Mediastreet
Tag

Social commerce

Browsing
In News

Social Commerce: How Brands Can Capitalize On A $3 Trillion Opportunity

No Comments

By Ian Shepherd

Picture this: You’re scrolling through your favourite social media app, watching a video of your go-to creator showcasing a product. With a simple tap, you’ve purchased that item without ever leaving the app. This seamless integration of entertainment, social interaction, and shopping is the essence of social commerce, and it’s rapidly becoming more widespread for consumers worldwide.

A new paradigm is emerging that promises to generate $3 trillion in global sales by 2026. To decode this I spoke with Max Benator, CEO of Orca, a leading live and social commerce provider, and the visionary behind SoCom, the first dedicated social commerce conference in the US.

The Social Commerce Boom

While social commerce might seem like a new concept to some, Benator is quick to point out that it’s already a substantial market. “This year, social commerce will drive $90.5 billion in transactions just in the US,” he reveals. This figure underscores the immense potential for brands willing to embrace this new channel.

But what exactly is social commerce? Benator explains, “Today, in the US, it means driving sales through content interaction or social media for a consumer product. TikTok Shop is a prime example. You have a video or a live stream, and you can purchase directly from the content inside of an enclosed environment.”

The Evolution of Shopping Experiences

The traditional e-commerce model, characterized by static product pages with “a photo and a paragraph,” is becoming obsolete. “It’s wild when I say this, but a traditional product page is almost 30-year-old technology,” Benator notes. “We don’t need to interact with our digital devices with a photo and a paragraph and five or four yellow stars. That’s some really web 1.0 stuff.”

Instead, platforms are investing heavily in more dynamic, interactive shopping experiences. TikTok Shop is leading the charge in the US, but other major platforms are quickly following suit. “We’re moving there, whether one major technology company wants to move there or not,” Benator asserts. “They have no choice but to make those investments and catch up to interactive media with the shopping experience.”

While fashion and beauty currently dominate the social commerce landscape, accounting for approximately 70% of live shopping sales, Benator emphasizes that the opportunity extends to all categories. “Every category [can benefit] because it’s shopping,” he states. From home improvement to electronics, brands across the spectrum can find success in social commerce.

Advice for Brands

For brands just beginning to explore social commerce, Benator offers crucial advice: “Brands should recognize that social commerce is a sales channel, just like their D2C sales channel, their retail sales channel. It fits inside of their omnichannel strategy. It’s not a marketing activation.”

This perspective shift is vital. Benator warns against treating social commerce as a short-term experiment: “We’re starting to see brands understand that they’re making a minimum 12-month startup commitment to build that sales channel. They have to, actually, because if they don’t, they’re going to lose their share as a result.”

The Creator Economy and Social Commerce

Content creators play a pivotal role in the social commerce ecosystem. Benator, drawing from his background in talent management, emphasizes the importance of product selection for creators looking to monetize through social commerce. “The secret sauce is, I kid you not, the product selection,” he reveals. “There are products that go viral, and as a result, they get more search activity, they get more engagement, they get more watch time, and then they get more sales.”

He cites examples of brands successfully leveraging creator partnerships, such as O Positiv, a women’s health supplement brand, and Sacheu Beauty, co-founded by creator Sarah Chung. These brands have seen significant success through affiliate partnerships with thousands of creators.

The Role of AI in Social Commerce

As with many industries, artificial intelligence is set to play a transformative role in social commerce. While virtual hosts and avatars grab headlines, Benator sees more immediate potential in behind-the-scenes applications. “There are two sides to AI,” he explains. “One is, I think, the shinier object, which is virtual hosts and avatars… the other side, where progress is already getting made much more quickly… is how AI is used for optimizing your product pages, building product pages, on your paid media, so editing and re-editing and A/B testing short videos using an AI tool with your paid media strategy.”

SoCom: The Future of Social Commerce

Recognizing the need for a dedicated forum to discuss these rapidly evolving trends, Benator and his team are organizing SoCom, the first dedicated social commerce conference in the US. Set to take place on February 6, 2025, at the Audrey Irmas Pavilion in Los Angeles, SoCom aims to bring together all facets of the social commerce ecosystem.

“We have brands, platforms… We’re very fortunate to have Malik Ducard, who’s the Chief Content Officer of Pinterest, giving the keynote presentation,” Benator shares. The event will feature industry-focused main stage presentations, deep-dive workshops, and a unique live stream gifting suite where 300 top creators will interact with products in real-time, allowing attendees to purchase items as they’re being showcased.

The Time to Act is Now

With social commerce poised for explosive growth, the message for brands is clear: the time to act is now. As Benator puts it, “If you don’t move early, you miss early opportunities, and you miss that early growth cycle. And we’re not so early today that it’s experimental. The sales volume is significant enough now that we’re really in the, I would say, the regular growth phase at this point.”

For brands ready to embrace the social commerce revolution, the rewards could be substantial. Those who hesitate may find themselves playing a costly game of catch-up in a market that waits for no one.

As the retail landscape continues its digital transformation, social commerce stands as the next frontier. With platforms, brands, and creators all converging on this new paradigm, the stage is set for a shopping revolution that promises to be more interactive, engaging, and lucrative than ever before.

Check the full interview with Max on the Business of Creators podcast.

By Ian Shepherd

Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website.

Ian Shepherd is a creator economy entrepreneur and investor. He is Co-founder and Co-CEO of Electrify Video Partners, a company that invests tens of millions of dollars into some of the world’s biggest content creators. He’s also the host of the Business of Creators, a leading podcast and creator economy network featuring creators, managers, investors and entrepreneurs. He has 25 years commercial experience having previously built and sold a creator economy business and held executive positions at Disney, Universal Music and WarnerMedia.

