{"id":25312,"date":"2020-01-13T06:20:33","date_gmt":"2020-01-13T06:20:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/?p=25312"},"modified":"2020-01-14T13:54:43","modified_gmt":"2020-01-14T13:54:43","slug":"a-trend-no-publisher-large-or-small-can-afford-to-overlook-social-commerce-set-to-be-the-most-important-channel-by-2029","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/a-trend-no-publisher-large-or-small-can-afford-to-overlook-social-commerce-set-to-be-the-most-important-channel-by-2029\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cA trend no publisher\u2014large or small\u2014can afford to overlook\u201d: Social commerce set to be the most important digital channel by 2029"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Social commerce, that is, promotion and sales via social media sites, is looking at exponential growth in the coming years as digital native consumers grow up. In The Publisher\u2019s Guide to eCommerce<\/a>, Damian Radcliffe, Journalist, and Professor at the University of Oregon, shows<\/a> how shoppable content has been rapidly taking off on the major social networks, including Pinterest<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a> and Snapchat<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We see clear signs that social commerce is taking off as more and more customers make purchases directly from social media platforms instead of heading to a brand’s online store or high street outlet after discovering a product on social media.<\/p>Yuval Ben-Itzhak, CEO at Socialbakers<\/a> <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Instagram\u2019s new Checkout feature, as just one example, is being welcomed by publishers as a major improvement in shopping experience. All of this signals substantial upcoming opportunities for publishers who are into eCommerce, or are considering it as a potential revenue stream.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social commerce, the most important sales channel by 2029<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A recent report<\/a> by Wunderman Thompson Commerce found that 72% of digital commerce leaders believe that consumers of the future will prefer to shop online. The report is based on interviews<\/a> with over 500 senior decision-makers in digital commerce from the US and UK.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the decision-makers interviewed<\/a>, the most important digital commerce channels in 2019 were brand sites (19%), retailers (18%), and social media (17% – awareness). They were followed by marketplaces (16%), social commerce (14% – selling) and physical retail (13%). Additionally, 71% confirmed that influencers were making a big impact, and 68% were already working with them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Source: MarketingCharts.com<\/a> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The survey participants said that in the next 10 years, they anticipate a shift towards social commerce. 20% said that it will be the most important channel in 2029, followed by brand sites (19%), marketplaces (17%) and social media (17% – awareness). Retailers (12%) and physical retail (12%) are expected to lose importance over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, according<\/a> to GroupM (part of WPP), eCommerce related ad spend is growing faster than digital advertising, a trend which \u201cholds implications for both marketers and media owners.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Publishers (and some journalists) are already influencers among their loyal readers. They have the advantage of expertise and credibility in specific areas, like the NYTimes\u2019 gadget recommendations website, Wirecutter<\/a>. This makes them potentially powerful eCommerce partners. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As more and more consumers eschew brick and mortar retail stores in favor of online platforms like Amazon, they\u2019re increasingly turning to online review sites to suss out which products are worth buying. The Wirecutter has ostensibly replaced the Best Buy store clerk who could walk you through the features of each television or laptop on sale.<\/p>Simon Owens<\/a>, Tech and Media Journalist  <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Speaking on Wirecutter\u2019s acquisition, The New York Times CEO Mark Thompson said<\/a> that besides being a part of wider efforts to broaden The New York Times Company\u2019s revenue base, the move was also an exploration of a closer integration between sites and products, like Wirecutter, and the NYT\u2019s \u201ccore\u201d news output.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPotential for telling stories with eCommerce\u201d<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

