As e-commerce merchants enjoy an increase in sales during the period from Black Friday through the holiday season, have you ever wondered how much of this is influenced by social media? Paul Chaney, in an article for Practical Ecommerce, shares his insights on how social media is helping to shape the world of e-commerce, particularly this busy holiday shopping season. Citing data from Fredrick Njim, CEO of social commerce site Addoway.com, Chaney states that online shoppers referred through social networking sites were more likely to complete a purchase compared to those who were referred from comparison shopping search engines. According to the article, this trend is also apparent throughout the holiday shopping season. Not only are companies utilizing the power of social media, but consumers as well. They are often using social networking sites to share, recommend, and shop.
Chaney cites the case of Dale Traxler, an e-commerce merchant and owner of Beaded Impressions, as well as an author for a Practical Ecommerce blog. According to Traxler, social media is “paying dividends.” He suggests investing time, effort, and money to build social media presence particularly through Facebook. In fact, he recommends redirecting $50 from a company’s PPC (pay per click) budget per month and reinvesting it in building a Facebook presence. Today, Traxler has about 9,000 fans on his Beaded Impressions Facebook page.
This Holiday season, Chaney cites two ways by which e-commerce merchants are using social media tools to increase sales. First, by using it as an additional channel through which they can share information on promotions. Second, by using it as an outlet for exclusive content and marketing campaigns. A few examples include high profile retailers, such as Kmart, Best Buy, Target and Sears. Other smaller merchants, such as Rainebrooke and Beaded Impressions, used Twitter to promote their Cyber Monday deals.
As the number one social networking site and top ranked trafficked sites on the internet, Facebook has become a “centrepiece for social commerce sales”. It is a leading platform for content distribution as well as for broadcasting information on exclusive deals. Case in point: Software supplier PC Tools and religious store The Catholic Company offered Cyber Monday deals via Facebook, while nutritional supplement supplier Vitacost.com, had an exclusive Cyber Monday sneak peek accessible only to its Facebook page fans. Overstock.com and jeans manufacturer Hudson both held an exclusive Facebook-only VIP sales events.
While social commerce, a product of social media and e-commerce, has yet to become common practice online, the aforementioned examples clearly demonstrate that it is an emerging approach to sales. With morecompanies utilizing social media, social commerce will be essential to a company’s success.