Social Commerce V1

The rise of social-commerce has brought about robust changes to how we participate in our economy. The following indicators allow us to better quantify the ways in which how we shop and do business has transformed, and also help us project the additional growth that’s on the horizon.

The first indicators focus on the growth of peer to peer (P2P) platforms. Social commerce technology and the sheer amount of time spent on social platforms has empowered P2P platforms to boom in recent years. The growth of specific platforms give us an idea of the public’s increasing comfort with and use of P2P platforms, while the projected growth of the peer to peer lending market size gives us an idea of how additional applications of the P2P exchanges and the sharing economy are prepared to take off.

The next two indicators focus more broadly on the entire sharing economy, which has evolved from the concept of collaborative consumption. So far, the sharing economy has shown tremendous growth that is expected to continue and bring about further changes in consumption patterns, customer preferences and business models in the near future.

Social media giants have gained immense popularity and play a significant role in facilitating these social commerce transactions. While we know a wide range of people use social media, breaking down platform’s users by gender provides further insight about who is engaging more with which platform and is thus exposed to or participating in various social-commerce related activities.

The next indicator is the rate of adoption of social-commerce related technology. Technologies such as the mobile phone, internet and social media have become widely accessible to and used by the general public at rates comparable to or faster than more basic technologies like running water and electricity access, showing that the changes brought about by social commerce are happening an accelerated rate.

The next indicator is the growth of fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 households in various countries from 2000 to 2018. The rise of personal access to high-speed internet indicates growth of and further potential for more people worldwide to engage in social-commerce transactions.

Lastly, the rise of online dating indicates how increasingly comfortable people are with engaging with others through online platforms, while also eluding to the versatility of applications of relevant social technologies.

Trend

The number of people online, on mobile and on social has increased year-on-year. For companies who are optimizing their digital experiences across multiple channels, such as social media and e-commerce, are establishing a strong competitive advantage. Moreover, companies looking to move into social commerce should look at ways to build trust and create an online experience that demonstrates a clear value in browsing and buying online.

Table of Contents

Revenue Growth of Peer to Peer Platforms

Kiva, Uber and Etsy have shown significant growth in revenue in recent years, while the market size of the peer to peer lending space is set to boom over the next several years.

Growth of the Sharing Economy

The growth volume of the sharing economy is projected to exceed 450 billion dollars by 2023. Similarly, the number of sharing economy users shown steady increases in recent years.

Platform Usage by Gender

Numerous social media platforms have become quite popular in the United States, but Facebook and Youtube have the most monthly active users. While some platforms are popular among both men and women, others appeal more to one gender.

Rates of Adoption by Technology

Technology such as mobile phones, the internet and social media have been widely adopted at rates comparable or faster than other technology main-stays.

Fixed Broadband Subscriptions

From 2000 to 2018 households around the world have gained access to highs-speed, personal internet access and thus, can engage in social commerce related activities.