Digital marketing agency discussion: embracing social commerce in 2023

Social commerce in 2023

The 2020 pandemic caused a seismic shift in shopping, working and socialising. In response, our digital marketing agency has found that from in-person to online, social commerce has risen to prominence- and reliance- across the globe.

Social commerce sales reached $492 trillion in 2021 and are forecast to triple to $1.2 trillion by the end of 2025. Providing an enhanced shopping experience, statistics show social buying is here to stay.

The future of commerce revolves around customers’ desires to buy products and services based on recommendations from their trusted peers. Feeling inspired, informed and confident in the product they are investing in is as important as the product itself.

This, tied with the ease of blending social experience and ecommerce transactions into one platform presents a power-shift, from retailers and brands to the consumer.

In this article, Propeller, a digital marketing agency in London shares their top tips for embracing social commerce in 2023.

Researching demographic data for popular social commerce platforms aligns a brand with its customer base. Once you understand where your target audience are engaging with your content, make the journey from social searching to purchasing in-app seamless by utilising each platform’s available tools.

Some stats:

• 57% of the global population are using social media.
• According to Forbes, social commerce represents 10% of e-commerce sales today, but its share will reach upwards of 17% in three years.
• 40% of 18 to 24-year-olds now use social media as their primary search engine.
• Over half of the Generation Z have made a purchase via a social commerce platform.

Here are some digital marketing agency tips to guide your brands’ social commerce:

FACEBOOK

• Creating a Facebook Shop enables your brand to sell on Facebook and Instagram.
• The app has implemented Live Shopping Fridays to combine live video with the convenience of online shopping.

INSTAGRAM

• Instagram Shopping allows brands to upload existing product catalogues and create new ones.
• Product tags mean users can tap through a post and be taken directly to where they can purchase your brands’ goods or services.

TIKTOK

• TikTok Shop is an in-app shopping feature that enables brands and creators to advertise and sell products directly through TikTok.
• Encouraging User Generated Content will strengthen your brands’ reputation and boost visibility, think #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt.

When planning for an impactful social commerce strategy, retailers must understand their customer base and consider community, not just commerce alone.

Connect shows that 57% of consumers will increase their spending with a brand they feel connected to.

As a result, this means simply posting consistent content is no longer enough. When considering the digital marketing strategy, brands must now create an online persona that engages with its audience. Interacting with audiences through comments, sharing customer content and starting conversations through polls or live video are all vital facets going forwards.

Your brands’ social media pages are the first port of call in the social commerce journey. Garnering a sense of community and engaging with audiences will therefore encourage customers to look further into your brand.

Partner applications help streamline your services. Social commerce revolves around the ease of not having to leave an app to complete an order.

63% of social buyers repeat business from the same seller again. Loyalty schemes and encouraging customer reviews will build a community for your brand. Partnering apps bring these additional features to the forefront of social commerce experience.

Here are some partnering apps used by our digital marketing agency that will guide your brands’ social commerce experience and create a seamless pathway for customers:

YOTPO

• Yotpo’s services display brands’ reviews from their website directly to their shop.
• Receive weekly reports to track which reviews are properly published.

CONNECT (SPROUT)

• Sprout’s network integrations give brands the opportunity to create new direct sales opportunities, with shoppable content and direct product links.
• Data collection across all social platforms allow brands to track individual customer’s order information.

Social commerce is fast becoming both an unavoidable and irresistible part of eCommerce. Making the customer journey easier than ever, customers can discover and purchase products without leaving the apps they trust. Utilising data-driven decision making, the teams at Propeller are empowered to build smart strategies that engage your customers and build relationships that last. And it’s about more than a beautiful website – as a strong growth marketing agency, we ensure every move, every click, every feature is defined by a clear goal. With a unique expertise in developing digital platforms and growth marketing, our team works on integrating the best technology stack tailored to our clients. Our teams’ expertise in growth marketing strategy is why we’ve consistently worked with a number of FTSE listed businesses for over a decade, developing and refining the brands’ digital growth as the landscape has changed.