Social media has been highly instrumental in shaping consumer buying habits; but of late, it has become an instrument of commerce itself.
Social eCommerce — a term that implies using social media for buying and selling products, is the latest in eCommerce. Projected to hit a $1.2 trillion market value by 2025, social media is expanding with the potential to become the world’s biggest marketplace.
With nearly 5 billion users worldwide, a business without a social media presence can be termed unorthodox. This sentiment is especially strong for business-to-consumer (B2C) brands.
Consumers expect brands to be active on platforms where they spend much of their time, such as Instagram, Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Pinterest. Even for business-to-business (B2B) companies, social media and eCommerce presence are crucial, with platforms like LinkedIn and YouTube offering access to an audience filled with decision-makers and C-suite executives.
With promising potential, social media marketing for eCommerce is something businesses should focus on if they want to make the most of their social media connections. But what makes ‘now’ the right time to explore this strategy, and what makes it essential? Let’s find out.
Contents:
• Social Media eCommerce — The Definition
• What Makes Social Media eCommerce Important
• Top 4 Social Media Platforms for eCommerce and Their Buying Options
• Why You Should Choose Social Media eCommerce for Your Business
• Best Practices for Social Media eCommerce Success
Social Media eCommerce — The Definition
As mentioned before, social media eCommerce refers to the buying and selling of products directly through social media platforms. Traditionally, eCommerce was limited to standalone websites or third-party marketplaces such as Amazon, Walmart, eBay and AliExpress. Now, you can add to the list all social media platforms starting from Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, TikTok and so on. These platforms integrate shopping features directly within themselves to let the users browse, engage and purchase products without leaving the app.
Social media for eCommerce blends social interaction and product transactions, making it a unique form of online shopping where user engagement, community building and sales come together.
What Makes Social Media eCommerce Important
Those delivery vans that cruise by the streets dropping packages at your doorsteps and your neighbor’s, are clear enough indicators of the growing online shopping trend.
But if you want to talk numbers, then In 2025, the number of eCommerce stores worldwide is projected to reach between 12 million and 24 million. These figures may give you an idea of how the eCommerce world is poised for growth. The reason behind this shift in consumer buying patterns is the growing use of mobile phones and a general rise in digitalization.
Integrating social media platforms with online shopping has further resulted in the eCommerce social media boom. Around 54% of Gen Z spend at least four hours daily on social media apps to explore new products. By 2025, with nearly $80 billion expected from social commerce in the U.S. alone (making up 5% of all U.S. eCommerce), businesses and marketers will need to prioritize social platforms as key sales channels.
All of this points toward one thing: social media marketing for eCommerce is not just a fleeting trend — it’s a direct response to changing consumer habits. So if you are a business that hasn’t yet explored eCommerce social media marketing, you are missing out on a rapidly growing opportunity to connect with consumers where they are most likely to be found.
Top 4 Social Media Platforms for eCommerce and Their Buying Options
When it comes to eCommerce social media marketing, the best platform for your business depends on your goals and target audience. Each platform offers unique opportunities for you to showcase your products and services.
While apps like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat may have a direct in-app purchase option, others like Pinterest can showcase products that you can buy from another website. Let’s explore both these options:
1. Facebook and Instagram
Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, has integrated its apps with advanced selling features. The biggest highlight of these social networks is their advanced ad targeting options, which allow you to fine-tune your audience based on demographics, interests and behaviors. Here are some features you’d get on these Meta apps:
Facebook Shops and Instagram Shops
These are your one-stop, customizable storefronts right within the Facebook and Instagram apps, where you can showcase your products in a natural way and reach customers. Shopping while casually browsing allows customers an option of ‘in-app checkout’ to buy without ever leaving the app.
Shoppable Posts, Stories and Live Shopping
This feature lets you tag your products directly on an image, video or story. This buying experience feels highly intuitive, engaging and secure for shoppers. Additionally, both platforms offer live shopping features, where businesses can showcase products via live stream. Viewers can then click on the featured products during the broadcast to purchase in real time.
Facebook Marketplace
Facebook Marketplace is a classified ad section in the app where individuals and businesses can sell items locally. It’s best for selling physical products and can be integrated with Facebook Shops for an even wider exposure.
