Is Instagram Replacing Traditional Sites For Female Shoppers

Did you know that 72 percent of consumers’ purchase decisions are influenced by what they see on Instagram?

With 800 million active users, Instagram is indeed becoming the most important social platform for luxury brands to engage with their consumers. Research group L2 found that there was a 53% growth in 2017 alone for the luxury fashion sector on Instagram.

Social commerce is on the rise and the mobile app is now a serious sales channel for brands. A recent report by Luxe Digital shows indeed that Instagram is the new place to target affluent women shoppers.

With the backdrop of Facebook announcing earlier this year new changes to its News Feed algorithm to favour friends’ content, brands are less likely to appear on their followers feed. These changes have helped other social media platforms, Instagram in particular, to emerge as the new home for brands seeking engagement online.

Instagram’s ad revenues are estimated to reach $11 billion by 2019. It is thus time for luxury businesses to adopt the platform if they want to be noticed by their younger consumer base.

Instagram’s influence at each stage of the consumer journey

The social media helps brands engage with their audience at three important stages of their consumer journey:

• Discovery: Instagram acts as the new window shopping experience. Consumer browse for inspiration.

• Conversion: The platform can now drive actual sales. Luxury e-commerce continues to grow and Instagram now has options for brands to sell directly on the social media.

• Nurturing: Instagram helps brands maintain an ongoing relationship with their consumers. 49 percent say that they are more closely connected with the brand that they follow.