Social Commerce 2022 Report

Published: January 2022

    What Is Social Commerce?

    Social commerce is the process of selling and buying products directly on social media. The entire shopping experience, from product discovery, research, to checkout can happen without the consumer having to leave the social media platform.

    Table of contents

    1. What is Social Commerce
    2. US vs China’s Social Commerce Market
    3. Social Commerce Survey (1,000 responders)
    4. Social Commerce Apps and websites
    5. Buy Now Pay Later
    6. Quotes from experts

    About us

    We are a global influencer marketing agency that helps brands engage with Gen Z & Millennials on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

    Some of the experts featured in our report

    Sophie Abrahamsson

    Sophie Abrahamsson

    “What we have seen since launching our live commerce solution in 2019, is that more and more retailers are starting to incorporate live commerce into their e-com strategy going beyond events and proof of concepts, and that is when live commerce reaches its full potential – when all consumer touchpoints become interactive, social and shoppable. Brands and retailers are discovering the potential of a new and more authentic way of interacting with their communities and consumers, where transparency will be key. Brands that are able to meet consumers in this dialogue and offer genuine added values and stay accountable in regards to sustainability and inclusion will be rewarded. I also think we will see the rise of a new generation of influencers, focusing on live commerce – the bravest generation so far, that will truly and continuously interact with their followers in live formats where everything is authentic and interaction with the audience is key to success.”

    Chief Commercial Officer – Bambuser

    Nik Sharma

    Nik Sharma

    “I don’t think social commerce is native right now. There are apps like Flip which are doing a great job in figuring out how to bring this to market, or Tolstoy which lets you plug in social commerce on your site, but it’s just not a native form of commerce yet. Amazon has also been pushing quite hard. It will take a lot of creators, a shift in how we buy things, and a lot of trying and failing to get to a model that works, both in social media and financially. Social Commerce is a big driver for awareness, but it hasn’t solved the problem yet on educating a customer on why they should buy it. The problem with social commerce is that its very one-sided right now — it lets the creator speak about it in their own light, but it doesn’t address the concerns that may stop someone from buying. Right now social commerce is essentially influencer marketing too, which, if not done very authentically, doesn’t work.”

    Chief Executive Officer – Sharma Brands

    Sharon Gee

    Sharon Gee

    “Merchants will have to push harder to meet consumers where they are spending their time, where they start their shopping journeys and where it is easy and convenient to click the buy button. The trick for merchants will be having a strategy that harmonizes managing their products, pricing and fulfillment offerings across all channels a shopper might find them on, requiring product data (and supporting systems) to be coordinated behind the scenes. As retailers have been adding more channels to sell on, they’ve learned that each varies in what information is required and how it is presented.”

    VP of Revenue Growth & General Manager of Omnichannel – BigCommerce