Everything seemed to move online when COVID-19 struck the world: work, school, businesses, events, and shopping.
Naturally, as people stayed home during lockdowns, social media consumption rose as a way to stay connected.
In 2020, Instagram exceeded 1 billion active monthly users, and now, TikTok just announced they hit 1 billion active monthly users as well.
It’s interesting to note that TikTok took only five years to reach the 1 billion user mark, which is faster than many of its competitors.
Social media platforms are battling each other for users’ attention. To do so effectively and remain on top, social apps are having to respond quickly to new consumer habits and trends. One significant way is with new and seamless ecommerce capabilities.
Instagram launched a ‘10 Days of Live Shopping’ event. During this online event, celebrities and Instagram influencer agencies and their influencers of all genres advertised products and services on live streams.
Users joined these events by using the new “Live” destination in the Shop tab, a dedicated place on Instagram’s platform for ecommerce streams.
Since the live shopping industry is set to grow to $25 billion in the U.S. in the next two years, it’s no surprise that platforms have updated features to ensure a seamless ecommerce experience.
Discover more about live commerce from our podcast, Decoding Influence, or check out our newest trend report, Live Shopping: The Next Frontier of Influencer Marketing.
TikTok
In 2020, TikTok for Business was launched with the goal to house brands and marketers and boost their success on the trending platform.
This effort continues as TikTok just hosted their first-ever global summit for businesses: TikTok World. At this event on September 28, 2021, industry leaders worldwide spoke about products and tools designed to help grow your business on TikTok.
Over 71% of users believe the biggest trends start on TikTok. People are not only talking about trends but taking action. #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt now has 5.4 billion views, stressing the importance of discovery and purchase on this platform.
During TikTok World, they gave viewers a glimpse into what’s coming in 2022. To no surprise, a lot of emphases was on ecommerce. TikTok is currently testing even more shopping features. They announced partnerships with Shopify, Square, Ecwid, and PrestaShop. They expect Wix, SHOPLINE, OpenCart, and Base will be available soon.
TikTok announced they’re launching a Shopping API later this year, which will allow businesses to integrate their product catalogs directly into the platform and include products into organic content.
One feature that was introduced was product links on live videos. Product links would pop up on-screen and drive viewers to product pages.
More platform ecommerce features are on the horizon and as a leading global influencer agency, we’ll keep you informed of the latest changes as they happen.
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