The Power of Social Media for Ecommerce Providers
Social media has the unique ability to influence shoppers’ purchases through recommendation engines and word of mouth. That’s why social media has become vital to the success of ecommerce providers. In fact, for some pure ecommerce players, social media can result in up to 85% of sales. How? Take a look at the following examples of using social media in innovative and exciting ways to drive sales, and soon you’ll be a part of this parade!
Prescription eyeglass provider, Warby Parker, has a deep commitment to user experience and has leveraged product information to successfully sell its products through social media platforms like Instagram. When the company first created its Instagram account, it noticed that users were frequently asking for the product details shown in the published images, and they would still have to go to the Warby Parker website to purchase a product. That’s why, when Instagram approached the company about testing its new shopping capabilities, Warby Parker jumped at the opportunity.
Now, all images posted on Warby Parker’s Instagram account also contain a “tap to view products” icon in the bottom lefthand corner. Customers can tap on this icon to view which products are available for purchase and display basic product information, including name and price. Instagram is currently testing new features that will enable brands to share even more product information within a single post.
Image Source: https://blog.pinterest.com/
Another social network relying on product information is Pinterest. Earlier this year, Pinterest announced Shopping with Pinterest, which lets consumers shop for multiple items, across multiple merchants on Pinterest and across the web. Additionally, as consumers add items to their shopping carts within Pinterest, they can also see the items in their carts as they switch between their phones, computers, and tablets. Shoppers can add multiple items to their shopping bags, then check out on any device when they’re ready. Access to structured product information has made this shopping feature possible.
You can’t talk about social media shopping without mentioning Nordstrom and its social strategy. The company landed on Shareablee’s Social Scorecard last November, and since then, has continued to prove how social media savvy it is. For instance, the brand has successfully brought the Pinterest experience to brick-and-mortar by placing “Top Pinned” signs on merchandise such as women’s shoes and handbags inside its physical stores.
Whether it’s an ecommerce provider or a brick-and-mortar store exploring the online realm, retail and commerce are undergoing a major transformation today, especially with regard to the role social media continues to play in influencing sales and conversion. To succeed in today’s highly digital environment, retailers must embrace not only one or two social media channels, but multiple. Social media is great for promoting your brand, but it’s also great for communicating with customers, and with more channels, you have more customer touch points and opportunities for sales. However, none of this would be possible without access to structured product information. It enables having offers coordinated across channels and it also ensures that a product is presented in its full and complete form on all of them.
Originally published at Indix.