Sourced from Forbes

Read More
By
In News

Why social commerce is transforming online retail

No Comments

Sourced from RETAILDIVE

Social commerce is where social media and e-commerce intertwine. Consumers scroll social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram for entertainment and information. More recently, consumers are using social media to browse and shop online. If brands want to reach a new pool of consumers, they must meet shoppers where they are.

Consumers want convenience and variety when shopping online – and they are willing to invest time and effort to comparison shop. An overwhelming 82% of global consumers will visit two or more websites before buying, according to the 2023 Online Consumer Behaviour Global Report by Rithum and research firm Dynata. This report was based on a survey of over 6,000 online shoppers across the U.S., U.K., Australia, France, Germany, Sweden and Denmark in August 2023.

That’s the same percentage of consumers who found items through Amazon recommended products and Google search ads. 72% of consumers said they would go further, visiting two to four websites before buying, according to the report.

Social commerce is popular among younger consumers

Adding social media platforms as a selling channel gives direct-to-consumer (DTC) brands the opportunity to connect with audiences they might not otherwise reach. This includes reaching younger consumers who are comfortable scrolling and trying new products they find through social media. According to the report, 63% of consumers between the ages 18-25 said they had been influenced to make a purchase after seeing a product promoted by a brand on social media in the past 12 months.

Consumers comfortable purchasing through social media are expected to buy more through 2027. According to market research company eMarketer, U.S. social commerce sales per buyer is expected to nearly double from $627.8 billion in 2023 to $1,223.7 billion in 2027.

That influence isn’t limited to Gen Z’ers. More than half of consumers (53%) ages 26-35, and 40% of consumers ages 36-45 also said they were influenced to buy products they saw through social media ads, according to the Rithum and Dynata report.

Social media goes beyond brand awareness

Social commerce is evolving. The rate at which it has grown has exploded over the last year. It is expected to reach $1.698 trillion in sales by the end of 2024, according to data gathering platform Statista. That momentum shows no signs of slowing.

Consumer behaviour indicates that social commerce is a retail opportunity for the long-term. 23% of global consumers indicated that they already use their social media feed to find products to buy online, according to the Rithum and Dynata report.

According to research and consulting firm Forrester’s August 2023 Consumer Pulse Survey, 46% of consumers who participated in back-to-school shopping bought directly from an ad they saw on social media. But brands are learning they can leverage social media beyond sponsored ads. It is its own selling channel.

ByteDance’s TikTok launched TikTok Shop in September 2023 in the United States. TikTok Shop is also live in the United Kingdom. Instead of relying solely on ads, influencer’s user-generated content (UGC) creates an authentic shopping experience. Consumers can now buy products promoted by their favourite content creators. TikTok’s community spans more than 1 billion monthly active users.

Social commerce as an authentic shopping experience

Brands can look to content creators, or influencers, to reach new consumers. Here, it’s the quality, rather than quantity, of followers that matter. Non-celebrity micro-influencers with a few thousand loyal followers capture attention and can contribute toward a higher conversion rate for a product.

Authenticity is increasingly important. Micro-influencers have gained followers by sharing their lives or advice on social media. UGC is not produced or polished by brands. Here, the content creator shares a product they like with their followers. As a result, consumers tend to trust their recommendations.

Brands can partner with influencers, where the influencer promotes the brand’s products or services through social media platforms such as TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and others. These relationships can be established directly between the influencer and brand or be connected through agencies that help usher these relationships to find the right fit.

Apparel and beauty categories are popular among consumers shopping through social media. These tend to be lower-priced purchases, so the risk and reward is less prohibitive. It’s also easy with less friction to pay at checkout. Consumers can increasingly pay through various social media apps using trusted methods such as PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay and Venmo.

The evolution of social commerce isn’t a passing trend. Consumers want an honest review – and they feel they can trust the content creators they follow on social media. Social media opens a gateway for brands to create an authentic connection with consumers. Learn more about selling on TikTok Shop, and Shops on Facebook and Instagram.

Feature Image Credit: iStock.com/georgeclerk

Sourced from RETAILDIVE

Read More
By
In News

Home Innovation Social shopping and more broadband options: Tech trends you can’t ignore in 2023

No Comments

By Jada Jones

Social commerce is already here and it’s only going to get bigger.

Deloitte’s Technology, Media, and Telecommunications 2023 Predictions report looks at some of the global tech trends that are likely to make a difference in the coming year, from online shopping to low-Earth orbit broadband satellites. ZDNET spoke with the consultancy firm’s experts, so you can stay informed about these trends.

Social shopping is here to stay

Deloitte predicts that the social commerce market will exceed $1 trillion next year, thanks to more than two billion people using online social platforms for shopping – and it’s a market that’s growing faster than traditional e-commerce.

A significant contributor to this growth is the success of social media influencers and their ability to get people to spend money, especially Gen Z consumers. As Deloitte notes, Gen Z is the world’s biggest generational cohort, accounting for more than 30% of the population worldwide. The consultant says most of this burgeoning generation of digital natives tends to be “all social, all online, all the time”.

The report notes: “In the future, Gen Zs are expected to continue to be very much online, where they’ll continue to get hypertargeted and personalized ads for products they want and need – straight from the influencers they already know and love.”

Jana Arbanas, vice chair of Deloitte’s telecom, media, and entertainment sector, says the combination of influencers, algorithms and Gen Z’s propensity to buy items online all contributes to the digital-shopping boom.

