The world's first social shopping service, Soldsie, announced today that they are expanding their social selling presence by integrating with Magento, an e-commerce platform owned by
Magento is a fantastic e-commerce platform that is uniquely suited to the needs of big brands and enterprises. At Soldsie, we are developing similar tools specifically designed to enhance and customize the social shopping experience. Together, we’re excited today to extend social shopping functionality to brands and enterprises for the first time,” said Chris Bennett, CEO of Soldsie.
With today's announcement being a major step for Soldsie to gain more visibility among merchants worldwide - including the 240,000 plus that use Magento - Soldsie is no stranger to retailers enjoying their social selling platform. Since their launch in 2012, Soldsie has seen steady growth of both interest and user success. Among their growth highlights include:
- Over 1,500 stores using Soldsie
- $25M in transactions since May 2012 launch
- $4M raised in a Series A round of financing
While the numbers are impressive, even more so are the results that retailers like Jenny DeMaria of Jenny Boston Boutique are experiencing.
Our fan count has grown by 2000% and sales have increased to over $10K a week since we started using Soldsie,” DeMaria explains.
With increases like that, it's no surprise social selling is becoming increasing popular for merchants of all sizes to incorporate into their selling strategies.
Social shopping is the future of e-commerce. Amazon showed us that in early May. Brands needs to be everywhere their fans and followers are, and they need to be properly equipped to create amazing social shopping experiences. Soldsie is paving the way for brands to easily activate their social communities by enabling social commerce with the turn of a key," Bennett explains.
Social Selling 101
So just what is social selling, you may be wondering? Essentially, social selling is when a brand or retailer posts a product photo along with it's price on a social media platform and offers an easy and quick option for consumers to make an immediate purchase. For Soldsie specifically, the Soldsie social shopping experience begins when a brand or retailer posts a product photo along with its price and the available quantity on Facebook or Instagram. Shoppers then comment with the word "sold" and can continue browsing their news feed uninterrupted. When shoppers are ready to check out, their desired item will be in their shopping cart ready for purchase. Meanwhile, the brand’s post continues to build momentum while reaching a broader audience and increasing the potential for new sales.
One online retailer that has enjoyed the benefits of this selling strategy is Smocked Auctions, a modern online retailer of designer baby and children’s clothing. Since late last year, Smocked Auctions has driven over $1.5 million in net new sales through comment selling using Soldsie. Additionally, Smocked Auctions participated in an early pilot of the new Magento extension, which generated more success for their store operations and overall selling goals.
Additionally, benefits of social selling include:
1. Retailers can more easily identify who their customers are and engage customers in conversations with each other
2. Customers and retailers alike can create a more personalized experience vs. buying in a traditional eCommerce platform
3. Time is saved while shopping enjoyment is gained - a win-win for any retailer and customer combination
The Future of Social Selling
According to Bennett, Soldsie's co-founder and CEO, social selling is the future of e-commerce.
In more than one way, social selling is the future of eCommerce. It will have a profound impact on sales strategies, community relations, and the personality a brand exhibits online. Additionally, social selling also allows retailers the ability to monetize a channel that already requires an investment of both time and money. By selling socially, retailers have an opportunity to sell to customers directly, while they are willingly engaging a brand, which could reduce dependency on advertising. If properly executed, social selling transforms social channels from a cost center into a profit center," Bennett explains.
With studies repeatedly telling us that today's consumers want immediate gratification, it's no surprise that social selling is becoming increasing popular.
As we look to the future, commerce is accelerating, getting more on-demand, and customers are lusting for near-instant gratification experiences. Social shopping is simply a better experience that's more enjoyable, putting customers in a position to reduce their clicks yet lift their engagement results. Social proof creates urgency and promotes discovery," Bennett further states.
With Soldsie experiencing a 70% completion rate compared to 30% for traditional shopping cart experiences, you can confidently assume social selling is here to stay.
