Social e-commerce still has dividends! How can we keep up with the market pace?

According to eMarketer's forecast, social e-commerce in the United States will grow by 34.8% in 2021, and the current market value is 89.4 billion US dollars. More and more consumers discover and purchase products through social media, and social media has become a major marketing channel that brands and retailers cannot ignore.

Not only that, people of different ages are using different social platforms to discover and purchase products, and brands need to make layouts based on these characteristics. Consumers play an increasingly important role in forming their own and others' brand impressions.

Research shows that Gen Z consumers are particularly keen on new online shopping channels, including voice, live streaming and social media apps such as Pinterest, TikTok and Instagram. According to Brightpearl research, three-quarters of 18-24 year olds plan to shop online through alternative channels this year.

Data shows that 48% of American netizens aged 18-34 made purchases on social media in 2019. With the rapid growth of the e-commerce market, this proportion will only increase, and emerging channels are also ready to explode in social e-commerce.

The opportunities presented by social commerce are clear, but there are also certain risks. The complexity involved in adding and managing multiple new social sales channels, as well as providing a consistent experience for customers, will bring numerous challenges to brands and retailers.

The proliferation of new online sales channels has also created a split among consumers, with generational characteristics being a clear example. This requires retailers to adopt a more flexible layout and the ability to quickly adapt to sudden changes in internal or external environments.

Technology infrastructure is also a factor that deserves attention. Without adequate technology infrastructure, adding multiple sales channels will be futile. Too many brands rely too much on traditional ERP, and when your customers flow to a new social media channel like TikTok, traditional ERP is no longer applicable.

This reliance on outdated and inflexible back-end technology, combined with low adoption of new marketing channels, suggests that many sellers’ marketing thinking has not kept up with the changing times.

To succeed in social commerce, brands will need a dynamic, scalable system that allows them to quickly manage the ever-changing sales channels. Consumers want to be able to "buy anywhere", so sellers need to have the right operating system.

Editor ✎ Xiao Zhu/

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