She says companies investing in marketing via influencers enjoy cheaper campaigns, targeted advertising and increased sales. Arbanas believes that brands can use the algorithms’ knowledge of what’s relevant to buyers to sell more products more effectively.

“Brands can absolutely leverage those algorithms; algorithms that know consumers and their interests and their needs, and ensure that brands are matched with complementary interests with respect to consumers,” she told ZDNET.

Historically, advertisers had to craft ad campaigns for a broad range of consumers, and those campaigns could be expensive to execute. But with the help of an influencer promoting a product to their hundreds of thousands or even millions of followers, ad campaigns are cheaper – and they’re more specific.

“In the old days, people were investing in really expensive, highly produced advertising. It’s not very nimble, and it was very generalized for a large population,” Arbanas says. “On the converse now, with social media, you can very quickly create a series of campaigns in a matter of moments. And you don’t even have to create the content; your influencer is doing that on your behalf.”

Deloitte predicts the features pioneered by social media will soon be found elsewhere: “Looking beyond 2023, most digital experiences are expected to be considered ‘shoppable’, and the same tap-to-purchase behaviour available on social media platforms will likely be possible with other online services, too,” it says, such as perhaps being able to watch a cooking show on streaming services and then have the ingredients added to your shopping cart.

Low-Earth orbit satellites bring down broadband costs

Deloitte predicts by the end of next year that there will be over 5,000 low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites in the sky, and they’ll be responsible for providing almost one million people with internet – even in the most remote parts of the world.

Satellite broadband connects with a dish – be that on top of your house, RV, or, soon, boat or plane – as it orbits in the sky and sends the internet signal to your device. Then, one satellite hands the connection to another to keep it stable.

“The anticipated surge in satellite broadband deployments spells good news for users. It is likely that new applications will emerge, prices will decline, coverage and reliability will improve, and latency will fall,” Deloitte’s report says.

There’s still lots to sort out with broadband satellites. As more satellites orbit, the risk of collisions and falling debris will call for increased global cooperation, which might be tricky to coordinate.

Jack Fritz, a principal in Deloitte Consulting LLP’s tech, media, and telecommunications practice, explains that the regulatory framework for LEO satellites is still a work in progress as companies like Amazon, SpaceX and OneWeb compete to launch satellites.

“The regulatory framework is trying to catch up to where we are today and position for the future, but it’s not all perfect. You have different countries with different funding and support happening for different constellations,” Fritz says.

“I think the LEO satellites present an opportunity to have pretty strong connections, and there are areas that may not have had great connections, so they’re in this hybrid world where the connection they have is still technology from 15 years ago,” he says.

“Well, our demands for the internet have moved past that. DSLs, for example; that’s the copper our grandparents used for phone lines. That was designed for a one-to-one person call, not for streaming on eight devices in your house.”

Streaming in 2023: Expect more ads

According to Deloitte’s predictions, previously ad-free streaming platforms will begin to offer ad-supported subscriptions. Experts also think these platforms will roll out tiered subscription plans based on ad frequency and user access to the platform’s content library.

Kevin Westcott, vice chairman of Deloitte’s US tech, media, and telecommunications practice, thinks that, in the future, all platforms will introduce multiple tiers for subscribers to choose from, which will be based on their streaming needs.

He says that the number one reason subscribers unsubscribe from a platform is that it costs too much. Platforms are mitigating subscriber losses by offering lower-priced tiers in exchange for consumers watching more ads.

A more expensive, premium subscription would be best for viewers who don’t want to see any ads and want to watch a new TV show as soon as new episodes drop. A cheaper, ad-supported subscription is ideal for those who don’t mind a few minutes of ads and can wait to watch brand-new episodes.

“If you ask me where the world will be in three years, I think all major platforms will have an ad-free, premium-priced tier; then they’ll have ad-supported tiers. And there may be multiple ad-supported tiers,” Westcott told ZDNET.

“You may have one that’s only five minutes [of ads] an hour, and I get access to all of the content the day it’s released. I may have a lower priced one that’s eight to 10 minutes an hour, and I don’t have access to premium content the day it’s released.”

But you can also expect the ads you see to be more targeted and for platforms to make more money off your subscription based on how many ads you see.

“The argument is that a streaming platform knows who you are and what you’re watching,” he says. “They have more context about you, so they should be able to deliver more targeted ads to you.”

Feature Image Credit: Getty Images / iStockphoto

By Jada Jones

Sourced from ZD Net

Read More
By
In News

4 Native E-Commerce Trends In A Cookie-Less Era

No Comments

By Jérôme de Guigné

A cookie-less world is coming. Tech giant Apple has already phased out third-party cookies, and Google is set to follow. While third-party cookies and behavioural targeting make advertisers’ worlds go round, cookies that track users from site to site have long been a privacy grey area. Plenty of users employ cookie blockers, and cookie consent is annoying for everyone. Cookies are also becoming less reliable than they used to be, as the data gained from them is patchy and inconsistent.

But with no cookies, how will brands collect audience data? The answer is native e-commerce.

The Tracking Cookies Are Crumbling

When brands can’t follow users with cookies, recognizing customers and their digital journeys will fall to single platforms. Consider Amazon, which can track a customer through a single login across services like Prime Video, Kindle and Alexa. Google can do the same through Google Search, YouTube and Gmail, and Meta through Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. This strategy is what we call native e-commerce—retail being integrated into a website or platform, allowing the customer to shop where they are.

The 4 Biggest Trends In Native E-Commerce

In a world without third-party cookies, native e-commerce is the retail landscape of the future. Today, this strategy is shaping the digital landscape in several areas.

