From Likes to Sales: Social Commerce and its Future Challenges

Social media platforms have millions of active users providing businesses with an enormous audience to reach and engage. The integration of e-commerce is allowing users to discover, browse and purchase products that are personalised to them thanks to the use of data. But, in a world that’s putting more and more sanctions on social media, is social commerce under threat already?  

The Current Landscape  

Shopping through social media has gained popularity with Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest and TikTok offering an in-app buying experience and hosting live shopping events where influencers or brands showcase products in real-time and interact with viewers to offer exclusive deals. Brands are collaborating with influencers to reach their target audiences and leverage their influence to drive sales. Li Jiaqi, the King of Lipstick, used the Chinese platform ‘Taobao’ to live-stream his services, he sold 15,000 lipsticks in just 5 minutes and attracted an audience of 36 million. Lipstick aside, this live stream alone generated more than $145 million in revenue.  

The most famous social commerce platform right now in the West is the ‘TikTok Shop’. TikTok introduced its this through its ‘live’ platform that allows creators to host live-stream shopping events that viewers can engage with in real-time. You can buy almost anything from the TikTok Shop – from cosmetics to confectionery. It’s like the Gen Z version of QVC.  

What’s Next for Social Commerce? 

Social commerce is changing the way we shop forever. With more and more technological advancements, the scope for development seems endless. One of the most exciting changes is the introduction of augmented reality (AR) which allows users to visualise products. Snapchat has so far monopolised this trend the best. Their integrations of AR have allowed their users to ‘try on’ clothes by big-name designers, like Nike. AR is gaining popularity because it can reduce the risk of purchase by keeping you from buying something that isn’t going to fit or you’re not going to like it. It’s also helping customers visualise furniture in their homes. More and more retailers are utilising this technology to enhance their shopping experiences.  

Trouble Ahead Already? 

One of the biggest threats to taking down social commerce sites is the use of unregulated and counterfeit products. Despite bans on social media platforms, they’re still finding their way onto the sites. Counterfeit versions of high-quality brands are among the products being touted by third-party vendors. Among them are skin-whitening lotions containing banned ingredients that put consumers at risk. On TikTok alone, the hashtag #skinwhitening has over 254 million views. The UK and the US have measures in place to regulate counterfeit products, but the growing nature of social commerce and online platforms brings challenges for enforcement. It is difficult to identify and track down sellers of these counterfeit items. The internet is a hard place to regulate, so brands carry the responsibility to educate their customers and track where these products appear. 

TikTok vs the West 

Another concern with social commerce is privacy and the perceived lack thereof. With TikTok leading the way in social commerce, people are becoming concerned about the app gathering too much data on its users. In the US, Montana has become the first US state to pass legislation banning TikTok on personal devices. But I would argue that social commerce platforms provide businesses with valuable data to measure campaign performance, track consumer behaviour and make data-driven decisions. As someone who works in marketing, I know that these only benefit strategies, improve targeting and enhance the overall experience. And TikTok has made it clear that it gathers no more data than any other social media platform.  

Interestingly, out of all the social media platforms, US-owned technology conglomerate, Meta has the most social buyers. However, the growth is slowing with the number of social buyers increasing only 3.5% year over year. Because of TikTok’s success in advertising, the number of marketers moving from Meta has increased. One of the many contributing factors as to why the US’ love for TikTok is turning sour, at least on a political and economic level. 

How Does the Future Look? 

There’s no doubt that social commerce is massively changing how we shop. The seamless integration is expected to drive social commerce growth this year and beyond. But with threats to the future of TikTok in the West, this landscape could be set to change.