Written by Intern, Ashley Ko

The trend of social commerce is growing day by day. Likes on social media are turning into sales. Now, social media is not just a space for interaction but a place where transactions are made.

Many business owners are choosing social commerce over eCommerce for various reasons.

Shopping features for businesses are implemented to leverage social media for direct sales. Business owners are provided with services like posts, stories, and videos to showcase their products directly, get creative with the way they present their products, and make authentic content presenting their brand characteristics. Moreover, interactive features like live streaming allow businesses to engage with their audience on a more interpersonal level. Businesses can connect with their audience using this feature to answer questions, show their products, and host a live shopping session.

Next, the convenience that is offered by social commerce can not be ignored. Consumers can communicate and engage directly with businesses via direct messages or commenting on posts without having to go through the extra steps. Talking about convenience, the convenience of making purchases without leaving the platform should be addressed as well. They can simply click on the products they are interested in within the content and buy them.

Social connectivity is also another factor why social commerce is growing. The users can share their experiences and purchases with their networks, which can encourage others to explore and make purchases. This generates exposure to more audiences. Social connectivity isn’t the only thing that factors into consistent audience growth.

Social media’s personalization helps with targeting specific demographics. User preferences and behaviors and recommended products relevant to the users are collected by social media. Then, consumers can come across and discover new businesses through targeted advertisements and shared content, creating opportunities for the business.

As social media platforms advance, social commerce will continue to grow. Social media platforms will implement features that will improve the consumer experience, and businesses are going to create ways to effectively utilize the platforms to drive sales. Social media platforms are doing more than creating spaces for interaction.