1. Sister Sites

Generally, data created by native e-commerce platforms can be more limited than what third-party cookies offer because it doesn’t follow customers to other websites. However, that’s why these platforms work best with companies that can create or buy other websites as sister products.

Amazon is a great case study for this. Look at its huge media offering, including Prime Video, Amazon Music, Kindle and Alexa. The company recognized the enormous power of combining media and shopping, and it’s adding to these services all the time. Amazon has recently bolstered its Prime offering with live sports and is now courting influencers with Amazon Live. The data it gleans from customers using all these products is endless.

2. Social Commerce

Social media can be a great resource for sales generation. For example, Instagram and Facebook already have in-app shopping features. Sponsored shopping posts on both platforms have a more compelling look and feel compared to normal posts or ads. Instagram, normally hostile to external URLs, has shoppable adverts that feature a “Shop now” button that takes users to an in-app version of a company’s website. We expect to see these features continue to improve.

3. Augmented Reality

Though TikTok and Snapchat aren’t as utilized as the big platforms, their social commerce features are fascinating. They include the likes of Brand Takeover ads and sponsored hashtags. Most notably, both platforms use augmented reality (AR) to allow users to add effects to their selfies and videos, and advertisers can create their own AR ads.

AR has more direct applications too. We’ve seen cosmetics brands used in a similar way, for example, so customers can see how different lipstick shades might look on them. It’s clear that we’re only seeing the beginning of AR’s impact on native e-commerce and retail at large.

4. Contextualized Video

Brands engage in contextualized video marketing when they advertise products or services alongside highly relevant content. Most often, this takes the form of a visual playing before video content, but it could also be a visual ad appearing on a relevant blog page. The technology that supports this strategy is even sophisticated enough that if viewers skip to a relevant part of the video, brands can advertise at that point.

The native e-commerce sphere is huge and exciting, and we mostly see positives—more efficient, targeted advertising; better conversion rates; and a better customer experience. As it continues to rise, we’ll likely see companies like Google and Meta making their more-targeted audience data available to marketers. (Amazon is already making headway through its recently announced Marketing Cloud, and Apple is rumored to be building its own demand-side platform.) By keeping an eye on the trends of native e-commerce, businesses can stay relevant and successful.

Feature Image Credit: Getty

By Jérôme de Guigné

Jérôme de Guigné, Founder & CEO, e-Comas. Read Jérôme de Guigné’s full executive profile here.

Sourced from Forbes

Read More
By
In News

The Latest E-Commerce Trend: What You Need To Know About Social Commerce

No Comments

By Jessica Wong

As e-commerce businesses globally are getting ready for the holiday season, one trend is shaking up the online shopping scene. Social commerce looks set to make an impact on e-commerce sales this season.

What Is Social Commerce?

Social commerce is the convergence of e-commerce and social media. Brands engaging in social commerce use social media platforms as vehicles to sell products and services. If your business relies on e-commerce sales, you are likely already involved in social commerce. However, are you maximizing the potential of this trend for your business?

Growth Opportunities

For years, China has led the world when it came to social commerce. However, during the Covid-19 pandemic, the trend has gained huge momentum in the United States, when countless shoppers moved online.

According to Statista, there were 80 million social buyers in the U.S. in 2020, which equals a 30% increase over 2019. Experts believe that the social commerce trend would have continued to grow without the pandemic but that the pandemic accelerated its growth.

Those 80 million buyers spent approximately $27 billion throughout 2020. This year, retail experts are forecasting social commerce sales to increase by more than 35%, meaning consumers will spend more than $36 billion. Compared to China, that is only 10% of what consumers will spend in that market.

Looking further ahead to 2025, social commerce in the United States is set to grow to nearly $80 billion. At that point, it would account for just over 5% of the country’s retail e-commerce sales.

How Your Business Can Take Advantage

Considering the growth forecast for social commerce and the growing use of social media, any business involved in e-commerce has the potential to benefit.

While it is important to ensure that your social commerce strategy is tailored to your brand, a number of tactics are suitable for most online retailers. Those include user-generated content, working with influencers and adding consumer calls to action to your posts.

Choosing The Most Suitable Platform

Another major consideration is your choice of platform. Facebook is currently the largest social media platform in the U.S., which is why your organization should consider it as a contender for your social commerce activity. The network has been forecast to attract more than 56 million buyers in 2021.

If you are a small or medium business, Facebook has even created a bespoke platform for companies like yours. Facebook Shops was launched in 2020 to help smaller businesses through the pandemic. Through this tool, you can bring your shopfront online for free. If e-commerce and social commerce are part of your strategy, this is an opportunity not to be passed by.

Instagram has been associated with influencer culture for years. Despite attracting fewer users overall compared to Facebook, if influencer marketing raises awareness for your brand, Instagram needs to be on your list of chosen platforms for social commerce.

The platform offers several tools to facilitate your sales. For years, brands have been encouraging potential customers to visit their biography for a link to their store. This has been an effective strategy to enable sales, but more recently, Instagram took things further by launching Instagram Checkout to make purchases easier. Since 2020, the social network has had a shop tab. This allows users to see and purchase in one single click products advertised by people, influencers or brands they follow.

TikTok is a relatively recent addition to the choice of social media networks consumers have. In the three years since the platform was founded, it has not only grown exponentially, but brands have also benefitted from user-generated content leading to “consumer manias.” Some TikTok users have built a huge following based on their ability to sell a wide variety of products.

As a consequence, e-commerce giant Amazon added a column to its website listing items that recently went viral. TikTok has recognized the huge potential of its platform as an e-commerce facilitator and launched TikTok Shopping to offer sellers a wider array of solutions.

