Watch Now. Shop Now. From e-commerce to social commerce

Agile, small businesses are shining a path for large brands. Social commerce is shaping up to be a massive opportunity for all.

That’s the message from Greg Paull, Principal of R3 Worldwide and Melinda Petrunoff, Facebook’s Director for small and medium businesses ANZ. At a recent AANA Forum webinar she shared a number of Australian success stories and presented insights from Facebook IQ consumer trends during COVID-19, including:

• Digital Shopping Accelerated: 30% of Australians have discovered new online stores during pandemic and they will continue to shop there post-Covid. Small businesses have moved very quickly to adopt new digital tools such as live video to promote their products. One in two Australians have tried a new shopping behaviour; experimenting with new brands, retailers and shopping methods.

• Modern Loyalty Equation has many factors; firstly, affordability. 34% of Australians are looking for cheaper products from alternative brands. Secondly, availability. 41% tried a new brand as a result of availability. Thirdly, attributes. One in five have shopped at a new retailer store or website in the past three months because it offered good delivery or pick-up options. A fourth factor is altruism. 55% say that companies that act more sustainably because of the pandemic have become more important for them to consider.

• Social Shoppertainment. One in five have used social media to shop in the past week. 48% said they are actively avoiding big shopping centres.

• Big Missions, Micro Actions. 47% of Australians say a brand that gives back to its local community is important in the purchase decision. And a third say they want to hear form brands on the actions they are taking to support the community to address the impact of COVID-19.

• Future-proofing. Pandemic-proofing now part of the playbook for crisis management. Direct customer relationships will be critical. To adapt, brands need to ensure: they are responsible, community driven and supportive during the crisis; adopt digital transformation and be as socially responsible to your own staff as the community.

View Melinda’s presentation from the AANA Forum:

Social Commerce – Rules of the Road

According to Greg Paull, Principal of R3 Worldwide, the pandemic has really accelerated the growth in e-commerce livestreaming and is embraced by larger brands on a grand scale in the US, China and South-East Asia. The concept of livestreaming is probably just 5-6 years old but in China it has seen an explosion with around 560 million users recorded in 2020.

Here are the hot three best practice recommendations for Livestreaming social commerce from Greg Paull @ R3:

1. Give viewers a Show – Don’t just sell. Show people how to use your product through a demonstration or take viewers behind the scenes and show them how your product is made
2. Select the Right KOL (‘Key Opinion Leaders’) Partners as well as an engagement strategy that is aligned with the larger business goals
3. Have a Fully Integrated Approach to Maximize Brand Exposure and a clear picture to navigate the dilemma of driving sales and building a better brand

View Greg’s presentation from the AANA Forum: