Global eCommerce sales via social media platforms are growing year on year. The total value of the social commerce market is estimated to be 992 billion US dollars in 2022 (Statista), and all indications are that it will become even larger in the future. By the end of 2026, this figure is expected to reach approximately 2.9 trillion dollars.Â
Â
If you operate in the eCommerce industry, it’s important to keep up to date with what’s happening in the social commerce market. In this article, we combined the most relevant updates from the social commerce space with the latest 2022 eCommerce advertising data from over 15 thousand online stores, delivered via the Feed Marketing Report 2022.
Â
Read on if you want to know all about the state of Social Commerce before stepping into 2023.
Global social commerce sales value
Global social commerce sales in 2022 through all available platforms were estimated at US $992 billion. And the popularity of shopping through various social media is increasing every year. Forecasts from Statista show that the value of sales through social commerce channels will reach US $2.9 trillion by 2026.
Â
These numbers clearly show retailers it is worth investing in product advertising on social media. Platforms like Facebook, Pinterest or Instagram are becoming an important venue for online commerce.
1. Top channels for eCommerce in 2022 revealed
Choosing the right channels to promote your business online is crucial if you want to succeed. Therefore, you should be aware of which online platforms are most commonly used and allow you to reach many new potential customers.Â
Â
When it comes to social commerce platforms, Facebook is the undisputed winner. In the top ten we can also see Pinterest in 6th position.
From the review of the global top 10 channels, we can conclude that advertising on all these advertising channels is in demand:Â
Â
- Shopping
- Search
- Social media
- Marketplaces
- Display & Affiliate
Â
By implementing a multi-channel strategy, online retailers can meet the growth demands of the eCommerce industry, which is a highly competitive environment. Thanks to this sales approach, they can build multiple revenue streams and significantly increase their online presence.
Â
Custom Channels in 2nd position are worth noting. Their high popularity indicates that online retailers are seeking additional growth opportunities beyond standard advertising channels. They are looking for a chance on channels such as niche channels or feed-driven product recommendation engines.
The choice of channel often depends on the advertised product category
Google Shopping and Facebook are the two most popular sales channels regardless of the category of products advertised. However, the use of the other channels depends on the type of products sold by online retailers.
Â
For the Apparel & Accessories category, the most important channels besides Google Shopping and Facebook are Pinterest and Criteo.
Social Commerce platforms are also very important for the Furniture sector. A visually appealing ad on Facebook or Pinterest can definitely attract lots of buyers.
On the other hand, Health & Beauty products are often sold on Amazon and Google Search. Consumers are less likely to engage with these type of products on social media platforms.
The conclusion is simple. Before you decide on a sales channel, you should also take into consideration whether the particular platform is a good fit for the category of products you sell.Â
Local channels are also not to be ignored
When advertising cross-border it’s important to take into account local sales channels. They play an important role in the countries where they are present. And also, the more sales channels you run ads on, the more local customers you can reach.
Â
In Italy, for example, the most popular local sales channel is Trovaprezzi. It accounts for as much as 37.60% of the total usage of researched local platforms.Â
In Denmark the top local channel to promote products on is PriceRunner, followed closely by Partner Ads.
Given that these two platforms are the most popular of all, using them both gives you access to a plethora of potential future customers.
3. Different product set is sent to Search and different to Social
Â
In 55.84% of cases, the product catalogs between Google and Facebook differ in terms of products included.
Â
This is because not all sets of products fit across all sales channels. Advertisers take various factors into account when choosing product sets for each channel type.Â
Â
On Search channels, people are typically looking for very specific products, and on Social Media they are often looking more for inspiration. For example, products with high complexity can be a good match with Google, as users enter very detailed specifications into the search engine. Facebook or Instagram, on the other hand, can be a good platform to promote art or niche products that are hard to find in regular online stores.Â
Â
It’s also worth considering whether to advertise parent products or variants of products on each channel. Very detailed product information such as size, color, etc. is usually very important to Google users, but may be completely irrelevant on platforms such as Facebook. Therefore, it is recommended to advertise only parent products on social media.
4. Many are already expanding their social reachÂ
Â
Multichannel online advertising is not difficult these days. Many countries all over the world already know it and sell their products on multiple channels at the same time.
Â
The leading country in multi-channel sales is Austria. The typical Austrian online retailer advertises on 3.9 channels. The typical advertisers from East Asia promote their products on 3.7 channels. German merchants advertise on 3.6 channels on average. Turkish and Emirati sellers advertise their products on 3.5 platforms.
Expanding your sales to other channels can be simplified by reusing Google Shopping feed on platforms with similar product feed requirements. It doesn’t take much effort to adjust your already existing product data and sell on many popular platforms around the world.
Â
Even if you haven’t advertised your products on social commerce channels until now, as you can see, channels such as Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok and Snapchat are within easy reach.
5. Expanding cross-border may be easier than you thinkÂ
Â
Cross-border eCommerce is diverse in different parts of the world. Based on how many customers have recently made online purchases from abroad, the best markets for cross-border eCommerce can be selected. In Europe, Italy is a good market for cross-border sales, as 79% of customers claim to have made online purchases from abroad. This is followed by Germany (74%) and Spain (63%). Chile, Canada and Mexico are the leading countries for international purchases in North and South America – over 60% of customers in these countries buy from abroad. The other leading countries for cross-border shopping are Australia, Russia and Thailand (over 64%).
Nonnative ads as a way to speed up the expansion process
Â
Using nonnative ads in the countries online retailers want to expand into can be a good start and a quick entry into new markets. It is likely that English product ads will not perform as well as ads in a given country’s primary language, but they will at least be shown to new audiences.
Â
English is the second most common language of listings used in countries where there’s a different primary language. Ads in English represent 13 to 26% of all ads displayed in a given country.
Â
The leading countries in terms of implementation of English product ads are France, Italy, Belgium and all countries from the DACH region. More than 20% of data in these countries is submitted in English.
Â
There are also some disadvantages to running ads in a language other than the native language of the given country. Your ads may have limited visibility and conversion rates may be lower compared to ads for the same products in the local language.
Rock the 2023 social commerce market with our insights!
Â
With these 5 statistics, you can be more confident as you develop your social commerce strategy for 2023. Now you know which the top global channels for eCommerce are, how you should combine the use of different channels (both Social & Search), and how difficult it is to expand your online sales into new channels and new countries.Â
