"New normal", an expression that was born during the State of Emergency and helps to define the moment in which we are all trying to adjust to a new paradigm of which social distancing and the wearing of masks are fundamental pillars. In addition to the repercussions that the pandemic has had and will have on our interpersonal relationships, the trader-customer binomial comes out of compulsory confinement profoundly altered. The reason is simple: if the majority of consumers buy online, retailers have to offer online.
What had been a slow but steadily growing process has, over the last two months, turned into an overwhelming wave that has swept the country and the world from side to side. If in 2019 Portugal recorded a growth in e-commerce turnover of 11.6% (2600 million euros) compared to 2018, between 1 and 13 April this year alone, the number of online transactions increased by 241% compared to the same period last year, according to data recently released by REDUNIQ.
However, it wasn't just companies that already had a digital presence that were responsible for these figures. Many Portuguese, out of necessity or choice, have turned to e-commerce a source of income. With greater or lesser preparation to embrace this new way of selling goods and/or services, the reality is that the digital world and the social networks that live in it are an excellent platform for those who want to enter online commerce without having to own a professional shop/website.
How to sell on social media?
Social networks are already part of our daily lives, whether it's to share content, exchange messages with friends, meet new people or, why not, sell goods and services. Instagram, Facebook or YouTube are excellent platforms for publicising products and giving your brand a truly global reach.
More than a sales channel, social networks are acquisition channels. So if you want to sell well, you can't just publish your products, you have to create content. The ideal is to publish content that your audience can relate to: exercise, healthy recipes, crafts, etc. By doing so, you'll be working on one of the most interesting aspects for your audience: Authority.
Potential customers will come to see you as an expert on the subject in question and will therefore be more likely to buy your products. This is also part of the brand recognition strategy, getting people to talk about your business online.
"Authority", "brand recognition", this may sound complex. Not everyone, as we've already mentioned, is an expert in the art of selling via social media, but with a little help from us and a good dose of creativity and commitment on your side, you'll find that everything is much easier than it seems at first glance.
Get to know your audience
Knowing exactly what you like is key to creating content that brings results.
Create shareable content
When a customer shares one of your posts on their timeline, their friends will see it and (re)learn about your business.
The more shares your publication gets, the more people will have access to your business. So work to ensure that your content reaches many people.
Create videos on YouTube
Create a channel for your business/brand and always publish valuable content about your products/services. Over time, people will tend to recognise your business as an authority on the subject.
What's more, the video format is the perfect showcase for your products. With it, you can show more detail than a photo would, increasing the customer's perception of the product and, consequently, inducing them to make a purchase.
Keep in touch with your audience
Comments on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, direct messages, emails, calls... you should respond to everything. By creating a relationship with customers, they will feel cared for and, as a result, the desire to return and buy will increase.
That's why you should maintain excellent customer service and respond to everyone. You can like, comment, follow back...
Make Lives
Lives (Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, etc.) are great content vehicles and generate engagement. For example, Instagram sends a notification to all your followers when you're doing a live video, even if they're not on your profile.
Hashtags
By using a hashtag (#), you bring your post closer to an audience that is interested in your content. For example, by using #vestido, users who search for that hashtag will be directed to a folder with images that have that keyword.
Use management tools
Managing social media can become a headache. After all, there are so many posts, messages to reply to, reports... on so many different platforms. But it's precisely to solve these kinds of problems that management tools exist. With them, you can schedule all your posts, reply to comments with automatic messages and analyse reports.
Instagram Shopping
With the Instagram Shopping tool, you can tag your products with payment page links in your Feed and Stories. This tool works by using tags to mark products with prices and links that redirect the follower to your Facebook page (or website, if you have one). All you have to do is link your Instagram business account to a Facebook catalogue (Business Manager in Facebook Business), wait for approval and start using it.
Facebook Insights
This tool works in the same way as Google Analytics, except that it focuses on Facebook. With it you can track metrics and understand what type of consumer you are, helping you to improve your content.
Facebook Ads
Facebook Ads gives you the opportunity to segment your audience and make more assertive adverts. This tool works on the basis of micro-targeting which, after gathering the various personal information available on Facebook users' profiles, directs your adverts to the audience most likely to buy something from you.
