The Future of Shopping: Growth of Social Commerce
                     THE FUTURE 
OF 
SHOPPING: 
GROWTH OF 
SOCIAL 
COMMERCE
WHAT IS SOCIAL 
COMMERCE?
Social commerce is a segment of 
ecommerce in which merchants 
sell products directly through 
social media platforms, allowing 
potential customers to interact 
with brands, browse goods and 
make purchases. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
SOCIAL 
COMMERCE VS. 
ECOMMERCE
Digital ads, social media content 
and other marketing strategies all 
act as top-of-the-funnel tactics to 
direct customers to the online 
store. 
Then, even after reaching the 
store, the customer must go 
through even more steps in the 
purchase journey — each of which 
poses the risk of losing their 
interest and a potential sale.
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
TOP SOCIAL 
COMMERCE 
PLATFORMS
While Instagram and Facebook 
lead the way in social commerce 
functionalities, other social media 
sites such as Pinterest, TikTok and 
even Snapchat are also expanding 
their offerings. 
Since every platform serves a 
unique purpose and attracts a 
niche audience, each one offers 
comparative strengths that shape 
its approach to social commerce. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
INSTAGRAM
With 70% of shoppers looking to 
Instagram for product discovery 
and 1 billion active users, it’s safe 
to say that this is one of the most 
promising social commerce 
platforms on the market. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
FACEBOOK
In 2021, Facebook had nearly 3.45 
billion monthly active users — 
needless to say, the 17-year-old 
platform holds huge potential for 
leveraging new audiences and 
scaling globally. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
TIKTOK
A newer player to the social 
commerce game, TikTok is 
becoming far more than just a 
short-form video-sharing app. 
Now with shoppable posts, 
livestream shopping capabilities 
and opportunities for influencer 
marketing, TikTok is a social 
commerce platform worth noting.
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
PINTEREST
The great thing about Pinterest is 
that most users care far more 
about the content rather than the 
creator. 
Compared to platforms like 
Instagram and Facebook, where 
the influence of the user or brand 
may hold more weight, Pinterest 
allows merchants to focus more 
on putting out great products and 
less on building their personal 
reputation. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
BENEFITS OF SOCIAL COMMERCE
THERE ARE HUGE 
NUMBERS OF 
POTENTIAL 
CUSTOMERS ON 
SOCIAL MEDIA
According to Statista, there were 
over 3.6 billion social media users 
globally in 2020, and this number 
is expected to reach 4.4 billion by 
2025. 
With more of these users starting 
to shop through social media, this 
is a huge opportunity for you to 
get your products in front of new 
faces and grow your audience 
exponentially. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com
ENHANCED SOCIAL 
MEDIA PRESENCE 
AND BRAND 
AWARENESS
Instead of keeping your social 
media and ecommerce site siloed, 
social commerce gives merchants 
the power to merge the two. This 
is a huge branding opportunity, 
allowing you to create brand 
awareness and stay top-of-mind 
to your customers through daily 
content. 
Source: www.bigcommerce.com