Getting Started with Shoppable Media

Shoppable media is helping marketers to remove obstacles for customers, block out distractions, and gain more customer information. By offering a direct opportunity to purchase products quickly and efficiently, it is no surprise that over 40% of marketers are utilising this new tool. Our latest blog post helps you to understand the basics of shoppable media and why you should include it in your sales strategy. 

What is shoppable media?

Shoppable media is a piece of marketing content with a direct opportunity to purchase products. The functionality eliminates the time customers spend searching for a product after seeing an item in a bit of content. The option to instantly add products to a shopping cart, or be directed to a dedicated product page, allows customers to act on their urge to purchase immediately. 

For marketers, this new way of shopping shortens sales funnels. Thus, reducing the chance of customers becoming distracted by competitors’ products when searching for items they have just seen in a piece of content. In addition, marketers gain more access to data, benefiting both the seller and the customer experience.

The opportunity for growth.

A new study by Accenture forecasted that by 2025, the $492 billion global social commerce industry is predicted to grow three times as fast as traditional e-commerce. These staggering predictions mean by 2025, the industry could be valued at an eye-watering $1.2 trillion.

While the opportunity to capitalise on this growth is vast for large corporations, it should not defer independent, small, and medium-sized businesses as they can also utilise this positive boom. In a recent poll of social consumers, 59% of respondents stated they were more inclined to support small and medium-sized businesses. For example, by using social media regularly to make purchases rather than e-commerce websites.    

The poll also demonstrated the importance of customer loyalty and repeat business, as 63% of respondents indicated that they are more inclined to make a second purchase from the same supplier. These findings suggest a power shift from large corporations to small businesses, making it an exciting time for growth amongst start-ups and independent brands.

Accenture’s research also predicted that apparel would account for 18% of all social commerce worldwide in 2025, followed by consumer electronics (13%) and home furnishings (7%), providing substantial business opportunities in these sectors worldwide.

Getting started with shoppable media.

To get started with creating a shoppable version of your digital marketing content, we suggest focusing on two particular areas: storytelling and the user journey. 

1. Relevancy and Storytelling

The requirement to create engaging content for your customers will come as no surprise to small businesses. However, with shoppable media, without interesting content, it is doubtful that you will get the conversions you are hoping for. Therefore, it is imperative to spend time and money on producing content that your audience will enjoy and engage with. 

Undertaking research and asking for feedback will give you a clearer understanding of what your audience is looking for. Then, after gathering data, take the time to focus and adjust your concepts to produce content in line with your analysis.  

2. Optimise the user journey.

The main objective of shoppable media is to reduce the number of steps between seeing a product and purchasing it. However, if you are also looking to build your repeat customer base, you need to keep revisiting your website to ensure it is efficient and enhances the user journey. 

You can do this by examining your content site with fresh eyes. For example, are the checkout procedure and product pages on your website as efficient as they can be? Do all the buttons and links work as they should etc.? Spending time on user journey optimisation will help you in the long run by lowering abandonment rates and encouraging repeat purchases.

Final thoughts

The key to creating successful shoppable media is understanding your audience. By prioritising creativity and producing more immersive experiences for your customers, you are more likely to see direct purchases from your content. If you are interested in how the BDO Eaton Square eCommerce team can help you create Shoppable Media, click here.