Social Media Sky-Rockets but is it an #EpicFail for ECommerce
Here at 21 Digital, we’re big believers in cross-channel marketing. So, when social media platforms took their first wobbly steps a few years back, we couldn’t wait to see where they’d get to.
But while social media platforms are still on the up, recent studies have uncovered some surprising results. Read on as we cast a light on social media and eCommerce…
The Good News: Social Media Is Sky-Rocketing
A recent report by Econsultancy takes a mind-blowing look at just how much some of the major social media platforms have grown over the last three years. The results couldn’t be clearer: social media is booming.
Twitter:
In the last three years, the number of user accounts on Twitter has sky-rocketed from 75 million to 883 million.
Facebook:
The number of monthly active users on Facebook has risen from 350 million to a staggering 1.19 billion monthly active users, 61% of whom log in daily.
Flickr and Pinterest:
Image-sharing grand-daddy, Flickr, has doubled in size, going from 4 billion images to an estimated 8 billion. Meanwhile, Pinterest has 70 million users worldwide.
YouTube:
Still the second largest search engine on the web, YouTube now welcomes more than 1 billion unique users each month and more than 100 hours of new video every minute.
The “Bad” News: Should ECommerce Brands Be Worried?
While Econsultancy’s report is great news for businesses that have invested time and effort into social media, a report by eCommerce optimisation experts Monetate has given pause for thought.
Based on data from over 500 million online shopping browser sessions, the report shows clearly that social media achieves poor click-through-rates (CTR) and poor sales conversions (1.55% and 0.71% respectively).
Not exactly what you want to hear when you’ve been diligently planning your social media strategy month on month for the last three years, right?
So, Hang On: Is Social Media A Waste Of Time For ECommerce Brands?
You’d be forgiven for thinking so but just hold that pessimism for a moment!
While the stats might seem unexpected given the enormity of social media, these incredible online platforms remain a vital ingredient in the content marketing mix.
21 Digital Account Manager, Zirca Ali, had this to say:
“If all there was to online sales was a quick social media update followed by hundreds of purchases, we’d all be multi-millionaires. In reality, there’s infinitely more to being a successful brand than that. And there’s the key word: it’s all about brand.
“Social media has expanded at an incredible rate, and its importance for exposure, brand-building and SEO can’t be ignored.
“While we can see from these stats that social media isn’t at the bottom of the sales funnel, what we can’t do is dismiss it altogether. We’ve seen time and again that customers buy from brands with a good reputation and plenty of social proof.
“In a way, these stats just confirm what we already know: that social media is a vital brand-building tool for all businesses.”
Put Customers First And The Sales Will Follow
Social media is vital in helping companies to build brand trust and loyalty, widen their reach, and keep a finger on their target market’s pulse, with a view to responding quickly to their needs.
21 Digital’s digital marketing team can guide you through the latest trends in social media, Pay Per Click (PPC) and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO), and offer you the best open source or bespoke eCommerce systems out there.
While social media might not be the last link in the sales chain, it’s still a crucial one – so make sure you keep it strong.
(Sources: 20 mind-blowing social media statistics three years later; Monetate eCommerce Quarterly)
