Twitter ecommerce: how to embrace the next social shopping frontier?

People no longer just want to buy Google stuff. They find answers through social media trendsetters, conversations in DMs, and suggestions from their network. The shopping tide is turning in social commerce, which is predicted to grow three times faster than traditional commerce between now and 2025.

But where does Twitter fit into the social commerce landscape, and who is buying into Twitter?

To answer that, we reviewed Twitter’s latest ecommerce features and looked at the brands who master them. We also explain how you can take advantage of these features to sell on Twitter and best practices to get started.

This guide will cover:

• Twitter Ecommerce Features You Need to Know
• Examples of Twitter purchases in action
• 4 Tips for Getting Started with Twitter Ecommerce

Twitter Ecommerce Features You Need to Know

Twitter has introduced four ecommerce features: Shops, Spotlight, Live Shopping And drop the product.

1. Twitter Shops

Merchants can use Twitter Shop to display up to 50 products from their online store. A Twitter shop can be accessed via the “View Shop” button on your profile. This free, mobile-first feature aims to convert brand enthusiasts into buyers on the platform.

However, the payment option for these stores is not hosted on Twitter. The checkout link will take customers to your website or app, where they will fill in their details to complete their purchase.

2. Shop Spotlight

shop spotlight You have a carousel on your profile with five products in your Twitter shop. Buyers can swipe through the carousel and tap on products to learn more.

Shop Spotlight is part of Twitter’s larger effort around business profiles, expanding dedicated space for businesses and creators with e-commerce features that drive engagement and revenue.

3. Live Shopping

host a live shopping Broadcast followers to buy together—such as an infomercial. Engagement and purchase options are displayed at the bottom of the video stream, including:

• A “Shop” banner and tab on the program’s page containing all of the broadcast products.
• The “Latest” tab is where new products appear when they’re on the live stream.
• A live tweet discussion about the product(s) taking place at the bottom of the live stream.

4. Product Drops

Product Drops are for Twitter shopping as trailers are for movies. Show potential customers a glimpse of the products before they are officially launched and increase the anticipation. You can also track which user profiles engage with Drop to inform future advertising and marketing initiatives. Early brands to test this feature include Dior, The Home Depot, and Union Los Angeles.

Product Drop Tweets appear on the user’s feed as regular Tweets. Users can also set a product reminder, notifying them when it goes on sale.

This Twitter Shopping feature is currently limited to iOS in the US.

Now that we’ve covered Twitter’s ecommerce features, let’s look at ways you can use it to expand your brand presence and generate revenue on the platform.

Examples of Twitter purchases in action

Whatever your product or service, direct-to-consumer brands can benefit from integrating their creative content streams—video, live stream or carousel—with Twitter’s ecommerce features. Whether you are an established brand or just starting out, the platform’s ecommerce features make it easy to get started.

Let’s take a look at the fast selling brands on Twitter:

Trixie Cosmetics

Founded by drag start Trix Mattel, Trix Cosmetics sells premium cosmetics in vibrant, whimsical packaging.

Trixie’s Twitter strategy differs through the use of scavenger hunts, quizzes, and behind-the-scenes content to increase engagement with their products feature. To get its audience to actually buy, Trixie uses shop spotlights to launch new collections and promote around them via tweets.

By leveraging Twitter’s full plethora of features, Trixie is able to build a seamless brand and shopping experience, brand credibility and authenticity while promoting products. View your current Twitter strategy and identify ways to expand on it with the Twitter ecommerce tool.

Use Live Shopping to host tutorials with influencers or share behind-the-scenes content like Trix’s warehouse tours and customer spotlights.

Twitter Spotlights can double as pop-up sales, which ignite excitement by introducing limited-edition products, seasonal specials or impressive collaborations and a special reason to buy now.

Arden Cove

Arden Cove is a brand selling theft-resistant travel bags and accessories – empowering women to travel without the fear of being pick-pocketed.

Their consistent posting schedule paired with active customer engagement allowed them to seamlessly integrate Twitter Shops. With exclusive discounts available through their Twitter Shop, customers can enjoy a unique experience while shopping in-app. Plus, their live streams enhance exclusive products and give customers a chance to interact with the brand directly.

Arden Cove Creates compelling content that engages their audience throughout their shopping journey, from inspiration and aspiration to conversion. focus Converting Your Aspirational Twitter Content to Direct Sales, Arouse interest with a live stream of your products or Q&A with experts, then fuel the excitement Product drops of coveted items. Previews, reminders and limited time offers will encourage conversions.

all i do is cook

The brand sells ready-to-eat African food products using Twitter to inspire its audience with recipes that include their ingredients. All I Do Is Cook takes it a step further by selling its recipe ingredients directly to customers through the Twitter Shopping features.

Their structured Twitter shop is divided into categories—like Snacks, Sides, and Stews and Soups—to help shoppers navigate products effectively.

Their strategy has a guided approach that drives customers to products based on their interests, minimizing friction on the way to conversion. Turning your Twitter shop into a shopping guide, not a store.

Organize your products to make everything easy to find, then layer in other Twitter features so your customers can quickly find the latest products.

Now that we’ve seen how brands are creatively strategizing for Twitter e-commerce, the next question is: How do you get started?

4 Tips for Getting Started with Twitter Ecommerce

Before you start your first sale, here are a few things to keep in mind when building your Twitter e-commerce strategy:

1. Start Small

Don’t feel the need to include all these features at once. Identify which ones matter most to your audience and brand. Consider who follows you on the platform and what they would be most interested in buying from. Then start with offering products that align with those interests.

If you have more than 50 products to sell, Twitter Shops can rapidly double as “bestseller” or “last few pieces” lists for popular items that sell out.

The Twitter spotlight is well suited for featuring signature products that are integral to your brand identity, like a Louis Vuitton tote or MAC Cosmetics’ Ruby Woo lipstick.

2. Collaborate with Influential People

Twitter has its own band of influencers who are trusted by their communities. Find influencers who resonate your values ​​and collaborate with them to host live shopping events or co-tweet product drops to expose your brand to a larger audience.

3. Integrate Ads

Twitter’s algorithm places ads where it matters most in the feed—between actual conversations about products. This is why product drops can integrate naturally with Twitter’s conversational ads. Remember to build your ad and product drop content in the same brand style for a cohesive experience.

4. Align With Trends

Twitter is one of the centers of conversation around the latest news and trends, and users aren’t afraid to share their opinions about brands and products on the platform either. Listening to these conversations can uncover relevant content and promotional opportunities for your target customers and products. Leverage Twitter listening data to detect relevant trends and weave them into your product drop content, live streams and more.

Twitter Embrace Ecommerce

Twitter ecommerce is not limited to brands that are already popular on the platform. These features can help brands of all sizes start selling directly on the platform. Find your niche and nurture your community with the content and products they want and need.

To learn more about expanding your e-commerce strategy to Twitter and beyond, read our 2022 Social Shopping Data report.

The post Twitter Ecommerce: How to Embrace the Next Social Shopping Frontier first appeared on Sprout Social.