Social shopping is changing the realm of e-commerce and the way consumers shop online. However, many businesses today have millions of followers on social media who are not taking advantage of them, while some are earning significant revenue streams through social platforms. By quickly adapting to new features and platforms and staying relevant to your audience, your brand is likely to be among the successful ones to take advantage of social commerce.

In this article, we will explain why fashion brands need a social commerce strategy today and what are the opportunities for them to increase sales on the popular platform.

How does social networking affect purchasing behavior?

 Social media has a huge impact on the way consumers shop online. Popular platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest are constantly looking for features and tools that make their content shoppable.

As of today, this is what Instagram users mainly use for:

1. Post/share photos or videos

2.    Find fun/entertaining content

3.  Follow/Find information about products/brands. 

In addition, recent studies have shown that 43% of Internet users use social networks to search for products online. This number goes up a lot when it comes to Millennials and Generation Z, with 88% saying they learn about the products they want to buy from social media.

Social networks are where the public searches for brands and products before making a purchase, so their presence on these platforms has a huge impact on the choice of brands and products. This also applies to influencers and friends who influence your choices. Consumers want peer-to-peer communication because they trust people more than brands. So authenticity, relationship building, and a strong community are the keys to getting people to choose your brand over the rest.

Talk to your customers about where they are and expand your social media strategy by working with influencers. By collaborating with influencers who advocate for the same causes, you will also have a greater chance of winning over the Millennial and Gen Z audience and gaining their trust by creating dialogue and building relationships.

How does social commerce help change consumer behavior?

Social commerce supports these changing behaviors because it encourages people to connect with a business through two-way communication. This is also where the interest lies. The social aspect along with the business aspect makes shopping interactive and fun and is about building relationships and guiding consumers from inspiration to checkout.

Entertainment is also a hot topic when it comes to the buying behaviour of Millennials and Generation Z right now. With fun and entertaining content being one of the main drivers of social media usage and it has grown rapidly over the past year, it is definitely something that can be leveraged as a fashion brand. An example of an entertaining shopping experience is a live broadcast on social media.

Although it is a relatively new phenomenon, more and more brands are starting to adjust their social media and influencer marketing strategies accordingly. The benefit of live video is that it can create a deeper dialogue with viewers. As a brand, you can get an idea of what questions they have, what they have in mind and how you can best meet their needs, both in terms of product lines and from a content and communication perspective.