This year big changes are expected to happen in the world of shopping through the usage of social media networking. Retailers and businesses with a multi-channel approach will make great strides in succeeding to generate more leads and to further expand their budgets for social media. An infographic by TrueShip serves as substantial evidence that social shopping will become an instrumental metric to exploit for and to adapt e-commerce tactics into this social media realm.
The continuing adoption of mobile devices or in this case smartphones has fueled the need to implement strategies retailers can harness for greater business results. For the past few years mobile has been exponentially growing and mobile commerce is on the rise. According to a Walker Sands 2015 "Future of Retail" analysis precisely 40 percent of consumers used a mobile payment application and the arrival of Apple Pay has increased in dramatic fashion the shift in payments conducted in this space.
Social shopping is becoming an area for retailers and competing industries to look into very closely. According to additional findings by TrueShip 150 million referrals came from social networks for the year 2014 alone. Naturally, if you want to lure in your loyal, targeted or new customer your website better be functional and operational to convert from this profitable online traffic.
"Social media ecommerce statistics play a strong role in the expansive and progressive growth of this industry," explained Michael Lazar, Director of Online Marketing at TrueShip. "The new guide on social shopping statistics for 2015 that we've just released can help ReadyShipper users better target their social campaigns, so they can generate increased referrals with higher value conversions."
What social networking sites have the highest conversion rate? Depending on the industry and the sector answers vary on who has the bragging rights. Facebook owns the largest shares of users from around the globe, but that does not mean their platform leads the way in social commerce. According to a post the microblogging platform, Twitter, enjoys a higher conversion rate by the likes of standard internet users.
Social shopping stats and metrics that matter
Social shopping or social commerce is a thing of a beauty. Retailers, small businesses and other competing entities can be assured this area generates plenty of business. Twitter may have a comfortable lead in conversions, yet the visual discovery tool, Pinterest, when maximized correctly goals are attainable. Pinterest has the highest average order value (AOV) of $179.36 compared to Facebook ($80.22) and Twitter ($68.78).
Elsewhere, people navigating these busy social media platforms are increasingly turning to these mediums to be persuaded into making a purchasing decision. According to a report by Sprout Social 74 percent of consumers rely now on social networking services to make a purchase. It is worth pointing out that an eGifter study confirmed social media serves as a gifting trigger.
Social media is a powerful vehicle to drive up engagement. It can easily be used to connect with loyal followers of brands and this is where leads can be generated along with building a long-term relationship.
For users who follow their favorite brands and wish to know about products or services three social media companies fiercely compete: 56 percent of Facebook users follow brands, 47 percent of Twitter users engage brands and 56 percent of Pinterest users interact with brands.
Utilizing customizable templates for your web store, or a seamless Facebook integration can lead to more visibility to your customers or consumers. This allows better transparency of the brand since you can view the company's or brands wish list, orders and reviews.
One more element that is crucial to drive up activity and engagement, which translates into sales is sharing. Sharing is a less aggressive than a sales pitch and 43 percent of users are encouraged to buy just through this social action.
Takeaways
Social shopping is the new frontier for retailers and businesses alike. With consumers becoming increasingly tech and shopping savvy you need to distribute your financial resources. It is not to say you need to invest and sacrifice your business model, but remain open to this untapped revenue stream.
Things have radically changed and buying habits have drastically shifted. Look at the buying patterns and target what sort of interactions generate leads via these social sites.