Use LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the world's largest corporate social network. If you are selling a service, this can be an interesting platform for publicising your work, attracting potential clients and networking. If you see that this network has the potential to grow your business, invest in targeted adverts, which will help you boost sales on the platform.
Partnership with influencers
Contacting and signing partnerships with digital influencers is an excellent way to get your business's name out to a wider audience and increase sales. You'll have to spend some money, but it's one of the best ways to sell on social media.
Stories technique
Zero cost and incredible results. Whether on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube or any other social network, making "Stories" is a good way to keep your most loyal audience informed and create empathy with the new audience. Sales, promotions or a simple inspirational message can have excellent results in increasing your number of followers.
Be persuasive
To sell on social media, it's very important to write a good description of your products. Provide all the technical information; measure the items; adapt the language to your target audience; write clearly and objectively; use SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) techniques and keywords; and use copywriting techniques.
Ways to receive payments online
For beginners in the art of distance selling through digital channels, there are many and varied questions that come to mind. Among them, the most pressing are how to receive payments online and what the online payment solutions the simplest and safest on the market.
There are many and varied ways to receive payments online, but the solution may be closer than you think. If the idea was born simple and you want to keep it simple, know that REDUNIQ has the tools that allow you to receive payments online quickly and conveniently.
Among the many e-commerce payment solutions that REDUNIQ makes available to businesses wishing to take advantage of the potential of digital to increase distance sales and receive online payments, thus mitigating the effects of the pandemic crisis, is the REDUNIQ@Payments.
Aimed at merchants who use social media as their bazaar but need to accept online payments, this solution allows them to accept card payments remotely in a simple, practical and secure way, even if sales are made via social media.
Solution for selling online without a website
This is a highly innovative service in Portugal that allows any business to sell online in a practical way and accept remote sales payments via a simple link. Basically, the business joins the service and has access to a backoffice that allows it to issue payment links to its customers, which are in turn sent by e-mail. The customer receives the e-mail, clicks on the link and enters a secure payment page. The business receives confirmation of payment and can create/make/ship its product to the customer with the confidence that payment has already been made.
The link to pay for orders is sent to your customer's e-mail address, which will be redirected to a secure REDUNIQ page. Here, the customer enters their details and pays for their purchases. Once the data has been validated and authorised by the issuing bank, the transaction is carried out. At the end, as mentioned above, you will be notified of the payment by e-mail. All payments made will be credited to the merchant's account within two working days of the purchase date.
By joining the REDUNIQ @Payments will be able to accept payments with Visa and Mastercard debit and credit cards. The maximum amount of each transaction per card in one day is €5,000, while the maximum amount of all transactions per card in one day is €10,000.
And because we're talking about digital REDUNIQ@Payments recognises the type of browser and automatically adapts to the screen of smartphones and tablets, without the merchant having to make any adjustments to the page. Still in the field of advantages, it's important to note that this solution can also be an alternative to ATM transfers, which delay the sales process and leave the merchant waiting for the money to enter their account, and make it easier to manage purchases when it comes to having to validate bank transfers, some of which are nondescript.
As a REDUNIQ 3D Secure page, the customer can also be sure of the transfer. Not only is it done simply and securely (according to Visa and Mastercard's 3D Secure protocol), but by becoming a REDUNIQ client, the business can be sure that it is complying with all the rules of international systems.
This commitment to security It should also be emphasised that REDUNIQ was the first national acquirer, and so far the only one, to be certified by the PCI-DSS (Payment Card Industry Security Standards Council), an independent body set up by the main international payment systems (Visa, Mastercard, Discover, JCB and American Express), in 2006.
The purpose of PCI-DSS certification is to ensure the confidentiality and integrity of sensitive data associated with the use of cards by their holders, to safeguard merchants from financial and reputational consequences resulting from breaches of confidentiality and to standardise the security requirements to be met by all those involved in the payments area.
The benefits for the merchant with this REDUNIQ solution are obvious: convenience and simplicity; security and comfort; no monthly fee or minimum revenue; responding with quality to consumers' new payment habits without the need for integration or development. The consumer, on the other hand, has the guarantee that the transaction is completely secure and their data is protected since their payment is made on a Unicre page.