The Next Step

Social media marketing and social commerce are important pillars of your e-commerce strategy this season. With holiday shopping about to enter its busiest period of the year, it is worth investing in this trend.

As you are preparing posts and shopping messages, remember that the success of social media is built upon creating connections between people. Conversion into sales is an important measure of success, but considering engagement through sharing, commenting and generally interacting with posts is equally valuable criteria.

Pay close attention to your tone of voice when you are engaging with customers. Experts have credited TikTok’s unprofessional feel as a major contributor to its sales success. Sales messages feel like they are spontaneous, trustworthy recommendations from friends rather than corporate, sponsored messages.

Online retail and e-commerce are permanently evolving. While online shopping statistics have grown across the board, partially accelerated by the pandemic, there are a few products that are firm favourites with online shoppers. If your company operates in one of the following fields, social commerce needs to be a priority for you: Accessories and apparel, consumer electronics, home décor and cosmetics are leading the growth of social commerce.

Investing in social commerce activity for these products allows your business to increase sales and connect directly to customers. It is an excellent way to boost revenue and build long-term consumer relationships.

Feature Image Credit: getty

By Jessica Wong

Jessica is the Founder & CEO of Valux Digital, a nationally recognized full-service marketing and PR firm. Read Jessica Wong’s full executive profile here.

Sourced from Forbes

Read More
By
In News

How To Use Instagram To Build A Successful Social Commerce Strategy

No Comments

By Zarnaz Arlia

Instagram recently rolled out a new advertising opportunity: It launched ads in Instagram Shop. The new ad placement is the most recent addition in a long line of e-commerce capabilities introduced by the app and a prime example of how Instagram is leaning heavily into social commerce.

These moves come as no surprise when you consider the massive growth currently happening across the social commerce landscape. Earlier this year, eMarketer reported that U.S. retail social commerce sales will reach more than $36 billion this year, and Instagram and Pinterest are at the top of the list of social media networks delivering the “most relevant” social commerce experiences. Instagram has been undergoing an evolution by transitioning from its roots as a photo-sharing app to focus on creators, videos, messaging and, perhaps most of all, shopping.

The good news for brands: Instagram’s users seem to be more than happy to go along with these changes. According to Instagram’s data (via HubSpot), 90% of its users follow at least one business. A Facebook-commissioned survey of 21,000 people (via Social Media Today) revealed that two in three people on Instagram said the app allows interaction with brands.

For brands aiming to maximize their e-commerce efforts, Instagram could be key to building a social commerce strategy. The app has multiple features to help brands better connect with their audiences, expand their reach and increase online sales revenue. Here are three social commerce features Instagram has released recently and how to leverage them.

Instagram Shop Ads

After launching Instagram Shop in 2020, an area of the social media app that’s 100% focused on the shopping experience, Instagram has now rolled out ad placements in the Shop tab, which, according to Instagram’s website, makes it easier for users to “discover and shop from brands when they’re already in the mood to browse.”

Like other products, Instagram Shop ads are displayed as tiles on the Instagram Shop home page. A Shop ad tile links to the product details page, where shoppers can learn more about the specific item and browse other products from the brand. Some ways brands can leverage Shop ads include:

• Using look-alike audiences: The audience that engages with your Shop ads likely has a high intent to purchase. You can leverage their data by creating look-alike audiences based on their characteristics to use in your marketing campaigns.

• Learning from insights: Test different types of Shop ads for the same product to learn more about your audience’s preferences and inform future content creation.

• Retargeting shoppers: Create custom audiences in order to retarget customers who have purchased from your shops in the past.

Instagram Reels Ads

In August 2020, Instagram introduced Instagram Reels, which are 60-second video clips that come with a variety of features that allow anyone on Instagram to be a creator. Less than a year after releasing the video feature, Instagram Reels ads were made available in June 2021. They give brands the opportunity to share full-screen video ads that are up to 30 seconds long.

As with Instagram Reels content that users post, people can comment on, like, view and share Reels ads. To maximize engagement and win more conversions, brands should first familiarize themselves with the format: I’ve found that the key is to create Reels that blend seamlessly with native content. Reels ads tend to be more effective when they include audio, like a trending audio clip or audio your brand has produced, along with captions that grab users’ attention as quickly as possible.

Because of their reach — users can find Reels via Instagram’s Explore tab and the Reels feed, as well as within their own feed — Reels ads can be an effective way for advertisers to connect with new audiences. You can also use Instagram’s analytics data to view the number of plays, accounts reached, likes, comments, saves and shares to monitor your performance.

Checkout On Instagram

Instagram checkout, an in-app purchasing feature that allows users to buy a product without ever leaving the app, has been around for years but was initially only available to a select group of brands when it first launched. Last year, Instagram opened access to its checkout feature to all U.S. business and creator accounts that had an Instagram Shop.

As Instagram explains on its website, businesses can use the checkout feature to reduce the friction in the path to purchase, as well as take advantage of other shopping tools: “With checkout on Instagram, businesses can truly leverage the full ecosystem of Instagram Shopping features to build experiences that drive awareness and transactions all in one place.”

But challenges still remain for B2C brands that want to optimize their Instagram advertising efforts within their social commerce initiatives. Emplifi’s recent “State of social media and CX: Q2 2021” report found that ad spend on Facebook and Instagram jumped nearly 50% year-over-year during the second quarter of this year. With so many B2C brands vying for consumer attention on Instagram, one of the primary challenges for brands entering the social commerce market is getting in front of the right audiences at the right time with relevant content that inspires consumers to make a purchase.

Fortunately, because social commerce is still a relatively new and growing tactic, there are many opportunities for marketers to make an impact. Brands should look for ways to use Instagram’s new features to stand out on the platform. For example, they can try taking more creative risks with their advertising content in Reels ads, while they can tailor Shop ads toward the very users shopping for products they offer.

