The use of social media for e-commerce is growing exponentially. E-commerce allows businesses to focus on what really matters to the bottom line: the intimate relationships they build with their users.
In fact, 87% of shoppers’ purchases are influenced by social media and its content. A social media strategy can be integrated into an online store’s development and communication strategy.
How You Can Use Social Media For E-Commerce?
Here are different ways social media marketing can help promote e-commerce and sell more products.
Brand Awareness
When you start an online store, you need to start by building brand awareness before you start selling. Some entrepreneurs even think that opening a store is the only way to solve their sales problems.
However, the reality is that you can’t make sales if you don’t know what you’re selling or if you can’t find your own business.
Social media is flooded with brands in 2022. There is, however, always a place for newcomers. You may market your business and connect with your target audience by using a consistent voice and posting strategy. Observe the advice provided at the article’s conclusion.
Creating brand awareness requires a lot of time. The use of paid social media can hasten the process.
Advertising
According to the most recent data about social media for e-commerce,
- Instagram advertising can reach 140 million users.
- By running an ad on LinkedIn, you can reach 170 million people.
- Facebook ads can reach 190 million individuals.
Of course, not all of them belong to your target market, but there is a diverse group from all demographics. Plus, you may not have the budget to reach that many people (and you don’t have to).
Most social media platforms offer advanced targeting tools, which you can and should use to find your target audience and post ads that match your goals.
Speaking of targeting. Properly define your social media advertising goals. If you run an e-commerce business, you can use social media advertising to drive customers to your online store.
For example, on Facebook and Instagram, brands can choose one of three conversion-focused goals.
- Conversion – this goal is used to drive users to perform a specific action in your store, such as putting a product in their cart.
- Catalog Sales – This goal is used to promote the products in your catalog.
- Business Traffic – If you have a physical location, this promotional goal is ideal for getting your business in front of potential customers who are nearby because of the location.
If the goal is to increase awareness or attract a target audience, you can choose a goal in the “awareness” or “attention” category.
However, simply choosing a target audience does not guarantee success. You must also choose the right form of advertising for your campaign.
The main form categories on Facebook and Instagram are.
- Adverts
- Video ads
- Carousel ads
- Collectible Ads.
Collector ads are ads designed specifically for e-commerce. They combine creative text and product catalog elements to grab the user’s attention and get them to place an order.
Facebook’s ad toolkit is probably the most powerful, but other social media platforms offer similar solutions.
So, if you use Twitter or LinkedIn to engage with your customers through social media, take advantage of the opportunities these networks offer.
Selling Directly Via Social Media
This is where social media for e-commerce marketing overlaps with social commerce, where products are sold directly in stores on networks like Instagram and Facebook.
Social media users want more data! 70% of consumers use Instagram to discover brands and products. Why not let people discover your products in your catalog?
you can integrate your online store with Instagram Shopping. This allows for a more convenient process, such as fully integrating your website and social media catalog, to drive potential customers to your store or allow them to make a purchase on your own media.
Customer Service
If your main goal in social media is to attract new customers, don’t forget about your existing customers. Even if you have a dedicated support team that communicates with customers via phone or email, the networks are still becoming new channels for customer service.
Customers can browse profiles, search for information, ask questions and leave comments. And in doing so, they must be prepared to respond to incoming comments and direct messages.
Social media comments you make reflect your brand just as much as the articles you publish. Customers who are still considering making a purchase can use client testimonials as social proof. You demonstrate that you value your consumers’ opinions by replying to reviews.
What should you do if you get unfavorable comments? Negative feedback is an opportunity to offer solutions and show once again that you take your customers’ opinions seriously.
Social Listening
Social listening is about exploring social media for feedback relevant to your business.
Why Should This Be Part Of Your Social Media Strategy?
Knowing what people think about your online store and products is a very important source of information. Understand.
- Which of your products are people most satisfied with?
- Which of your products do people prefer?
- What questions or concerns do you or your customers have about your products?
Another safeguard is to monitor what your audience is saying about your business. If you get orders wrong or accidentally release a number of faulty products, you may receive online complaints from concerned customers.
If you are aware of the problem, you can react quickly and avoid a full-blown social media crisis via digital marketing services.
Which Social Networks Are Used The Most?
We’ve collected data to help you better understand each social network and make an overall decision on which networks are most worth investing in.
One of the biggest social networks available now is Instagram. There are already more than 1 billion accounts, with 50.3% women and 49.7% men.
A sizable fraction of Instagram users is between the ages of 18 and 24, while the majority are between the ages of 24 and 34. These numbers show that Instagram is a great “online storefront” and a great way to engage consumers.
High visibility is one of the characteristics of Instagram users. With so many photos and videos, this social network is increasingly looking to engage its audience. For this reason, it is common on Instagram to use short videos (stories) and good attention-grabbing photos.
There are countless ways in which you can use social media for e-commerce, including posting new products, reviews, prices, promotions, and content to attract customers. It is a very free and dynamic tool for paid advertising.
Facebook has been the most popular social network globally since 2012 (more than 2 billion users). 43% of the audience are women, while 57% are men. The largest age range is between 25 and 34.
Facebook is a great platform for product promotion due to its superb marketing integration. Indeed, the platform offers many possibilities such as paid advertising on Facebook and good visibility of metrics, as well as the publication of texts, images, and videos.
This social network does not grow as much each year. On the contrary, the number of its users is decreasing. However, Twitter still has a large number of people. It has more than 330 million registered users. Among them, 34.5% are women and 65.5% are men.
Twitter is characterized by its immediacy. This means that a small number of characters can spread very quickly. It is a social network that can be used to disseminate news and trends about virtual businesses. It is not uncommon to see lightning moves on Twitter, and hashtags spread quickly.
LinkedIn has a profile of 660 million people (44% female, 56% male), with most users aged 25-34. It is a more business-oriented social network with a more serious tone. However, if you think that language is a barrier to selling, you are wrong.
This form of social network interaction is focused on building relationships and alliances with consumers. LinkedIn is very popular because of the interest groups created by this tool. Within these groups, brands can be promoted by writing articles and, in many cases, by talking about their products. In any case, brand building is one of the benefits of networking.
YouTube
The rapidly growing social network YouTube now has over 2 billion monthly users. In addition, YouTube is essentially a new search engine, right behind Google.
With its concentration of active and engaged users, YouTube has become a powerful content distribution tool. It allows for a variety of distribution strategies, such as showcasing products directly (through reviews) or producing content in niche areas.
Many companies are still hesitant to invest in YouTube content. However, this strategy can be very effective if content and products are combined. For example, if you are in the fashion e-commerce industry, creating a video featuring summer clothing ideas can help you sell more and grow your audience
.
Conclusion
If your e-commerce business is considering entering the world of social media, now is the perfect time to do so. With this and our other articles, you’ll have all the information and tips you need to get started with maintenance and productivity. Start from scratch with Rankster Tech’s e-commerce and social media experts to create images, schedule content, access analytics, and more!
