Maximizing Your Social Selling Potential
4 key opportunities for 2024
It’s 2024. Trust us, all the cool kids are harnessing the power of social media as an additional sales channel. If you haven’t yet tapped into the remarkable strength of your online community, you're missing out.
In today's era, buyers are constantly online, and it’s our job as marketers to meet them there. Most brands already use social media for brand awareness and community building, but 2024 is your year to take things to the next level by capitalizing on one of these four major social selling trends.
By aligning with influencers whose values resonate with their target audience, brands can tap into existing communities and foster genuine connections that translate into increased sales. In fact, 14% of 18-24-year-olds and 11% of 25-29-year-olds have purchased a product or service within the past six months simply because an influencer recommended or promoted it on social media.
Many influencers have a long-term, devoted audience, which brands must earn access to. If you plan to start or expand your influencer program this year, make sure to operate with long-term success in mind. Put in the time and effort to build a robust and enthusiastic relationship with your best influencers.
Consumers are also 2.4 times more likely to see UGC as more authentic compared to content created by brands. It fosters trust, boosts authenticity and provides necessary social proof to prompt users to make a purchase.
Case in point: Amazon's Inspire feed exemplifies the power of user-generated content in driving sales. It’s essentially an in-app shopping feed personalized with product photos, videos and recommendations tailored to the user’s interests. It also allows users to send products to other people to ask for their opinions. It’s a dynamic shopping experience showcasing product recommendations while fostering a sense of community and social validation.
Consumers can also participate in Burberry’s Mini Program to earn “social currency,” which is like a rewards program based entirely in the social media space. The more they share content, the more rewards they can unlock.
Successfully personalizing content requires a customer relationship management (CRM) tool to store customer behavior, preferences and purchase history. Marketers can then use manual analysis or, even better, data analytics and machine learning algorithms to harness this information for personalization.
In today's era, buyers are constantly online, and it’s our job as marketers to meet them there. Most brands already use social media for brand awareness and community building, but 2024 is your year to take things to the next level by capitalizing on one of these four major social selling trends.
1. Tap into the power of influencers
Consumers seek authenticity and relatability. Influencers serve as trusted figures who wield considerable influence over their followers' preferences. Nearly 70% of consumers say they’re likely to trust a recommendation from an influencer, family member or friend over information that comes directly from a brand. Think about that: More than two-thirds of consumers trust their favorite influencer as much as their own mother when it comes to purchasing decisions.By aligning with influencers whose values resonate with their target audience, brands can tap into existing communities and foster genuine connections that translate into increased sales. In fact, 14% of 18-24-year-olds and 11% of 25-29-year-olds have purchased a product or service within the past six months simply because an influencer recommended or promoted it on social media.
Many influencers have a long-term, devoted audience, which brands must earn access to. If you plan to start or expand your influencer program this year, make sure to operate with long-term success in mind. Put in the time and effort to build a robust and enthusiastic relationship with your best influencers.
Leveraging influencers for sales
- Set goals: Know what you want to accomplish and why. If you want to drive sales, set a realistic number and shape your strategy around this objective. Reevaluate and track progress on these goals regularly.
- Know your audience: This is not optional. Before working with any influencer, you must know your customers’ demographics, buying journeys and purchasing behaviors inside and out.
- Have a campaign in mind: To drive sales, approach influencers with a fleshed-out campaign. This helps you maintain control of the narrative and gives the influencer a better idea of the parameters in which they can create.
- Use the right platforms: Some social media platforms, like TikTok, have native shopping tools and a Creator Marketplace to find influencer talent. For other platforms, you may have to tap into a third-party influencer management platform to find talent, or even conduct your own organic search. Know the platforms your audience uses most often and start your search there.
- Choose influencers carefully: The influencers you partner with should align with your brand, speak to your audience and have a talent for creating impactful content. Research each potential influencer thoroughly and know not every creator is for your brand. If this is your first time dipping your toes in the influencer deep end, start small. Managing influencers is a full-time job and can easily become overwhelming if you dive straight in with too much to handle.
- Listen to your influencers: If the influencer is pitching your product to their own audience, they’re likely invested in it and its success. Consider these partnerships a built-in line to your audience and ask the influencer for any thoughts or feedback they can provide to improve your offerings. Make sure you’re genuinely listening to what they say and taking it into account!
2. Pack a punch with more user-generated content
User-generated content (UGC) is brand-specific content created by an everyday user - not the company. Examples include customer reviews, testimonials (sponsored or organic) and user-submitted photos of the product or service in use.
UGC is an excellent tool for tapping into the psychological principles that impact consumer behavior. When confronted with a decision, people are more likely to do what everyone else does. We trust the opinions of our fellow peers. A little over 70% of consumers say they trust a business more after hearing a recommendation from someone else, even if they don’t personally know them.
UGC is an excellent tool for tapping into the psychological principles that impact consumer behavior. When confronted with a decision, people are more likely to do what everyone else does. We trust the opinions of our fellow peers. A little over 70% of consumers say they trust a business more after hearing a recommendation from someone else, even if they don’t personally know them.
Consumers are also 2.4 times more likely to see UGC as more authentic compared to content created by brands. It fosters trust, boosts authenticity and provides necessary social proof to prompt users to make a purchase.
Case in point: Amazon's Inspire feed exemplifies the power of user-generated content in driving sales. It’s essentially an in-app shopping feed personalized with product photos, videos and recommendations tailored to the user’s interests. It also allows users to send products to other people to ask for their opinions. It’s a dynamic shopping experience showcasing product recommendations while fostering a sense of community and social validation.