Feature Image Credit: getty

By Zarnaz Arlia

Zarnaz Arlia is the CMO of Emplifi, a leading customer experience platform. Read Zarnaz Arlia’s full executive profile here.

Sourced from Forbes

Read More
By
In News

TikTok takes aim at Facebook and Instagram with its new shopping features

No Comments

By Scott Nover

TikTok unveiled new shopping features for brands, positioning it to compete with the largest social media companies on e-commerce.

The Chinese company, owned by ByteDance, has been steadily rolling out shopping features over the last year, partnering with Shopify and Walmart among others. Now, TikTok is giving marketers a suite of shopping tools including shoppable links, livestream shopping, and product galleries in ads. TikTok Shopping first piloted in the US, UK, and Canada in August.

This functionality pits TikTok against Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest, which dominate US social commerce, effectively the buying and selling of products through social media. According to the research firm Insider Intelligence, Facebook will sell to 56.1 million users in 2021 on its main app and to 32.4 million on Instagram. Pinterest will attract the third-most buyers with 13.9 million expected, the research firm said.

Mike Proulx, vice president and research director at the research firm Forrester, said in an interview that social commerce is becoming “much more of a native user experience within social media apps.” Forrester research shows 38% of US adults buy products monthly on social media.

Claiming 1 billion global users as of this week, TikTok poses a rising threat to Facebook in one of the most important potential growth areas for both companies.

Social commerce has swept China

In the US, social commerce is still nascent compared to China. Chinese consumers will spend about $351 billion on purchases mediated by social media in 2021, Insider Intelligence projects, while Americans will spend about $37 billion. It’s a growing sector: social commerce sales are expected to rise 36% in the US this year.

WeChat, the ubiquitous chat app owned by Tencent, dominates social commerce in China. But ByteDane tripled its sales on Douyin, TikTok’s counterpart in China, to $77 billion in 2020, according to one Chinese media outlet. While livestream shopping in the US focuses on apparel and beauty, Chinese consumers are accustomed to buying everyday goods like groceries and meals off of influencer-led live streams. It’s uncertain that those habits will translate to the US market, but social commerce is widely considered a promising slice of growing e-commerce sales.

TikTok made me buy it

Since it rose to prominence in the US, TikTok has played a small but growing role as a recommendation engine for shoppers. While dwarfed by direct sales from competing platforms, viral posts on the platform have driven huge sales for a few products: CeraVe skin products, a cleaning paste called The Pink Stuff, catnip called Cat Crack and certain pair of now-famous leggings.

One of the company’s new slogans, “TikTok Made Me Buy It,” has become a rallying cry for creators trying out viral products, but until now the company has not equipped businesses with the tools to actually sell direct to consumers. That’s finally changing as US customers become increasingly comfortable shopping on social.

Feature Image Credit: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration

By Scott Nover

Sourced from QUARTZ

Read More
By
In News

Winning The Social Commerce Game In 2021: How Social Media Creators Monetize Their Fame

No Comments

By Dennis Doerfl

As the co-founder of an influencer marketing technology company and the commercial director of a merchandise shop solution, I’ve had a front-row seat for the rise of social commerce. Influencers are using merchandise to boost their brands not only for income but also to forge deeper connections with their followers. Some key players in the e-commerce space have taken notice, giving rise to SaaS companies and print-on-demand services integrating with social media giants.

In 2021, look for influencer culture to inspire more powerful social media retail integrations with almost limitless earning power for creators and the platforms that serve them.

Despite the challenges of the last year, I’ve seen three changes in the industry that I know will benefit influencers and creators in 2021. E-commerce professionals, social media agencies and influencer marketing agencies should pay attention.

1. Increasing use of e-commerce and the rise of selling via social media have produced creator commerce.

Last year was difficult for retail, but worldwide e-commerce sales grew by 27.6%. Within that rise, social commerce grew as well, and apparel and accessories remain the largest category. The global licensed merchandise market is expected to reach $338.7 billion by 2027, with a compound annual growth rate of 2.2%.

At the same time, e-commerce platforms have upped their game. Powerful and easy-to-use print-on-demand shop systems now integrate with social media platforms. Spreadshop is one such POD system, but others include Spring, Bonfire and Printful. Influencers have long been able to open an e-commerce shop, but these developments give them the advantage of immediacy, which allows them to deliver both engaging content and buying options in the very same moment.

Influencers now have an alternative to just ads and brand collaborations. Promoting their own merchandise has become a way for them to diversify revenue streams and grow their brands. Audiences look for entertainment and then buy into their brands.

2. Influencers are becoming skilled at social commerce tactics to monetize their fame and content.

To their followers, influencers are like trusted friends whose opinions are sought and emulated. As Nielsen’s research points out, we are more likely to buy from people we know and trust. Influencers come together on social platforms like Clubhouse and Facebook; they share tips and tricks on how to gain followers and connect with fans. I’ve seen top creators often note that producing niche content and staying authentic is the foundation of the influencer-follower relationship.

Monetizing content through merchandise is funding creators and deepening the connection with their followers. I expect this to continue through 2021 with three merchandise trends:

• Personalization/everybody merchandise. What do you want to wear today? A brand, a business or a cause? Personalization means we can wear our allegiances in a size, colour and style to suit us. Creators can leverage this trend to increase brand awareness.

• Instant moment merchandise. With POD, new designs are available for purchase as soon as they are uploaded by creators. POD can move almost at the speed of a meme, quickly delivering on-trend items to customers’ doorsteps and making moment merchandise possible.

