6 Ways to Promote Your E-commerce Products on Social Without Being Salesy

The average person spends almost two hours on social every day.

This comes out to five years and four months on social apps over the course of a lifetime.

While this number may sound astounding, we all know how great social can be for connecting and engaging with friends, family, and brands we love.

We can get the news, family updates, and current events we need to feel connected all in one place.

But what’s one thing we’re not looking for on social media?

A sales pitch.

Promoting on social is like walking a tightrope.

When your messaging is on, your social posts can pick up wind, sending your products flying off their digital shelves.

But when you get your messaging wrong…

Coming across too salesy on social can leave your followers racing for the “unfriend” button.

To help you find the perfect balance, here are six ways you can use to promote your e-commerce products without being too salesy.

1. Connect with bloggers and influencers

Friends and family have always been one of the most trusted sources for product recommendations.

According to Collective Bias, 70% of millennials are influenced by their peers’ recommendations when making a purchase.

However, with social, that pool of trustworthy “peers” grows exponentially.

Customers now have more than just their friends and family to get recommendations from. They can turn to bloggers, influencers, celebrities, and the trend-makers themselves.

So why not work with those influencers to become a part of the trends they create?

By establishing partnerships with influencers and bloggers, you can increase product sales and grow a more loyal customer base.

Influencer marketing is a driving force when it comes to social promotion because of how seamlessly posts can blend into a user’s timeline.

In fact, Tomoson places influencer marketing as the most effective strategy for acquiring new customers quickly.

Establishing relationships with influencers, bloggers, and trusted celebrities gives you the opportunity to promote your products effectively without sounding like a sleazy salesperson.

After all, the post isn’t coming directly from your brand.

Instead, influencers share their own insights about your products – building awareness and trust.

While some brand posts are organic, the fastest and easiest way to get your products on an influencer’s feed is through sponsored content.

Although the post may be paid, you want it to seem as natural as possible.

Let’s not forget Scott Disick’s major ad mistake.

Work with influencers who are excited to show off your brand – and willing to put in the effort to create a caption that helps your content stand out.

Also, make sure they’re appropriately tagging each post.

According to some new boundaries established by the FTC, each post needs to be properly tagged as sponsored.

The easiest way to do this is with a simple #ad or #paid, like we see in this example of a sponsored post from Naked Juice.

Unfortunately, this kind of hashtag (literally) screams advertisement.

These posts can come across a bit spammy, potentially pushing away followers for both your brand and the influencer you’re working with.

Although you need to make it clear that the content being shared is sponsored, you are free to get creative with how you do so.

Try labeling your sponsorships as partnerships. According to this tweet from the FTC, a “partner” hashtag is a unique – and ethical – way to let followers know you’ve paid for the post.

Yes, hashtag XXPartner should be good enough when XX is brand name. #Influencers101 https://t.co/L8OL4zbk8s

— FTC (@FTC) September 20, 2017

A campaign-specific hashtag like this one can also collect your sponsored images into one place.

When a potential customer clicks your #XXPartner tag, they’ll see what other influencers you’ve been working with.

So what’s the bottom line with influencer marketing?

Don’t try to deceive your fans and followers into thinking a post is organic.

Focus on creating long-lasting relationships with influencers within your industry and be open about sharing products, promotions, and events.

As your connection and trust develop, you’ll see more and more returns out of your influencer relationship – meaning stronger sales from their posts.

2. Run a contest or promotion

Remember when Instagram users lost their minds over a red bathing suit?

In May 2017, Sunny Co Clothing announced a promotion on their Instagram feed. Anyone who shared the image and tagged the company within the next 24 hours would receive a free suit.

The promo took off.

In just a few hours, Sunny Co Clothing had to post yet another message stating they would reserve the right to cap the promotion if necessary.

A day later, they released another post announcing they would fulfill the first 50,000 orders.

Just 25 hours after the start of the campaign, Sunny Co Clothing’s Instagram following had jumped from just 7,000 users to 784,000.

The response to the red bathing suit giveaway was overwhelming, but not that surprising. A free item is always a great way to create a buzz.

Here’s another contest promotion from Tom’s.

Tom’s annual #withoutshoes tradition challenges participants all around the world to spend the day barefoot.

