Social Shopping and Web Design
We knew it wouldn’t be long until the social networking sites integrated a shopping platform into their web design. The increase in users and time spent on site indicates that users are clearly embracing social networking. We trust status updates and tweets from our friends or followers so it would be a natural transition for products to be bought directly through this channel.
A recent study by Omniture suggests that Facebook is the most popular method of direct interaction with consumers. New tools are being released to allow users to sell goods through the social media site of their choice. However, research shows that unfortunately this functions at its best when the company selling the goods already has an online presence on the social media channels. The costs involved are not cheap either.
From the 600 marketers surveyed, around 80% of users in the retail sector are using social media to market products. 63% believed that Facebook was the most important site with blogs at 40% and Twitter lagging at 28%.
The direct shopping technology involved can cost around $25 a month for certain sites and Facebook plan to charge 30% of the total value of goods sold through the site. If the margins for your product are already being squeezed then selling your goods through social media channels may not be the most appropriate move for you. Perhaps the recent addition of the “like” feature on Facebook may be enough to pass on your friends seal of approval on a particular brand’s fan page?
Tags: Social Media, social shopping, Web Design
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