• Campaign merchandise. In the U.S., many politicians blur the line between political figure and social media icon. Campaign merchandise sales help candidates raise funds. It’s quite the statement to wear a political slogan, but it’s also an opportunity to publicly support a chosen candidate.

3. POD shop solutions have integrated with social channels to enable frictionless buying for the customer and full-service fulfilment for the shop owner.

The need for POD merchandise solutions is growing rapidly. Great new platforms are also pushing into the space, and the global POD software market size is expected to reach $10.8 billion by 2026, up from almost $1.9 billion in 2020.

To support growth, creator commerce solutions will have to deliver high-quality sales platforms and integrate new technologies. One of the most recent developments is the connection between influencer videos and merchandise. As Philip Rooke, CEO of Spread Group (Spreadshop’s parent company), recently wrote for InternetRetailing, “The potential success of video plus commerce is the combination of technology and the customer desire coming together at the same time. … Entertainment and frictionless commerce are going to be the big trend of retail in 2021.”

Platforms can stay ahead of the game by understanding what influencers and creators value. From our own research and observation, I know that the following five platform features are key:

• Social selling integrations.

• Highly customizable products.

• Premium-quality items.

• Zero cash out of pocket required.

• Full-service e-commerce.

Final Thoughts

From my vantage point, creators will continue to promote their personal brands using merchandise in 2021. To be proactive as an e-commerce professional, engage with influencers directly and address their needs.

As the decade progresses, we may see influencers and creators aim not just for the magic 1 million followers mark but also for comparable commission. Follower millionaires could start to become T-shirt millionaires as they monetize their fame. SaaS companies, social media agencies and influencer marketers that harness this trend will likely have an advantage in the highly competitive online retail space.

Make sure you exercise caution, however. Merchandise companies that fail to integrate with content delivery platforms are at great risk for obsolescence. All-in-one solutions allow simultaneous content distribution, merchandise solutions and persona monetization. As influencers seek to simplify processes, stand-alone solutions that serve limited needs may not survive.

From followers to merchandise, I see influencers making a big play in the social commerce game to truly monetize their fame. Will your brand be a part of it?

Feature Image Credit: getty

By Dennis Doerfl

Dennis Doerfl, a former Groupon and Accenture executive, is Co-Founder of Fourstarzz Media and Commercial Director at Spreadshop. Read Dennis Doerfl’s full executive profile.

Sourced from Forbes

Read More
By
In News

Ecommerce offers app developers billion-dollar opportunities. They just need to know where to look.

No Comments

By

Commerce is complex and diverse, and merchants have different needs depending on their scale, what they sell and where they are in the world. Developers hold the key to removing this complexity and solving these problems for merchants, as they are driving the pace of change in commerce. When you go deep on these elements, you’ll find there are billion-dollar industries waiting to be developed within each of them.

SaaS is capturing massive amounts of VC attention and funding around the world: Klaviyo raised $200 million in Boston, as did Yotpo in NYC; Bold Commerce raised $27 million in Canada; Xentral raised $20 million in Germany; and Holded raised $18 million in Spain, just to name a few.

Based on the shifting needs of merchants, there are four areas where developers should spend time building to take advantage of these burgeoning billion-dollar industries.

Mobile-first messaging

Conversations are the lifeblood of commerce. SMS marketing in particular is an area that has seen monumental growth in recent years, and hit warp speed in 2020. That’s no surprise when you consider that the average person spends about four hours a day on their phone. Text messages have a 95% to 99% open rate, and 75% of consumers are OK with receiving messages from brands after they’ve opted in. In fact, 50% of the top 1,000 online retailers are already using SMS marketing. Itzy Ritzy, a brand that sells new-born products, used SMSBump to try its hand at this tactic, and has driven its abandoned cart recovery rate up to 19% — achieving a return on investment north of 26,000%.

It’s clear that the future of commerce is commerce everywhere, sleekly integrated so that it’s there when you need it and gone when you don’t. Increasingly, that includes mobile. Other mobile-first areas like social media have already started to integrate with commerce; we’ve seen the rise of social commerce on platforms where consumers are already spending time for connection and entertainment, like on TikTok and Instagram.

This empowers business owners to become content creators, give their brand a voice and sell a product. It’s only a matter of time before commerce and SMS meet head-on, to move beyond marketing and into selling. Platforms like WhatsApp are experimenting with shoppable messages, but the space continues to be ripe for innovation.

Bringing real life online

Last year, many retailers looked to replicate offline experiences online. And now, even as stores open back up, there’s been a permanent shift in consumer behaviour: Retailers will continue to experiment with technology to bring the in-store shopping experience online. Video, 3D and AR are great ways to do this. People want to see the couch in their living room before they buy it; they want to view the product from all angles.

Retailers surveyed reported conversion increases of more than 50%, with 25% larger average order sizes, when they used 3D and AR assets on their sites. It’s clear that video converts far higher than static images; consumers connect better with a layered experience that includes sound and moving imagery. Plus, AR/VR technology is becoming more and more accessible. Even the iPhone is compatible with this tech now.

Social commerce is everywhere

Content and commerce are coming together to power the creator economy. While this trend is not new, it is gaining incredible speed. Commerce is popping up on every social platform, including TikTok, where people can now make their videos shoppable with a Shopify integration. This is not a passing trend, this is a new way that people want to shop — especially young people.

Our Future of Commerce report found that 54% of younger consumers discover brands on social media, and 28% of them have purchased via social media. From February 2020 to February 2021, installs of Shopify’s social commerce channels grew by 76%. Watch this space, and build for it. It’s so powerful that it’s even fuelling our fourth area of opportunity.

