How to master social media for retail in the UK

In today’s ever-changing retail landscape, brands are divided into two groups. Those who see social media marketing as a key part of their customer engagement strategy and those who view it as a nice to have.

The importance of social media in UK retail has only grown. The latest data indicates a notable surge in its use. In a 2022 report, it was found that 78% of consumers in the UK have upped their social media usage in the past year. About 65% have made purchases through these platforms. These numbers underline the essential role of social media in today’s consumer habits. And the potential it holds for those retailers who might be hesitant.

Social media is a go-to platform for retail customers.

It’s often the first place a customer will look for information about your business. But it’s also the first place they’ll go to ask questions, get help and offer you feedback. And this is true for every stage of the customer journey.

Social media for retail in the UK: crafting an engaging customer journey

The beauty of social media in retail is its ability to accompany shoppers along the path to purchase. Yet, this presents a challenge—brands must create marketing strategies that are effective across different platforms and resonate with diverse consumer preferences.

To truly harness the potential of social media, retailers should consider adopting the tactics and strategies that leading brands have successfully employed. This guide will show you how to map out an effective customer journey that leverages social media to the hilt.

1. Embrace an omnichannel social presence to support discovery

Larger retailers, don’t rely on one social media platform. While it may seem efficient to concentrate your efforts on one channel, you’re risking potential revenue by not being active where your customers are.

Let’s start with the basics. According to the 2022 Sprout Social Index, the top social media platforms in the UK are Facebook (56%), Instagram (55%) and YouTube (50%). Then there’s TikTok (35%) and Snapchat (31%), two platforms that are increasingly popular amongst UK consumers. British retailers should ensure they have a presence on multiple platforms to reach the most customers.

Here’s how retailers can maximize their presence across these diverse platforms while adhering to each one’s unique best practices and strengths:

• Facebook and Instagram: Focus on visually appealing content and interactive features like shoppable posts to drive direct sales.
• YouTube: Utilize video content to offer comprehensive product reviews and exclusive peeks behind the scenes of your brand, building transparency and trust.
• TikTok: Connect with a diverse and younger audience through distinctive, trend-focused video content that can propel your brand to new heights.
• Snapchat: Use this platform for time-sensitive offers and exclusive behind-the-scenes content to create a sense of urgency and exclusivity.

By strategically leveraging the distinct features of each platform, you can construct a more vibrant and captivating customer journey that’s not just about attracting but retaining buyers. This omnichannel strategy is vital in today’s media landscape, where consumer attention is split across many channels.

2. Enhance marketing campaigns to convert prospects into customers

Social media efforts should be integrated with existing marketing campaigns. This is essential as your social media goals are likely serve the same purpose as your overall marketing goals: to increase brand awareness, engage your community and drive web traffic.

Whenever you’re running a sale, launching a new product or promoting a special offer, you need to let your social media followers know.

Don’t be shy. Promote your products on social media. Research by Deloitte shows that 64% of consumers are influenced by social media posts from brands when making purchasing decisions.

Keep the excitement high by posting discount codes, special offers, and promotions. This sparks those impulse buys. And when you post captivating product photos on Instagram, it’s an invitation, not a hard sell. Creativity is key here—let your products shine in a way that’s engaging and authentic.

Cross-promotion is key. The value of a retailer’s email list is in repeat business. Having a strong social media following will appeal to potential partners and increase your value when approaching them.

A UK brand that has done a great job integrating email marketing with Instagram is Sweaty Betty. The activewear brand is known for delivering customer-centric content that resonates with its audience. Sweaty Betty uses its Instagram account to showcase its latest collections, share fitness tips and tell empowering stories of women embracing an active lifestyle.

Their email marketing is an extension of their social media marketing. It’s consistent, on-brand and, most importantly, engaging. Their emails feature the same type of content they post on Instagram, ranging from workout guides to new product launches and inspirational stories. This ensures that their audience receives the same positive and encouraging message, whether they are checking out the brand on social media or via email.

Sweaty Betty has mastered the art of using Instagram to build a sense of community and email to take that community connection deeper with targeted content and exclusive offers. The result is an ongoing conversation with customers that is both inspirational and squarely within the brand ethos.

