Social commerce - what is worth knowing about this trend, how to adapt activities?

One branch of the industry e-commerce is social commerce, the use of social media to sell products and services over the Internet. It did not have to take long after the first social networks were established for the right people to recognise their potential. Nowadays, specialists are able to clearly increase a company's sales result by using Facebook or Instagram profiles. It is worth taking a closer look at these tools and learning about the various methods of using them.

Profiles on social networks

Today, almost every company - smaller or larger - has a Facebook fanpage. This should come as no surprise, since, according to available reports, almost 2.5 billion users were using the portal in Q3 2019. Some of them spend a really significant amount of time scrolling their board, giving 'likes', and searching for information about products or services that interest them. One of the main strengths of the portal is that it provides users with full interactivity - they can, for example, express their opinion by leaving a comment. What is worth doing to encourage them to visit your company?

• Publish regularly . Frequent posts and photos convince visitors that the company is still active and that there is a high demand for its services. This is an important factor, prompting more people to place an order. Regardless of whether it is a pizza delivery on the phone, Internet book sales or gardening services.
• Show your work up close . Photos and videos allow potential customers who are not yet fully convinced to gain more confidence in a particular company. By seeing the professionalism of its employees up close, by being able to see the production process or the delivery of the service, the potential customer knows better what to expect.
• Respond quickly to enquiries . Time is money. Not only for the entrepreneur, but also for his customers. This is why it is necessary to keep response times to enquiries to a minimum. To this end, it is worth employing people whose job it is to respond to private messages. In this way, you can get ahead of the competition and receive a solid order before another company even reads the enquiry made on Facebook.
• Solve problems . Social media also provides a great opportunity to solve problems faced by the company's customers. However, a great deal of professionalism is required in doing so. If a possible objection, concern or complaint is dealt with quickly and efficiently, you are likely to gain a customer for years to come, because they will see that even if something goes wrong, the company will take care of them and help them deal with their problems. Indeed, research shows that the most common reason why customers 'run away' from a company is inadequate customer service or even a complete lack of it.

Ratings and reviews

A very important asset of social commerce is interactivity. In this respect, operating on the Internet definitely differs from traditional forms of brand and product promotion, i.e. advertisements in the paper press, billboards, etc. There, the role of the customer ends at the moment of purchase. There, the role of the customer ends at the moment of purchase, whereas here, the buyer can share his or her opinion on the Internet, prepare a review or upload photos of the product. It is worth preparing functionalities on your website that will allow customers to be active in this way. If you offer clothes, let your buyers show how the pieces they have received look. If you sell books online, put up a platform for them to share reviews. If we do interior design, let's make sure our clients can show pictures of the finished projects.

Advertisements on portals

Social networks offer another very useful option. This is the 'weaving' of adverts into content, for example via Facebook. This can be extremely effective, especially as the site's algorithms analyse the user's activity and tailor the adverts to their preferences. For example, if a user frequently browses fishing portals, his or her adverts will certainly include an online shop offering accessories useful for this hobby. A person with a taste for Asian cuisine, on the other hand, will see the profiles of restaurants that prepare this type of food.

Rola influencerów w social commerce

The advent of the 21st century has resulted in the emergence of a whole new professional group - influencers. They operate in almost every industry, and their job is to encourage people to use a particular product or service. In the age of social media, when people spend hours browsing various profiles and following video testimonials, the role of influencers cannot be underestimated when we want to sell something. In the past, people used to pass on information to each other "through the grapevine" - one person recommending another to buy a certain thing. Today, it is possible to book a professional service from an influencer who will show the product to a wider audience, discuss its benefits, and give their followers a discount code so they can take advantage of a special offer. In this way, the manufacturer will quickly increase their turnover without waiting years to build their brand position in the 'traditional' way. However, it is important that the product or service actually represents the right quality. If they do not live up to expectations, they will be a one-off purchase for most customers.