Everyone can learn a lot from e-commerce stores, including how to level up your social media game. Their business quite literally depends on getting attention, so skilled e-commerce pros have a lot of tips and tricks that can help. Whether you’re an influencer or you have a different business online, consider trying these three strategies to grow your engagement.
Eyes on the Prize
Across the internet, services offer free trials so customers can get their digital foot in the door. This tactic is closely related to its analogue counterpart – the free sample/giveaway – where a business gives a product away under special conditions. E-commerce marketers have perfected these into an art form, using them to get audiences excited about winning a prize.
Prizes aren’t new to the internet, however. Some services like iGaming are built on the idea that players can win prizes. For some large providers, they’re even built into the game as can be seen with Betfair Prize Pinball where players on-site also get a daily free spin. In each case, the prize being offered is part of a friendly marketing tactic where the product/service is shown to an online audience beforehand. Then, if they like what they see, they can engage with the business and become a fully-fledged customer.
A Credible, Inviting Page
There are a lot of strange accounts on social media, to say nothing of the bots that pretend to be human. That’s why you should stay away from bad social media etiquette and other impersonal tendencies that could scare people away. Fortunately for you, the e-commerce space has dealt with the same credibility issues over the years.
Think of your profile page as a storefront – does it advertise who you are, what you do, and what they’ll find there? Any blank or vague information, along with a lack of photos and other forms of social proof, will cause potential followers to dismiss you. Likewise, include contact information if it’s a public-facing business account. When making your own digital storefront, Shopify provides design tips that can help you market yourself.
On social media, your customisation options are often limited. A lot of big tech companies prefer that sleek, neutral-coloured Silicon Valley design style that leaves little room for personalisation. However, you still have control over your profile picture, banner pictures, and pinned posts that can show your most important information up-front. If you run a business, a pinned post can show off accomplishments or giveaways.
Focus on the Metrics
While you’ll be exposed to follower sentiment on social media, that’s only half of the story. Serious social media managers should also make decisions backed by trackable metrics, which most sites have nowadays. These provide quantitative signals that tell you if your current strategy is paying off or not.
Likes have been around since the start of Facebook, but social media metrics have become more detailed with time in response to influencer culture and marketers leveraging social media to help their businesses. Forbes tracks 2024’s important metrics, including CTR and conversion rate. Those metrics come from e-commerce and affiliate backgrounds, allowing marketers to see where viewers are clicking and if they become a customers after that all-important click. They are vital if you’re posting links on social media and want to know if they are being ignored or not. If your social media doesn’t necessarily sell anything, then successful conversions track subscribers/followers instead.