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The advent of social media has changed the traditional ways of shopping; it has introduced a new concept i.e., social commerce. Social media is not just a means of connecting and networking anymore, rather people use social media nowadays for exploring products and brands as well.
What is social commerce?
Social commerce is an emerging phenomenon of online marketing and supports online shopping growth, it involves online media but is more focused on social media. Different brands are able to sell their products and services exclusively through social media platforms without even making a website. The whole process of buying occurs within the ecosystem, from researching the product to purchasing.
How the social commerce is changing people shop?
Through social commerce, people have been presented with the opportunity of shopping ease which is further facilitated by online reviews, micro-influencer endorsement and ease of comparability of different products. Before that, people used to visit brick and mortar stores to explore their options and window shop, which was a waste of time and energy for the customers. However, thanks to social media the products are just a few taps away now, the consumers can now easily explore a variety of brands and products. Facebook and Instagram algorithms has further facilitated the consumers by only viewing related products which highly resonate with the consumer. These changes in technology exposes the customer only to products relevant to them and filter out unnecessary products. We all have experienced that when we search for a product online, the social media apps acknowledge that search and produce similar ads for us which further gives us only relevant options and adds to the user experience. This way without putting in too much effort, the customers are able to make the best possible purchase after analyzing different alternatives.
Not only that, but social commerce has also pushed impulse buying behavior. The decision to purchase a product is made just a few moments before the actual purchase is being made in impulse buying. Even if people scroll through social media without any intention of purchasing, products pop in our feed due to marketing. Although there was no intention of buying the product, still a user opens the product due to its eye-catching features and purchases it. Fast fashion also plays a pivotal role in such impulse buying behaviors, due to theurge to adopt trends very quickly. This is how social media gravitates customers and encourages impulse buying.
