Social media has been a long-​time friend of businesses. It provides an easy and fun way for customers to get in touch with companies and invaluable feedback for the world to see. Now it’s an even more well-​rounded asset with the progression of social commerce: using social networks to complete e‑commerce sales. 450 million Facebook users are active on buy-​and-​sell pages, according to the company, and that’s only one example of the social commerce trend.

According to 16Best.net’s article, “Social Networks and their importance in Ecommerce Gateways,” big social media names including Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Tumblr, Instagram and Pinterest participate in social commerce.

I know what you’re thinking and the answer is no, it’s not just millennials and the younger generations who are using social commerce. Here are the social commerce demographics:

• U.S. Citizens: 58%
• Male to Female: 61% to 39%
• Ages 35 to 44: 37%
• Ages 25 to 34: 23.1%
• Ages 45 to 54: 21.9%
• Ages 55 to 64: 9.4%
• Ages 21 to 24: 4.5%
• Ages 65 and Older: 3.3%

What’s the average order value through social commerce?

• Instagram: $65
• Facebook: $55
• Pinterest: $50
• Twitter: $46.29
• LinkedIn: $44.2
• Google+: $40
• YouTube: $37.63

Why is social commerce so effective? 16Best​.net says that 87% of customers are already using social media to help make shopping decisions and 90% of followers use social media as a means of communicating with companies. If the customer is already on a site looking for advice on a purchase, it only makes sense to be able to let them buy from that site as well.

With social commerce being so new and potentially confusing to your clients, now is the opportune time to reach out to them with your social media management services. And if your clients aren't using social commerce yet, pitch it as a way to improve their e‑commerce strategies. Chances are their customers are active on their social media pages already. Why not double the page’s usefulness and turn it into an additional way for the client to make money?

Your clients are already on most of the major social sites, but if they’re not selling through these sites, they could be missing an opportunity. Did you know that researchers have tracked which types of products sell best on each site? If your clients are selling jewelry, photography or apparel, they need to make sure their Facebook pages are up to date all day, every day. Marketers selling antiques or books should know that Pinterest plays a big role in boosting social commerce in those categories. Successful social commerce in the home and garden and gift categories is linked to seller activity on Twitter. When it comes to conversion rates, let your clients know Facebook rules at 1.85%. YouTube’s conversion rate is measured at 1.16% and Instagram comes in at 1.08%.