Online shopping has always been a significant force that has leveled up its existence, especially after the major impact of COVID-19. This has confirmed the popularity of social commerce platforms to sell different products and services online.
Customers are no anymore restricted to discover and buying the products from the brand’s website. These social media platforms have emerged as a potential bridge connecting customers and retailers.
So, which are the most powerful and top social media platforms for selling products? We generally think of Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc., but there are many others. Let us get into the details of understanding what social commerce is and how it can be used for online buying and selling.
What is Social Commerce?
There is no specific definition to understand what is social commerce but in simple words, it can be related to a process of using different social media platforms for promoting and selling products. The social commerce platforms have come a long back from just being photos and video sharing platforms to actually being reliable buying platforms.
According to market experts, social commerce is likely to win between social commerce vs eCommerce with an expected growth reaching $2.9 trillion by the year 2026. As a result, most of the leading brands are planning to make a higher investment in the top social media platforms.
Reasons For Popularity Of Social Commerce Platforms:
Social commerce platforms have not become an instant hit but they gradually increased in their popularity. Below are some of the reasons supporting the understanding of what social commerce is and its rising popularity:
1. Growing Audience Base:
With more and more people joining social platforms every day and being socially active most of the time, the blend between social media and eCommerce platform cannot be ignored. It can be understood that the potential buyers are already available on the platforms; the brands just need to reach them.
2. Ease of Payment:
Thanks to e-wallets, UPI, and bank transfers or platform-based secure payment gateway; social commerce platforms are highly secure to make payments.
3. Appealing Videos and Images:
Many top social commerce platforms use appealing videos and images to attract and interact with users to win their trust before making any purchase.
4. Growth of Small-Scale Entrepreneurs:
There are many examples of successful social commerce campaigns helping small-scale entrepreneurs to function without any hassles in selling their products and services.
These media platforms open different ways to reach, connect and communicate with potential buyers without any hassles.
10 Best Social Commerce Platforms:
These are the 10 top social commerce platforms that you can rely on:
1. Instagram:
Thanks to its appealing visual nature, Instagram has always got a dominating advantage over the other platforms. You can conveniently display attractive images and videos of your products and services on the platform to catch the attention of the users.
In simple words, you can use the platform to avail the benefit of visual storytelling to turn potential buyers into loyal customers. With more than 1 billion active users, the platform bridges the gap between buyers and brands.
Instagram’s in-app feature, Shoppable Instagram, allows users to buy products from the feed without leaving the app. With a user-friendly interface and simple checkout process, the app is an extremely popular choice amongst buyers.
2. Facebook:
Facebook needs no introduction when talking about the top platforms. The platform started to connect college students and has now evolved as one of the leading social commerce platforms. Even well-established businesses promote their products and services on the platform using high-quality images, videos, and visual graphics.
The merchants can use customized Facebook shops for attracting buyers. The shops offer dedicated browsing and buying experiences to the buyers along with a dedicated communication medium. The platform allows especially small businesses to connect with their target audience without any hassles.
3. Pinterest:
If we are talking about what social commerce is, we cannot ignore talking about Pinterest. With more than 250 million active users in a month, the platform is one of the most popular social commerce platforms. It allows the buyers to browse and purchase the products without actually leaving the platform.
The platform attracts relevant buyers and boosts online sales with its attractive visual content. It is a reliable platform to reach new potential buyers with appealing and eye-catchy images. The in-built features of the platform enhance the ease for the customers to search for their preferred products.
4. Snapchat:
Snapchat this platform encouraged the use of augmented reality that helps users to try digital makeup, sunglasses, and other accessories. Moreover, the platform also helps users to try different clothing types to gain maximum visibility.
With a global user base of 170 million users, the platform uses attractive and appealing images to keep users engaged. However, the platform still needs a lot of advancements as the buyers purchase from outside the platform.
5. Beidian:
Whether you want to buy clothes or an electronic item, Beidian is your one-stop destination connecting buyers and sellers. All the transactions are hosted by the platform, thus, there are minimal chances of fraud. As a result, both buyers and sellers can feel secure initiating any transaction without any hassles.
The platform offers an in-built search option to enhance users’ convenience to search and buy the desired product. You can further filter the results based on location, price, and other parameters. By simply browsing through the feed, you can explore the popular stuff in your area with many amazing deals.
6. Pinduoduo:
If you are tired of buying products and services using the same traditional boring way, you will surely be impressed with the fun and interactive buying process of this social commerce platform.
Pinduoduo offers a wide range of products like cosmetics, clothes, electronics, etc. with features like product listing and reviews. Moreover, the buyers can share their feedback and references with other potential buyers.
One of the main reasons for the platform’s popularity is that it allows buyers to share their buys with their friends and known users. According to the experts, the platform is likely to welcome higher success rates in the coming years.
7. Verint:
Verint– This social platform is one of the reliable examples of successful social commerce campaigns based on customer collaborations. The platform’s features are inter-operational and easily customized to attract the right deal.
The platform also encourages real-life interactions and experiences to ensure high conversion rates. Also, the interactions and Q&A discussions build trust amongst the buyers on the platform.
It also extends the possibility to customize the visual appeal of the interactions. To ensure maximum convenience to the buyer, it uses a modern and responsive interface.
8. Creator. co:
Creator.co allows small and medium businesses the right support for creating, managing, and monitoring the marketing activities of their favorite influencer. The platforms work as a catalyst to connect buyers with millions of influencers offering high-end security and communication.
It ensures the best features, facilities, and search results to the users using advanced data insights and reporting. It also extends continuous campaign assistance to ensure that buyers get all the convenience they need for buying.
The platform is expected to soon sell various products and services across multiple social platforms with the help of powerful influencers, celebrities, and creators.
9. Amazon Live:
What can be better than connecting with potential customers via a live video? Amazon Live is one of the most trending social commerce platforms which ensures connecting the buyers and retailers through live video.
The retailers can easily share all the relevant information, details, and exclusive discounts for the products via this platform. Moreover, it ensures open communication so that the customers can ask questions to the retailers. Overall, the platform delivers an engaging customer experience without compromising security.
10. Taggbox Commerce:
Last but not least, our list of the best social commerce platforms cannot be completed without mentioning Taggbox Commerce. This platform offers a complete shopping experience to the customers with maximum safety, security, engagement, traffic, and trust.
The retailers just publish the tagged products to inspire the customers to buy them. This results in higher conversion rates, higher sales, and improved brand value for businesses.
Final Thoughts:
Social commerce platforms provide an entrusted and reliable way for businesses for reaching their relevant audience base. These platforms use the power of social media to sell products and increase conversion rates and revenue.
Believe it or not, these top social commerce platforms are here to stay. Thus, it is important to choose the right social commerce platform that your customers use.
If you want more information about the potential use and benefits of the best social commerce platforms, connect with us in the comment section.
Read this blog also – The Top Most Mobile Commerce Trends To Watch Out For In 2023