For years, the e-commerce sector has been booming like no other economic sector. What was unthinkable a decade ago is now a reality – online shopping has become completely normal for all age groups. However, offering products and services online is no longer enough to be successful on the Internet. Anyone who wants to create a real competitive advantage over the competition today must above all master an increasingly important trend - social commerce.
The following article gives you some tips and tricks on how even small and medium-sized businesses can be successful with social commerce. Of course, we also explain the main features of this new phenomenon and what social commerce actually is.
WHAT IS SOCIAL COMMERCE ACTUALLY?
Social Commerce is a term that encompasses all commercial activities on the social media platforms. Companies use Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Co. to generate attention for their own products, generate sales and thus ensure more sales.
Even if the total turnover on the social commerce market is difficult to capture, experts today assume that sales of more than 500 billion US dollars could be reached in just a few years.
But why is social commerce so important today? The reason is simple: human psychology. Conventional advertising is effective and helps to make your brand known. Yet people know that advertising is not objective fact. Advertising works best when someone you trust is delivering the brand message. This is exactly why celebrities and athletes are so often seen in advertising.
Influencers play a similar role today. Many subscribers like and trust the content their favorite influencer or vlogger offers and are therefore particularly receptive to brand messages. Even if these have to be declared as advertising today, the trust that many people have in social media personalities is far higher than in conventional advertising offers such as commercials.
Another advantage is of course that social media channels are often very specialized, e.g. For example, if you want to sell vegan food, a vegan influencer’s social media channel can give you access to a perfect target group that is much more valuable than, say, the average TV viewer, who usually has little interest in vegan nutrition.
HOW TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA FOR YOUR SME
From a commercial point of view, the use of social media is very versatile. Companies can either operate their own channels and use them to provide information about their own products and build up a following, or they can use existing channels for themselves, for example by doing business with an influencer via an advertising contract.
Of course, classic advertising campaigns via Facebook or Instagram Ads are also available. Here, too, social media offers many advantages, since online ads can reach specific target groups much more specifically than advertising on radio, television or via street posters. Of course, the low advertising costs for small and medium-sized companies are also a great advantage.
In general, social commerce is much more accessible to small and medium-sized businesses compared to the previously dominant advertising platforms such as TV channels. Your advertising budget can definitely achieve more on TikTok and Co. than on radio, television or in print media.
YOU SHOULD KEEP THESE TIPS IN MIND IF YOU ARE ACTIVE ON SOCIAL MEDIA YOURSELF
Professionalism. Unfortunately, many companies still make the mistake of not showing enough professionalism on social media. In many small and medium-sized companies, the advertising budgets are often limited. However, this does not mean that z. B. should damage its own brand reputation through amateurish designs. who e.g. B. who does not have sufficient budgets for professional designers can use free Instagram story designs . These are often offered by cloud services such as Adobe Creative Cloud. Here, even inexperienced users can easily create professional designs that are perfectly tailored for social media.
offer added value. In order to build a following on Instagram, TikTok and Co., you have to offer added value. It is no longer enough to just advertise your own products. The most important thing today is to offer your viewers added value. This can be in the form of entertaining videos that are fun for the viewers or in the form of useful tips such as expert interviews, blogs or similar.
THIS IS IMPORTANT TO KEEP IN MIND WHEN ADVERTISING THROUGH OTHER CHANNELS
The right influencer. When it comes to influencer advertising, many companies make the mistake of focusing too much on views, comments and likes. Of course, these stats are very important to ensure your product gets enough exposure, but it is at least as important to choose an influencer who can credibly market your product. Smaller channels in particular often have a particularly loyal fan base, which may represent an ideal target group for your product.
Avoid damaging your image. Another classic mistake is choosing an influencer whose content could potentially cause damage to your brand image. Unfortunately, "shitstorms" are becoming more and more common these days - there are many reasons for this. So definitely make sure to choose an influencer that isn't particularly divisive or controversial.