3. Gather feedback from your social customers

Navigating the world of social media in the retail sector in 2024 involves much more than just promoting the latest deals and discounts. While it’s true that customers often follow brands to catch a good sale, the real challenge lies in engaging them on a deeper level that transcends mere transactions.

The key to capturing your audience’s attention is to create a strong brand voice and develop a connection. One of the most effective ways to do this is through interactive engagement. Here are a few innovative ways you can connect with your customers:

• Interactive Instagram Stories: Get the most out of Instagram by using polls, quizzes, and question stickers. These fun and interactive features can help to keep your followers engaged and provide you with valuable insights into their preferences and opinions.
• AI-Powered Chatbots: Implement chatbots on your social media accounts and website. This ensures your brand is always open to collecting feedback and that your customers will always have a quick and easy way to get in touch with your company.
• Social Listening Tools: Stay in the know with social listening tools. Monitor online conversations about your brand, products, and industry to discover trends and opportunities for improvement.
• The Power of Community:  Establish branded Facebook Groups or similar forums to foster a community where customers can connect. These environments are ideal for sharing feedback, generating ideas, and engaging in dialogue, all of which strengthen their loyalty to your brand.

Use these spaces to gather feedback on new products, informing your development strategies. Integrate creative questions in posts to diversify content and engage your audience. Retailers like Wilko excel by asking quirky questions that boost participation and cleverly showcase their products.

4. Enhance retention with proactive social customer service

Consider this: online shoppers are looking for convenience and they’re more likely to stick with a brand that delivers great customer service.

Customer care is now a critical component of social media success. The Sprout Social Index 2021™, UK & Ireland report found that being known for placing customers first is the top quality consumers ascribe to the best brands on social media.

For those in retail, connecting with your customer base on social media means more than just listening. It involves responding with empathy, personalization and in a timely manner. These are the foundational pillars of what today’s consumers have come to value, and they can significantly affect overall customer satisfaction.

As we noted in our Twitter customer service guide, 60% of users expect brands to respond within an hour.

Responding quickly to customer inquiries isn’t just about placating the needy—it’s an opportunity to differentiate your brand and show your level of commitment to customer service. In fact, 80% of consumers are more likely to do business with a company if it offers a response to complaints and negative reviews.

Marks & Spencer is a shining example of effective social customer service. Their consistent interaction with customers, addressing comments and questions on social media, not only resolves queries but also bolsters their reputation as a brand that puts customers first.

Marks & Spencer’s social media customer service doesn’t just resolve queries and complaints but also celebrates customers and their positive experiences. Our data shows that this is the primary reason why customers choose to engage with brands on social. When it comes to social proof, these are the moments to be made.

The more you can spotlight satisfied customers, the better. Notably, poor customer service is one of the main reasons consumers unfollow brands on social media.

So don’t let customer service be an afterthought. By monitoring and employing social listening, you can ensure that no mention of your brand goes unnoticed.

5. Harness social listening to drive product and content innovation

The social media landscape is constantly changing, and so too are the buying habits of the people using it. Brands are always looking for new ways to attract and retain customers, and the market is more competitive than ever, making it essential that brands stay on top of what’s happening in their industry.

Enter 2024, and the need for tools like Sprout’s social listening suite has become more pressing than ever. This platform includes a query builder to help you track mentions, hashtags and keywords that are relevant to your industry. By keeping an eye on what your customers are currently engaging with or concerned about, you can stay ahead of the curve.

Sprout’s advanced listening features help retailers track their brand sentiment and mentions, which are essential for maintaining a healthy level of positive engagement and growth over time.

Social media is a treasure trove of business intelligence. Listening is the key. By listening to your customers on social, you can adapt your product offerings and content strategy to better match their needs and desires, helping to maintain relevance and a competitive edge in a crowded retail market.

6. Leverage user-generated content to highlight brand advocates

User-generated content (UGC) is essential for retail brands on social media, as it helps to showcase products authentically and build a vibrant community.

H&M is just one example of a major retailer that capitalizes on UGC to display its products and, in turn, bolsters community engagement and conversion rates. By offering customers the platform to share their experiences, brands like H&M can effectively harness the enthusiasm of their customer base.

