Last month, Google, Facebook, and Instagram announced substantial improvements to their shopping experiences. These improvements make it easier and more affordable for brands to sell on these platforms. During this same period, Amazon raised its commission fees within the apparel category from 15% to 17%.
These shifts provide an excellent opportunity for brand manufacturers to invest in the growth potential of third-party (3P) marketplaces — and take another look at both social commerce and marketplace strategies. Here's what your brand needs to new about these new social commerce changes.
Paid Media Spend No Longer Dominates Google Shopping
The Google Shopping search results tab will now primarily include free listings, making product content the new determining factor for page rank.
Creating high-quality and relevant product listings is now the best way to boost traffic from this sales channel. This change can help brands like yours gain free exposure to the millions of people every day who start their online shopping journey with Google Shopping.
Image Source: Google Shopping
Easily Create New Google Shopping Listings
Salsify customers can leverage the product content within our platform to power both free listings and the Shopping Actions checkout experience. With Salsify Marketplace Commerce, customers can also manage orders and inventory from the channel in Salsify.
Google is invested in providing a strong partnership with brands using Google Shopping. It recently extended its grace periods to merchants for the upcoming shipping cycle. Google will also remove "shipped on-time, delivered late" defects that occurred between April 2 and May 31. (Details can be found here.)
Facebook Shops: Expanded Features, Now Free for Brands
Facebook Shops allow brands to create a customized digital storefront on Facebook and Instagram. The company has updated its platform so brands can curate these experiences on both social media outlets.
Access to Facebook Shops is being rolled out over the coming months. There is no cost for a brand to participate, and you will be notified by email when given access. (Details can be found here.)
Salsify customers can leverage product content in our platform to populate their Facebook Shop page. This capability eliminates the need for manual updates and reduces the risk of introducing errors or out-of-date brand content.
Image Source: Facebook Shops
Instagram Rolls Out In-App Checkout Feature for Ads
If you've joined the invite-only beta program checkout on Instagram, you can now anticipate reaching a broader audience in the coming months. Checkout on Instagram is no longer limited to the followers who see a brand's organic posts, but can now also be applied to ads.
Salsify customers using our direct connection to checkout on Instagram can manage product content and inventory in the platform to seize this growth opportunity.
As social channels expand their commerce offerings, new product content capabilities and requirements will increase quickly. Salsify will stay on top of these changes and share how it impacts your strategy decisions.
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