An explosion in live-selling

Livestreaming is already a booming market, projected to reach nearly $224 billion by 2028. Such a large, captive audience is the perfect fit for commerce. Live-selling has been popular in China for some time, with sales projected to reach half a trillion dollars by 2023. North America is behind the curve, but not for long. We’ve seen steady live-selling growth in North America, presenting an upended retail industry the opportunity to breathe new life into businesses. With live-selling, a store becomes a studio, and staff members take on the role of brand advocates. This space is also a clear opportunity to work with influencers who have mastered the art of social commerce. In the future, merchants will need technology that helps them rethink their physical space in the digital world, giving them yet another asset they can leverage to reach their customers.

For people watching, live-selling is a way to feel part of something. There’s an element of scarcity, too: If a particular offer is available for a short period of time or with limited inventory, live-selling can promote a frenzied sense of urgency to make the purchase right now. For retailers, live-selling is a great way to collect real-time feedback from potential buyers: “This product is great, do you have it in red?” Some companies are already taking advantage of the potential in this space: Montreal-based livestreaming platform Livescale grew its revenue tenfold from March 2020 to January 2021.

There are near limitless opportunities for developers in 2021. Retail is ripe for building, and now is the perfect time to start.

Feature Image Credit: NurPhoto/Getty Images 

By

Fatima Yusuf is the director of partnerships for Shopify’s app developer ecosystem.

Sourced from protocol

Read More
By
In News

2021 predictions: The future digital media technology amidst the pandemic

No Comments

By

Social listening has gained traction in 2020 due to the pandemic, but what is in store for 2021?

Chief Technology Officer Ryan Donovan of Vancouver-based social media management platform Hootsuite and Pierre-Loïc Assayag co-founder and CEO of San Francisco-based influencer relationship management platform Traackr predict that 2021 will be a good year for social business.

The pandemic changed our focus on how we communicate. People relied on social media to stay connected while spending more time at home. Platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram became lifelines for connecting and maintaining relationships at work and with family.

The pandemic accelerated the move to digital across industries — especially in sales and marketing. Unfortunately, some brands will realize in 2021 they are already too late to the game.

Social commerce and influencer marketing

As budgets shrink and digital becomes more and more crowded, the divide between companies who invested early in social commerce and influencer marketing, and those who have just begun their journey will dramatically increase. In three to five years this will translate directly to market share for digitally-savvy businesses.

The brands that did not use social media to drive customer interactions and sales before the pandemic will be forced to digitize their operations.

Brands that already established a presence on social before the crisis will increase the use of analytics and reporting tools to make business decisions. This will result in brands forming stronger bonds with their customers.

Brand values over price

The most successful brands used social to connect with customers, particularly through one-on-one interactions. Consumers want to see the human element behind the brand and experience real, consistent, and authentic action. In 2021, consumers will increasingly prioritize brand values over price — increasing sales for brands.

Localize data in Europe 

The EU-US privacy battle will force social networks to change. In 2020, the European Court of Justice deemed the EU-US Privacy Shield agreement as invalid, striking a major blow to social networks.

Regionalized networks will emerge

This decision will require substantive changes to social networks and how these platforms operate. Without having the legal right to collect and store data of European users in the US, social networks will be forced to either localize their data in Europe or abandon European markets altogether.

As privacy regulations tighten and the need for social platforms to engage with friends and customers remains, new regionalized networks will emerge to fill the connection gap.

Consumers are now taking steps to protect their personal data online. Instead of giving away an email address or phone number to connect with a brand, consumers prefer to interact with brands via messaging apps.

Research shows that over two in three (66%) consumers prefer to reach brands this way as they interact with their friends and family, more so than by phone or email.

Higher standards of social action

Social media management platforms continue to grow and follow the likes of Facebook by implementing direct messaging capabilities across applications. Businesses will have more meaningful conversations with their customers this way improving customer loyalty. Brands will be held to a higher standard of social action and responsibility.

Social commerce

Social commerce will take centre stage as in-person shopping becomes less viable. Brands will look toward digital with social commerce becoming a key sales channel as it connects customers to brands they trust. The trend is still on the rise, but will soon become a crowded space.

In 2020, social platforms made great strides to advance social commerce offerings during the pandemic. Facebook introduced Facebook Shops and rolled it out to Instagram and Facebook.

Data analysis

Snapchat announced its first shoppable show and Pinterest made it easier for users to find similar products on its platform. In 2021, brands will heavily invest in data analysis to understand the connection between social and sales metrics, further define their KPIs, and inform strategic decisions.

With more than half of the world’s population on social, platforms will focus on developing new features that make it easier for consumers to shop.

Purchases through Instagram or Facebook feed

Advancements in mobile payments will be critical for social commerce. In 2021, Apple Pay and Google Pay will enable consumers to make purchases through their Instagram or Facebook feed.

Digital crypto-currency

Social platforms will experiment with other payment methods like digital crypto-currency, but this nascent e-commerce technology will take place in the background.

Emulating TikTok

TikTok has marked the beginning of a new era by proving the social media platform giants can be challenged with fresh ideas. Starting in 2021, there will be a surge of platforms emulating TikTok with short-form video, low production content, and content-based algorithms for better virality.

With changes in how we communicate, shop, and greet one another, what has become clear is the need for brands to digitally adapt to the new way of working.

With over four billion people around the world using social media each month, social media has played a pivotal role in helping brands fill the void and build customer loyalty during the pandemic.

The challenge for brands is maintaining that loyalty as the world permanently shifts to the new commerce model.

By

Sourced from ZD/NET

Read More
By
Load More