Take British brands like Boots UK and ASOS for example. They’ve been known to cleverly utilize UGC by spearheading campaigns around specific hashtags, encouraging customers to share their product-related stories in beauty or style. Not only does this foster a strong sense of community, but it also significantly boosts the product’s visibility by leveraging authentic, customer-generated content.

When embarking on an influencer marketing journey or seeking to promote UGC, creating a singular hashtag is now best practice. This opens up an added avenue for customer engagement, fostering a more vibrant dialogue between you and your audience.

7. Optimize social shopping for an effortless user experience

Transforming social media platforms into effective sales channels requires more than just posting product links. To truly enhance your social media conversion rates, the shopping experience must be streamlined and user-friendly.

Take the example of In the Style. They have mastered the art of social shopping on their Instagram platform. By selecting “View Shop,” users are directed to a well-organized catalog that not only showcases their products but also provides detailed descriptions and essential information. This integration makes it incredibly easy for customers to browse and make purchases directly from their social media feeds.

Ensuring the transition from browsing to purchasing is as smooth as possible is key. By minimizing the steps and simplifying the process, brands can significantly improve the shopping experience, encouraging more users to make purchases directly through social media platforms.

Ideally, you want to keep your customers moving from Point A to Point B rather than bouncing between a bunch of links and redirects. Even if you don’t use a third-party tool for social shopping, making your social landing pages scrollable and mobile-friendly is a must-do.

Additionally, social platforms are constantly rolling out new shopping and advertising features tailored for social media for retail. For example, the roll-out of Instagram Checkout signals how networks are trying to make it easier for brands to encourage purchases.

8. Inspire long-term loyalty with paid social ads

Of course, we can’t talk about social media for retail without discussing paid ads.

With social algorithms seemingly cracking down on purely promotional organic posts, running ads allows retailers to appeal to customers without running the risk of spamming them.

The good news is that retailers can personalize and target their advertising like never before. Brands can run campaigns to prospect for new customers or reach out to returning customers simultaneously.

For example, brands like PrettyLittleThing and Look Fantastic use Facebook and Instagram’s dynamic ads to reach former customers or they’re looking to reactivate. Such ads serve as a cost-effective way to reintroduce your brand to customers and are likewise noted for their high ROI.

9. Don’t forget your physical packaging

If you’re a retailer, you have a distinct opportunity to make a lasting impression on your customers in person.

This can be done by combining your social presence with your physical packaging if possible. From stickers and business cards to quite literally wrapping up your products with your social handles, there are tons of creative ways to couple social media with in-person promotion.

Even something as simple as a branded business card snuck into your shipped orders is a smart move. Retailers can’t be shy about promoting their social presence and in-person creatives are one of the most meaningful ways to do it.

10. Increase your customer lifetime value over time

The endgame of social media for retail is to nurture customers and encourage them to become long-term shoppers.
In other words, you can’t afford to solely focus on acquisition. Growing your follower count is nice, but ask yourself: is your social presence resulting in long-term engagement and purchases?

If someone is willing to follow your brand, they’ve already signaled their interest to make a purchase. This highlights the need to promote offers while also connecting with a diverse content calendar. As noted by the examples above, retailers have a ton of creative options available for regularly engaging their target audiences.

At the same time, consider how you might enhance the value of your social following over time. Step up your efforts during the festive season when consumer spending peaks. Implement influencer marketing and user-generated content campaigns.

Try your hand at social advertising. And don’t forget to keep an eye on engagement through social analytics. By tracking your growth and engagement metrics, you’ll develop a better understanding of what leads to purchases among your followers over time.

How are you using social media for retail?

There’s no denying that retailers have their hands full in terms of their social presence. But as we said, retailers have the most to gain from social media at large.

From uncovering new customers to increasing the value of the ones you already have, the amount of creative business opportunities available to retail brands on social media is seemingly endless. And with the help of tools such as Sprout Social, brands can run and monitor their campaigns by the numbers to win more customers along the way.

There’s never been a better time to go all-in on your social media to drive more traffic, build a solid community and secure more sales.
Interested in more tips for creating a social-first customer experience? Download this checklist for providing exceptional customer service on Instagram today.