THESE days retailers understand that successful sales must co-exist with social media marketing. It is just a fact whether we like it or not. Social media will become a $100 billion market within the next year, up almost 30% from this year. This presents marketers with a huge opportunity if they play it correctly.

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THE biggest question is how to capitalize in this quickly changing market. Social media is no longer just for connecting to one another socially. It has become a real experience for users and one that is also driving merchandise sales. TikTok, while complained about constantly, has over 1 billion users and marketing companies have taken notice.

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SOCIAL media sites still have a distance to go as most people are not going on their sites to make purchases. When an influencer on a site promotes a product and it is done with sincerity (although doubtful), sales can increase as much as 50% or more. While purchases are not expected on these sites we are seeing that Meta and TikTok are aiming their sights at changing that dynamic. The way they are improving the experience is by providing seamless transitions from the posting to the purchasing. These social commerce sites are also able to disseminate statistics on buyers much better and more accurately than any other platforms.

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TIK-TOK aims to reach $10 million in sales a day by the end of this year. Yes, I wrote a DAY! This is an incredible goal and from the growth they are having daily it appears to actually be achievable.

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THIS year you will see many social media platforms gearing up more towards retail sales and connections. Your company will need to be part of this revolution in order to reach the younger buyers (if that is your market). This will be accomplished by providing specific experiences to the users and then integrating your products.