‘The marketplace of the future’: Social shopping and the rise of ‘discovery commerce’
From collaborating with key opinion leaders in China to driving “incremental revenue” through live shopping, brands are using social commerce to reach new demographics.
Social commerce may not be new, but it is growing rapidly. According to Retail Economics, 56% of UK social app users make purchases directly through social media, either by clicking a link on shoppable content, or checking out directly within an app, with social commerce projected to reach nearly £16bn in the UK by 2028.
Brand and platforms have been exploring the potential of social commerce in different ways. Take Reckitt, which has built a strong foundation in social commerce through livestreams with vetted key opinion leaders (KOLs) in China. The FMCG giant is now expanding that knowledge into the UK market with the aim of growing sales and using social media to raise brand awareness.
China is three to five years ahead of the UK in terms of social commerce, according to Reckitt senior vice-president and managing director for Greater China, Arjun Purkayastha. Using short-form video app Douyin – the Chinese version of TikTok – KOLs lead livestreams showcasing the brand’s products, which Purkayastha believes makes a difference as it’s “entertainment and shopping rolled into one”.