GlobalWebIndex found<\/a> that, \u201cnearly 3 in 10 cite researching\/finding products online as a main reason for using social media.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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According to PopSugar Insights<\/a>, \u201c67% of millennial women wish that they could take advantage of the benefits of shoppable content and instantly purchase the products they see in digital content, such as articles, photo galleries, or videos.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Given this demand from consumers, it is clear that the lines between social, eCommerce and editorial are going to become increasingly blurred. Perhaps more blurred than ever. As shoppable content gathers momentum, more and more outlets will explore the potential for telling stories with eCommerce with touchpoints baked into them.<\/p>Damian Radcliffe<\/a>, Journalist and Professor at the University of Oregon <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Ben-Itzhak adds, \u201caccording to Socialbakers data, shopping-related content – including shopping experiences leveraging VR – is rapidly proliferating on social media. And platforms are responding by adding more eCommerce features. Instagram already launched Instagram Shopping<\/a> for selected brands, giving businesses an immersive storefront for people to discover and explore products, as well as a link for purchases.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFacebook’s family of applications — WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Facebook Groups — already offers tools for customer care and community management so that all marketing funnel activity — from product discovery to post-purchase customer care and evangelism — can happen on social media. And TikTok recently opened the door to social commerce with beta tests that let influencers embed social commerce links in videos on the app,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Instagram\u2019s Checkout<\/a> feature, launched in 2019, allows users to buy products tagged in posts and stories without leaving the platform. This makes the purchase process seamless. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Checkout feature on Instagram Source: Instagram Blog<\/a> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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The feature was initially rolled out<\/a> to about 50 influencers, designers and media titles, including Ferragni, Jenner and Aimee Song, as well as publishers like Vogue and Hypebeast. Later, the company invited several publishers, including Cond\u00e9 Nast, Group Nine and Highsnobiety, to use the platform as an eCommerce channel.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf the editorial staff is hosting the stories, it translates well for the viewer\u201d<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Publishers like New York Magazine, Food52 and PopSugar have already been using in-feed and story ads on Instagram to drive readers to their commerce content. Food52, which has 2.5M followers on Instagram has two-thirds of its revenue coming from commerce, according<\/a> to its VP of Digital Marketing Grace Ouma-Cabezas. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re now generating more commerce sales from our Instagram ads than our Facebook ads.<\/p>Grace Ouma-Cabezas<\/a>, VP of Digital Marketing, Food52 <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInstagram Stories more frequently has become a go-to format. Generally speaking, it\u2019s appealing to brands because it\u2019s an organic way to reach our followers. If the editorial staff is hosting the stories, it translates well for the viewer,\u201d adds<\/a> Geoff Schiller, CRO of Group Nine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

PopSugar, a Group Nine publication, has 1.3M followers on Instagram, and generates revenue through advertising, as well as its own commerce offerings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA whole new era for what this might be\u201d<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

But the user experience has not been entirely satisfactory, until now that is. Instagram Checkout marks a substantial improvement. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen we send our followers off-platform, we typically direct them to our link in bio. It can sometimes feel like a clunky process, especially when we are asking them to buy something, so I love that we can keep the purchase within platform,\u201d Rachel Karten, Associate Director of Social Media for Bon App\u00e9tit and Epicurious told<\/a> Digiday. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt feels like a more seamless process than the link in bio. I also like how I don\u2019t have to list out prices in the caption \u2014 they are right there on the image for our followers to see.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bon App\u00e9tit has been testing the new feature by selling its own merchandise. They include branded shirts, sweatshirts, hats and other items. Some of the posts feature the publication\u2019s popular test kitchen editors-turned-influencers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clicks from the shoppable links have been \u201cincremental,\u201d said Karten, \u201cso far, we\u2019re definitely pleased.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An increasingly essential component of publishers\u2019 revenue streams<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt signals a whole new era for what this might be,\u201d added<\/a> Brian Lee, Group Nine\u2019s (PopSugar\u2019s publisher) EVP of Commerce. \u201cIt\u2019s slowly growing to become a big, big part of our overall meaningful sales. We think this feature is going to be huge for that category, for fashion, fitness and wellness.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Radcliffe writes in The Publisher\u2019s Guide to eCommerce<\/a>, \u201cAs eCommerce continues to become more pervasive, and purposeful social media behaviours – such as using social networks to research and find products to buy – further nudge eCommerce forward, platforms, retailers, publishers and content creators alike, must all strive to innovate in their efforts to grab a slice of the eCommerce pie. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a field which has momentum; and as a result, we can confidently expect more publishers to get involved in eCommerce over the coming months and years. For most players it will never be a panacea for historic business models, but eCommerce looks to become an increasingly essential component of a growing number of publisher’s revenue streams. Subsequently, this is a trend no publisher\u2014large or small\u2014can afford to overlook.<\/p>Damian Radcliffe, Journalist, and Professor at the University of Oregon <\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n

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Social commerce, that is, promotion and sales via social media sites, is looking at exponential growth in the coming years as digital native consumers grow up. In The Publisher\u2019s Guide to eCommerce, Damian Radcliffe, Journalist, and Professor at the University of Oregon, shows how shoppable content has been rapidly taking off on the major social […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":25330,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[17613,26,550],"tags":[],"yst_prominent_words":[28249,4308,28245,28243,4870,28248,1250,28280,28247,28246,25619,28244,1264,16518,1233,28278,28279,28277,17418,28250],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25312"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/26"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25312"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25312\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/25330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25312"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25312"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25312"},{"taxonomy":"yst_prominent_words","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mediamakersmeet.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/yst_prominent_words?post=25312"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}