant
received 60% more orders due to one viral video.
3. Handmade Crafts on Pinterest: A startup selling crafts at
home utilizes Pinterest as a marketing tool for the crafts it sells. This they
were able to do by optimising Pins with phrases such as “unique gifts” and by
linking to shoppable Pins they realized a monthly increase of 35% in their
revenue.
Emerging Social Commerce Trends
1. Live Shopping Events: Instant live product presentations
accompanied by a direct buying facility.
2. AI-Driven Personalization: Loops personalize products to
suit customers on platforms with the aid of artificial intelligence.
3. AR Features: For instance, using Augmented reality (AR)
enabled customers to feature the products before purchasing them, when using
glasses.
4. Collaborative Shopping: A suggestion that allows friends
to shop together even though they are not together in real life, to make the
best out of online shopping.
Conclusion
With social commerce as a new platform, small businesses are
gaining a brand new life as it is convenient and engaging at the same time, not
to mention cost-efficient. It is time for small businesses to tap into the
growing trend of shopping within social channels as it provides a string of
benefits such as consumer convenience, greater exposure, and analysis.
Specifically, to adapt to these changes, small businesses
are required to adopt the social commerce techniques that are relevant to them
and their target market. The possibilities of growth are unlimited: from live
sales events to customer-generated content.
In a world of social networks and e-shops, social commerce
is no longer a luxury for small businesses but a necessity to survive and
progress in the social and digital world. And as this trend progresses further,
the extent of benefits to those sectors that seize this opportunity early
enough will be enormous.
