The Paradigm Shift of Social Media Sites to Social E- Commerce Sites

By Iselowo Kolawole Kehinde

Once had a discussion with a close pal of mine back in 2017 where I made known to him that with the rate at which people now sell on Social Media Platforms, it’s only imperative they had their backend guys optimize their codes to deliver a platform, to help the growing number of users engaging in the activities, of buying and selling online better known as e-commerce, have a more comfortable experience.

He laughed at me that day like he inhaled laughing gas, but I never lost my cool because I knew that he who laughs last, laughs best. Just a while ago, I saw 3 things in the tech news that avouched my initial statements and confidence:

• WhatsApp introduced WhatsApp for Business not long after I saw another article where they said they had introduced Payment Options, i.e. you can send and receive payments via chats; how incredible is that.
• Instagram are testing the Instagram E-Commerce feature where they would incorporate full features of E-Commerce sites into Instagram, and you can pay for items directly on your Instagram applications.
• Facebook introducing Facebook crypto, paving way for the full evolution of a Social E-Commerce site.

Another shockwave that hit me at my epicenter was when I surfed through my Facebook Business Page; I was surprised when I saw create your online shop, whoa! I exclaimed on my bed, Facebook now has a fully integrated e-commerce platform. Yes, you can list all your products with their associated charges and receive payment!

For the social media sites, the Paradigm Shift would truly happen when they finally ramp-up to full e-commerce features and integrate all on their websites. I am talking about features like a well laid out logistics and delivery plan and B2B marketing. Imagine ordering and paying for a product on your favorite Social Networking Sites, and in some few days’ time, you see your package carefully packaged with WhatsApp delivery or Facebook Delivery inscribed on the delivery product package.

It’s really incredible because it affects the everyday man and cuts across all facets of life, because an average Nigerian spends a key part of his time on Social Media Platforms. If this evolution occurs, I guess we would have a swell time playing Alice in Wonderland.

In future, Facebook would incorporate a Netflix kind of streaming subscription based platform where you pay to watch your favorite movies and series on Facebook. No point hammering on this but when it happens just know I was the first to state it here, please reference me back.