For each image uploaded using the hashtag, Tom’s donates one pair of shoes to children in need.

While participants aren’t the ones to walk away with a new pair of shoes, the promotion builds awareness about the brand, as well as the causes the company supports.

To see real results from a promotion, stay true to your brand.

Focus on quality of participants – not just quantity.

And remember, proper planning is key when it comes to running a successful promotion.

Lay out your rules clearly and easily.

Here were the rules for Sunny Co Clothing’s red bathing suit giveaway.

State when you’ll pick your winner, when the entry pool will close, and when winners can expect their rewards.

Establishing your expectations early on can reduce confusion and keep both you and participants happy.

Create a promotion plan for your contest. Let participants know it’s coming and have a strategy for getting the word out.

Most importantly, have a plan for what you’ll do next.

Think beyond just the contest. Develop a plan for getting new leads and customers into a proper marketing funnel once the promotion period ends.

Don’t let your new leads escape without first adding them to an email list or getting them to engage with your social profiles.

3. Start producing product videos

There are over 500 million hours of video watched on YouTube every day.

This means over 57,000 years worth of video content is absorbed across the world each and every day.

And according to Social Media Today, video is only going to become more and more popular.

It shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that we’re becoming more and more attracted to visual content.

Video is becoming easier than ever to create and share.

You no longer need bulky or expensive equipment to create a video worth showing off.

In fact, social makes it more acceptable than ever to post a video you filmed on your smartphone.

Video allows you to engage with your audience in a new way.

You can show off reviews, give tutorials, or give customers a close-up look at your products. You get the opportunity to share your voice, humanize your brand, and strengthen relationships with customers.

The addition of live video on Facebook or Instagram, as well as Snapchat and Instagram Stories, allows you to appear as just another friend to your target audience.

Glossier does a great job at using video to blend into their follower’s feeds.

Within their Instagram Story, Glossier goes beyond simply showing off the products they offer.

Instead, they work with influencers, employees, and everyday people to feature real-life applications of their makeup and skincare line.

Videos like these place your viewer in the product user’s shoes.

Shoppers can get inspiration, tips, or just see your products from a new perspective. Watching your products in action can help them make more educated purchasing decisions.

If you choose to use Instagram Stories for promotion, be sure to link to your products within your post.

This neat feature can encourage your customer to buy right then and there – decreasing the chances they’ll forget to come back later.

Another way to use video comes from Dollar Shave Club.

If we didn’t watch all of our shows on Netflix, this would be just a typical commercial.

It gives the major benefits of Dollar Shave Club, but it also helps shows some personality.

Is all this information probably located on their website? Yes.

Is this a more interesting way to absorb that information? Absolutely.

A new, exciting spin on the company’s most important information can make potential customers stop scrolling.

The video will get shares, a few likes, and maybe even some laughs.

But most importantly, customers will remember it more than a typical text list of benefits posted to Facebook.

According to the Social Media Today study, video can be a powerful influence on shoppers.

With four times more buyers preferring video over text, there’s no excuse not to have some strong video content.

Think of your product videos as a way of letting customers behind the curtain. Show them who you are, what you do, and invite them to get to know exactly who runs your brand.

Focus on providing value. If there isn’t clear, distinct, and honest information about your products, it’s time for a second take.

Finally, have a promotion plan. Don’t assume customers will watch your videos just because they’re there!

Know when to post, what to post, and where to post it.

4. Share user-generated content

Who are the best magnets for new customers?

Current customers.

User-generated content is designed to create a community. By using the brand as a middleman to connect other shoppers, user-generated campaigns connect buyers from all over the world.

With 92% of consumers trusting user-generated content more than traditional advertising, it can be one of the best ways to promote e-commerce products on social.

User-generated content, like the multi-channel #AerieReal, encourages actual users to share their own posts using the products they’ve purchased.

Similar to Glossier’s Instagram Story, the #AerieReal campaign allows customers to see what Aerie’s products look like on real people in everyday situations.

But Aerie also takes their user-generated content a bit further.

Aerie started their #AerieReal campaign as a way to fight the overwhelming amount of photoshop and image manipulation in the fashion industry.

They use their user-generated

source https://blog.kissmetrics.com/promote-ecommerce-products-without-being-salesy/