Ads With Shopping Features
Facebook and Instagram support shoppable ads, which allow businesses to showcase multiple products in a single ad. Users can click directly on the products featured in these ads to purchase.
Direct Messages
This can be classified as an indirect way to sell using the simple messaging feature on Facebook and Instagram. You use your marketing skills to interact with customers one-on-one, provide personalized recommendations and guide them through purchasing.
2. Snapchat
Snapchat offers in-app shopping features through its Shopping Lenses and Shoppable AR (Augmented Reality) experiences. With these, users can virtually “try on” products like clothing, makeup and accessories using AR lenses and then buy directly within the app.
Snapchat also has Shoppable Ads and Product Catalogs that allow businesses to showcase products with in-app links, leading users straight to a purchase option without leaving the app.
Additionally, Snapchat’s Discover section includes branded content and ads that often feature swipe-up options, directing users to a product page for quick and easy shopping.
3. Pinterest
Currently, Pinterest does not provide a full in-app shopping experience where users can complete purchases entirely within the platform. Instead, it offers Product Pins that display product information (like price, availability and seller details) and direct users to the retailer’s website to complete the transaction.
Pinterest’s Shop Tab and Pinterest Lens make it easy to discover and browse products, but the final purchase is completed outside of Pinterest on the retailer’s site.
4. YouTube
YouTube offers several in-app shopping features to enhance the digital marketing for eCommerce experience directly within its platform. With Shoppable Ads and YouTube Merch Shelf, creators and brands can showcase products right below videos, allowing viewers to explore and purchase items without leaving YouTube.
Additionally, Live Shopping allows creators to promote products during live streams, where viewers can click on featured items in real-time and make purchases. This interactive setup makes it easy for users to buy products while watching content.
Why You Should Choose Social Media eCommerce for Your Business
Social media and eCommerce platforms provide a unique buying experience for your customers where they can buy as they scroll through their feeds. Below are some standout features that make social media for eCommerce a more powerful tool for online shopping.
Targeted Ads
Once you have defined how your average customer should look like, you can run targeted ads based on those demographics, interests and behaviors. You can then track the performance of your ads using ad analytics — so you know where your money is going.
User-Generated Content (UGC)
UGC refers to content created and shared by a brand’s fans, such as text, images, videos or reviews. Brands can leverage this opportunity to showcase social proof from their fans and increase customer engagement.
Influencer Marketing
When you choose the right influencer, you can hit the jackpot. Your product can receive a tremendous boost and reach a wider audience. You can measure return on investment (ROI) and campaign impact by assigning tracking links or unique promo codes to multiple influencers.
Best Practices for Social Media eCommerce Success
In the marketer’s dream, a social media user not only engages with your content with a like, comment or share but takes out their credit card and swipes it to make a purchase from your page, representing the climax of their eCommerce social media efforts.
To make this journey easy for the customers, here are some best practices to maximize your success:
• Prioritize optimizing your strategy for social eCommerce to enhance sales directly through social platforms.
• Showcase your customers and familiar, trusted faces in your social media content.
• Leverage AI technology and continuously refine how you incorporate it into your strategies.
• Prioritize responsiveness and personalization in your social media interactions to build stronger customer connections.
• Optimize your existing strategies for each platform to maximize effectiveness.
• Embrace video content but keep it fresh with a mix of different styles and formats.
• Adopt a platform-specific mindset, tailoring content and strategy to each social network.
• Be thoughtful and selective when taking a stand on social issues to align with your brand values.
• Empower and engage your employees as ambassadors for your brand on social media.
Working with a social media marketing agency for eCommerce can also help you apply these practices effectively, with expert guidance tailored to your business goals.
Take Your Social Media Sales to New Heights
With the right social media marketing agency for eCommerce, businesses can harness the power of social media marketing for eCommerce to reach new customers, build brand loyalty and drive sales. From optimizing product listings to engaging with customers and using paid advertising, there are many ways to make social media eCommerce work for your business.
Thrive Internet Marketing Agency is an experienced digital marketing for eCommerce agency helping your business get leads by optimizing your social network. Whether you need assistance setting up shoppable posts, optimizing your paid social campaigns or developing an overall social eCommerce strategy, we’re here to help.
To learn more about how we can assist your business, check out our social media for eCommerce services. Contact us today!
