Social media influencers and creatives have learned to monetize their fame and new changes are increasing revenues across the board.
As an attorney for social media influencers, I’ve had a bird’s eye view of the rise of social commerce and the methods, integrations, and contracts that make it profitable for my clients. Influencers that use brands not only to monetize but create an even deeper connection with their followers are reaping the benefits. Some important players in the e-commerce space have taken notice. New SaaS and print-on-demand services are integrating with social media giving even more opportunities for monetization.
Within the last year social media e-commerce has increased even more. We are seeing three changes that are worth taking notice of.
- Creator commerce is influencing the rise of social media selling.
Last year worldwide e-commerce sales grew by 27.6% while brick and mortar retail suffered. Social commerce rose as well with a large portion of the market share in apparel and accessories.
Print-on-demand services have taken notice and implemented integration with social media platforms allowing influencers to offer immediate merchandise without having to order ahead or worry about shipping. This allows them to deliver content that engages and sells at the same time. - Influencers have quickly pivoted to using social commerce for monetizing apparel and accessories.
Influencers develop connections with their followers that create a sense of trust and expertise. Research points to consumers being more likely to buy from people they know and trust. Successful influencers collaborate with other influencers and share tips and tricks for growing their follower base and connecting authentically with fans.
Merchandise creates a deeper connection with influencers and their followers and we expect the following current trends to increase and evolve.
• Personalized merchandise that appeals to everybody. Personalization means that today your followers can wear a brand, a name, or a cause and create merchandise colors and fits that suit them. Influencers are leveraging this trend in fun ways and as on demand merchandise offers more choices, this will only grow.
• Instantly merchandise popular posts, images, and memes. With POD, as soon as influencers see something trending with their followers, they can create, upload, and have it available. Moment merchandise is impulse buying on steroids. It can be created and uploaded in the morning and on its way to your followers that afternoon.
• Politics. Campaign merchandise for candidates with strong social media followings are showing large growth. Social media campaign merchandise not only puts much needed funds into the candidate’s coffers, but it can also create a sense of connection with followers. - Print On Demand has integrated with social media channels to provide a seamless buying experience.
Print on Demand is growing rapidly and is agile to the markets it serves. A recent addition to features is the connection between video and merchandise. Video plus commerce means that the buying experience will be even more smooth. Platforms are staying ahead of the game by knowing what influencers and their followers value and creating purchase options that follow those trends.
As influencers and celebrities continue to create their own brands and merchandise their content, protections need to be in place to protect rights and intellectual property. If you are creating a brand, reach out to our office today to ensure that your creative is protected. Read more on LinkedIn.
