A new study conducted by Hubspot underlines the growing importance of social media as a preferred retail channel for Singaporean consumers in the coming years.
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Nine in 10 social media marketers who were surveyed predicted that consumers in the city-state would increasingly opt to purchase products directly from brands through social media platforms, surpassing third-party websites (92 percent) and even brand websites (90 percent) by 2024.
This shifting trend is expected to prompt local brands to adopt social commerce strategies, according to 93 percent of the survey’s respondents.
Instagram the top social media platform, followed by Facebook and YouTube
When it comes to social commerce platforms, Instagram’s social shopping features proved to offer the highest return on investment (ROI) for over 7 in 10 (73 percent) marketers already engaged in social commerce.
Facebook and YouTube follow closely behind, with 71 percent of marketers acknowledging their effectiveness.
Social media can offer major boost to product discovery
The study highlights the significance of social search in marketing strategies, with 92 percent of respondents anticipating that consumers would turn to brands’ social media pages rather than conventional search engines such as Google.
“Eighty-five percent of Singapore’s population is estimated to be social media users, making it home to some of Southeast Asia’s most avid users,” says Kat Warboys, APAC marketing director at Hubspot.
“They also have a propensity to use these platforms for brand discovery and research, making social media a key retail channel that marketers cannot ignore. B2B brands in particular need to adapt their approach to match the B2C experience that customers today have come to expect.”
Building active communities, relevant content formats key to effective brand engagement
Building active online communities emerged as a vital component for success. Engagement could lead to increased user-generated content, as well as strengthen brand awareness and customer retention.
In terms of content formats, short-form videos (44 percent), live videos or streaming (41 percent), and user-generated content (31 percent) were identified as the most commonly utilised, with short-form video content offering the highest ROI.
Marketers also expressed interest in producing more authentic and relatable content (62 percent), as well as educational and informational content (60 percent).
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“Authenticity plays a vital role in social commerce, influencing purchase decisions and perceptions of a product,” adds Warboys.
“Brands should embrace a shift towards less-edited content and explore collaborations with creators which tend to be perceived as more genuine and relatable by viewers. This creates an opportunity for brands to deepen connections with customers by boosting trust and credibility, especially on platforms such as TikTok built around fast growing formats such as short-form video.”