$80 billion market! Social e-commerce is coming in 2023

It is learned that the latest forecast of Reuters Financial Column shows that as companies such as TikTok, YouTube and Amazon successively launch social shopping functions, social e-commerce will accelerate its rise in markets outside of China in 2023.

There is early evidence that selling goods through live e-commerce also works well in overseas markets, with most viewers enjoying interacting with celebrities and influencers through live broadcasts. TikTok influencer Nisrin, who has 500,000 followers, sold £10,000 of cosmetics and other goods in a single live broadcast.

In 2021, Douyin generated $119 billion in merchandise sales in China. Seeing the e-commerce sales potential of Douyin, ByteDance also launched e-commerce shopping functions in TikTok UK and the US, attracting many competitors. For example, Amazon recently launched Inspire, which is similar to TikTok.

In fact, for social platforms, e-commerce sales revenue can offset the impact of the current decline in advertising revenue to a certain extent. For retailers, live streaming is an effective way to attract customers' attention and reduce returns.

According to data portal Statista, social media advertising spending in the United States, which has been growing at an annual rate of about 30%, will slow to an average of about 12% in the next three years, reaching $114 billion in 2025. In contrast, consulting firm McKinsey predicts that social e-commerce sales in the United States will grow by 20% annually to $80 billion during the same period.

However, many products are not suitable for live streaming sales. For example, cosmetics are better sold through live streaming than electronic products. In addition, as competition becomes increasingly fierce, it is difficult for social media platforms to charge influencers and retailers extra fees.

Amazon and other big tech companies are offering shopping features at no extra cost to merchants, and venture capitalists have invested $700 million in startups such as Firework that offer such technology to brick-and-mortar retailers, according to research firm Pitchbook.

The sales effect of social e-commerce is unquestionable. On TikTok, a two-hour live shopping event can help a small beauty brand generate sales equivalent to a week's worth of sales at its flagship store. Such an effect will attract more brands and merchants to join this track, and it will surely set off a wave in the future.

Editor✎ Ashley/

Disclaimer: This article is copyrighted and may not be reproduced without permission.