Summary

Social commerce is an emerging field that leverages social media interactions to promote and sell products, complementing traditional e-commerce by creating awareness and interest through personalized advertising.

Abstract

Social commerce represents a significant shift in the e-commerce landscape, utilizing social media platforms to facilitate product awareness and sales. It differs from traditional e-commerce by focusing on personalized interactions, where influencers play a pivotal role in promoting products through their own creations or endorsing others'. This new approach to online shopping is characterized by its low-cost advertising, the creation of a new profession in influencer marketing, and the provision of job opportunities. However, it also presents challenges such as the time-consuming nature of content creation and potential underpayment for influencers, especially when they are starting out. Despite these challenges, social commerce is not a replacement for e-commerce but rather a symbiotic channel that drives interest and sales through platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn, reaching a global audience and facilitating quicker circulation of money.

Opinions

Social commerce is seen as a cost-effective advertising strategy for small business entrepreneurs and those too busy with production to sell their own products.
The role of influencers is recognized as a new profession, with influencers being acknowledged for their ability to sell ideas, concepts, and awareness rather than the products themselves.
Influencer marketing is considered a legitimate job that involves content creation, storytelling, and product knowledge to attract consumers.
There is an opinion that becoming an influencer is a time-consuming process, requiring daily effort to produce high-quality content that meets brand expectations.
New influencers may feel underpaid, often receiving products instead of cash initially, but have the potential to earn more and set terms as they gain success and a larger following.
Social commerce is not viewed as a competitor to e-commerce but rather as a complementary force that generates interest and directs consumers to make purchases through e-commerce platforms.
The effectiveness of social media sites

Social Commerce: A New Hightech Area Gaining Importance

Social commerce a branch of e-commerce

We have all survived the Covid 19 period through e-commerce sites. Amazon is a worldwide site that everyone knows of.

We also know that there is no dearth of products or sites from where we can order our products. You name it and the choice is all yours. Within a week your ordered products reach you. You can also return the product which is not of your choice.

We are all satisfied with the products of these sites.

Then, what is this new concept of social commerce?

Social commerce starts with social media. It is an interaction between people on social media sites and through these sites to make people aware of new products in the market.

It is a technique of accumulating a long list of followers by attracting them through different ways like pictures, videos, and reels. once the list of followers increases the business can start.

This business works in two ways.

(a)To influence people to buy a product of your own creation.

(b) To influence people to buy products manufactured or marketed by others.

A person who wants to be an influencer for themself can open one’s own page and showcase one’s own products through pictures or videos.

An influencer who wishes to influence people to buy other people’s products has to make contacts with owners of businesses. she/he has to make it clear that she would like to be part of a team for advertising through pictures and videos on ‘story’ and ‘feed’, on social networking sites. She also has to write a story about the product. The owner has to approve it before it goes on media.

Social commerce in other words is a way of advertising e-commerce products. It is personalized through smaller platforms which lend a personal touch between the advertiser and the consumer.

Social commerce is a single chain of command. It is a message conveyed by a person to the people known on his/her contacts on the platform.

The use of social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Linkedin have become the new platforms globally to promote it.

To begin with social commerce you must have a mobile phone with an internet facility.

Picture of my friend Saniya who is an influencer on Instagram with permission

When I started looking at Instagram posts I found that most of these young people were influencing something or the other. There are fewer social interactions and more posts oriented towards selling. My friend Saniya has become a very successful influencer with 20,000 followers.

My student Vaishali’s picture: She has become a coach for personality development with her permission.

This is a post from Linkedin where they are influencers for some self-improvement courses and for jobs. Vaishali is now a successful coach by using these sites.

What are the takeaways of social commerce?

1.Low-cost advertisement: There are a large number of new products in the market today especially from small business entrepreneurs. They cannot afford to advertise through newspapers or television or boards.

Others who are unable to sell these products themselves as they are busy in production. For a small amount of expenditure to pay for the picture or video, they get penetration in the market.

2. Opening of a new profession: A person who does not actually sell the product but influences people to buy.

This is the person who sells an idea or a concept or awareness to the followers through a new profession called an influencer.

3.Job opportunity for people: An influencer’s work is a job since it involves the preparation of pictures, stories, and videos and knowledge of the product you want to sell to consumers. You have to aim to get new customers towards the product.

4.Time consuming work: It is not easy to become an influencer. There is a daily requirement of pictures and videos and it takes a long time to make them perfect. If your brand does not like it you have to make a new post.

5. Underpaid: The influencers, when they are working for themselves are rewarded when their product or course begins to sell but not for the pictures. When they are influencers for other people's products they get between $10–$15 U.S. when they are newbies.

They also have to settle for receiving products instead of cash for their work. When they become successful then they can charge much more and make some terms and conditions with the owners for whom they act as influencers. It takes a long time to get established.

To conclude: Social commerce is not an alternative to e-commerce. They are both professions that channelize sales and promote growth.

The e-commerce sites sell directly but social commerce sites identify and promote products that people have the interest to buy. In other words, they create awareness and interest in a product. They can then be purchased through e-commerce sites by people.

Instagram, Facebook, and Linkedin are the social media sites that create interest worldwide amongst the community which meets faster than any other platform every day. There are millions of people visiting these sites and creating awareness of products through the hard work of a few people in the profession.

Social media sites are a new high tech area with the expertise to bring together people from different communities in the world.

Social commerce, social media, and e-commerce are different ways of reaching the consumer. It is a measure to circulate money and finances quickly by motivating people to purchase products.