It’s Time For Small Businesses To Prepare For “Social Commerce”

The big social networks are taking a giant leap forward into the online retail world dominated by Amazon and eBay. No longer content to simply provide links to retail Web sites, Google, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter will soon be selling products directly on their sites, a trend called “social commerce.” The phenomenon, rolling out over the next 12 to 18 months, will make it even more critical that small businesses engage potential customers by marketing via social media. To make it happen they will need to take several preliminary steps: identify the networks customers use, determine which networks are used by the most profitable customers, know each network’s technical requirements, and register with each network. It is critically important to be able to show that shipping and customer service are efficient and top-notch.