Gathering user-generated content for sales
Before you can leverage UGC, you have to harvest it. If your customers aren’t voluntarily providing content, there are a few ways you can prompt its creation.
- Send follow-up emails asking for product reviews after an e-commerce purchase.
- Manage your social media communities so users feel engaged and more likely to share feedback.
- Encourage users to tag your brand accounts and/or to use owned hashtags. Monitor and interact with these mentions regularly.
- Collaborate with influencers and ask them to collect UGC from their followers. Consider holding a contest or giveaway as an incentive.
- Set up in-store displays and activations that invite photos and encourage users to post them online.
Leveraging user-generated content for sales
Once you have the UGC, put it to work! Share it on your social media profile, website and, if you have appropriate permission, in your advertising campaigns. One of our favorite tactics is allowlisting, which involves boosting content from users authorized to post about your brand. These ads are paid for by the brand but displayed as a post from the influencer on a user’s feed.
The conversion rates on allow-listed content often far exceed regular advertising content shared directly from a brand’s account. And in exchange, the boosted accounts usually receive a commission for sales generated by the ad. It’s a win-win for everyone.
The conversion rates on allow-listed content often far exceed regular advertising content shared directly from a brand’s account. And in exchange, the boosted accounts usually receive a commission for sales generated by the ad. It’s a win-win for everyone.
3. Get creative with interactive features
The interactive features trend is broad, which makes it hard to define. Interaction can be as simple as an Instagram Story with a poll or a video hinting at a big announcement, inviting users to guess what it might be in the comments. Both are simple ways to boost engagement and give the audience a chance to interact with your brand.
However, there’s a lot of creative freedom around what exactly makes a shopping experience interactive. Most of the time, smart interactive features will depend on your product or service. For example, in 2020, Burberry opened its first “social retail” store in Shenzhen, China. Each product in the store has a tag with a QR code that unlocks additional content related to that item. QR codes around the store unlock additional menu items guests can order from the store’s café.
However, there’s a lot of creative freedom around what exactly makes a shopping experience interactive. Most of the time, smart interactive features will depend on your product or service. For example, in 2020, Burberry opened its first “social retail” store in Shenzhen, China. Each product in the store has a tag with a QR code that unlocks additional content related to that item. QR codes around the store unlock additional menu items guests can order from the store’s café.
Consumers can also participate in Burberry’s Mini Program to earn “social currency,” which is like a rewards program based entirely in the social media space. The more they share content, the more rewards they can unlock.
Leveraging interactive features for sales
Improving interactivity in 2024 can be as small as experimenting with different types of posts to drive comments or as large as an in-store activation, à la Burberry. Put your teams’ collective brains together to come up with something that reflects your brand appropriately while engaging consumers and encouraging interactions in the online space.
(And if you aren’t sure where to start, we’ve been there. Get in touch, and let’s come up with something cool together!)
(And if you aren’t sure where to start, we’ve been there. Get in touch, and let’s come up with something cool together!)
4. Deliver a personalized experience
Personalization occurs when marketers analyze consumer behavior and deliver dynamic content appropriate to their specific stage in the buyer's journey. Personalizing content prevents the user from receiving an overload of information and encourages conversions.
At this point, personalization isn’t just welcomed—it’s expected. According to Salesforce’s State of the Connected Consumer report, 73% of consumers expect companies to know their individual needs and preferences, and another 56% actually expect personalized offers at all times. Another study by Accenture found 83% of customers are willing to share information if it means receiving more personalized content.
At this point, personalization isn’t just welcomed—it’s expected. According to Salesforce’s State of the Connected Consumer report, 73% of consumers expect companies to know their individual needs and preferences, and another 56% actually expect personalized offers at all times. Another study by Accenture found 83% of customers are willing to share information if it means receiving more personalized content.
Successfully personalizing content requires a customer relationship management (CRM) tool to store customer behavior, preferences and purchase history. Marketers can then use manual analysis or, even better, data analytics and machine learning algorithms to harness this information for personalization.
Leveraging personalization for sales
Here are three of our favorite tactics for delivering personalized experiences that encourage conversions:
- Upload emails of dormant shoppers: Your first-party data is gold. Upload owned sources, like email lists, to social platforms to re-engage users via personalized ads. Tailor the content to reignite interest and encourage dormant shoppers to visit your site and make a purchase.
- Harness platform targeting: Social media platforms offer a wealth of targeting options beyond basic demographics. Businesses can deliver highly relevant ads to users based on their life events utilizing data such as birthdays and relationship statuses. For instance, targeting users who are friends with someone with an upcoming birthday allows for personalized messaging, such as suggesting gift ideas, thereby increasing the likelihood of conversions.
- Segment audiences based on purchase journey: Understanding where users are in their purchasing journey is essential for crafting personalized experiences. Segmenting targeted audiences based on their recent interactions with your brand on social media allows for tailored messaging that aligns with their level of interest and intent to purchase. For instance, users who have visited your Instagram page in the past week may be more receptive to ads with a sense of urgency, while those who visited earlier may require a softer approach.
Capitalizing on social selling trends
For brands looking to boost sales, social media is rife with opportunity—provided your team has the time and effort to dedicate to maintenance. New trends and technologies make it easy for consumers to engage with your brand and move from new users to loyal customers.
Which of these four opportunities will you take advantage of this year?
If you aren’t sure where to start or need a little help getting things off the ground, our social media team is standing by. Reach out, and let’s get creative with your brand’s social selling techniques!
Which of these four opportunities will you take advantage of this year?
If you aren’t sure where to start or need a little help getting things off the ground, our social media team is standing by. Reach out, and let’s get creative with your brand’s social selling techniques!