By now you know that social media can play a huge role in boosting exposure and sales, but you also probably know that you can’t give equal time to every social media outlet available. So the question becomes — which platform will offer you the greatest conversion rate? You could gain some insight by using a POS sales analysis application that tracks who comes from where, but that takes time. Luckily, the nice people over at Shopify have done some research of their own to give everyone a few rules of thumb.
It should come as no surprise that most sales are driven by Facebook posts and interactions. In general, they account for nearly 85% of orders generated through social media. In fact, in some categories they fully dominate the market. Photography, sports equipment, drop shipping, clothing and health or beauty items all show strong results from Facebook activity.
But that doesn’t mean it’s the answer for every industry. There are some areas in which other social media outlets come out ahead. For antiques and collectibles, for example, Pinterest is the go to source for inspiration and orders generated by social media activity. Meanwhile, digital products manage to attract more orders through YouTube.
In terms of order price, the tables get turned once again. Polyvore isn’t well known outside its niche demographic of fashionistas, but it results in the highest average order value when compared even to big names like Facebook and YouTube. The average Polyvore order rings up at $66.75, with Instagram orders coming in second ($65.00) and Pinterest taking the third spot ($58.95). Facebook comes in fourth with an average order of $55 and YouTube brings up the rear, in 10th place, with an average of $37.63.
Social media management has become just as important a business issue as inventory management. In fact, the two often go hand in hand since it only takes one viral campaign to make inventory levels fluctuate wildly. Understanding which platform is likely to offer the best results will help you plan your strategy more effectively. That means you can worker smarter and create campaigns that cater to your audience — good business sense no matter what your industry.
