1. Creating Ecommerce Value with
Onsite Social Commerce
by Alvin Tan (CEO and Co-Founder of Fezzl Pte Ltd)
July 2010

2. Introduction
It is trite wisdom that the ecommerce is becoming
increasingly social. While social media platforms have been
extensively used by brands to concretize their brand
presence and provide a listening channel, another category
of high-potential social technologies is far more under-
utilized: social commerce technologies.
Social commerce is narrower than any mere application of
social media to drive ecommerce. According to Bill Zujewski,
VP of Product Marketing at ATG, “[s]ocial commerce is
about customers having the means to interact with one
another in order to make better buying decisions.”
At its heart, social commerce is a movement – a new way of
consuming that revolves around inter-consumer interactions
that drive consumerism. For online retailers, this may mean
that marketing messages no longer play as crucial a role as
they used to, now that consumers frequently seek shopping
advice, recommendations, and other purchase-planning
information from other like-minded, impartial consumers.
This represents a tectonic shift of power from retailers to
consumers.
However, social commerce can be leveraged to multiply
sales organically simply by creating a social environment
where consumers shop. This paradigm is in contrast to the
prevailing approach of commercializing social platforms. To
reach out to consumers in their native social space and sell
to them directly assumes that said consumers have some
degree of intention to shop; this assumption is unlikely to be
true in most cases. Furthermore, focusing on social media
storefronts has the effect of decentralizing online brand
presence, resulting in brands having less control over the
range of shopping experiences that can be created.
A more opportunistic application of social media is to
engage consumers who are already on the retailer’s website
and provide them with authentic social proof about your
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3. brand or products to reinforce and validate their purchase
intent. “Social proof” in this context refers to advice or
reassurance from those whom we already trust most: friends
and family members. This is a potentially big but largely-
overlooked opportunity to significantly increase sales,
engage customers, and build brand loyalty.
Socializing Storefronts: Maximizing
Sales Opportunities with Onsite Social
Commerce Technologies
The predominant methods of socializing the storefront today
include social media sharing buttons, the Facebook Like
button, the “email a friend” feature, and product reviews
sections. While seemingly adequate, these ubiquitous
tactics only skim the surface of what is possible with today’s
technologies. To truly profit from the explosive growth of
social media, a new way of thinking is required: ecommerce
can no longer be brand-centric or product-centric, especially
with the shift in consumer expectations and cultures. It
needs to be people-centric.
Beyond perfunctory share buttons or social media sharing
widgets, social media holds immense potential in that
retailers can now mobilize its entire customer base,
particularly its fiercest advocates, and transform them into a
voluntary sales force to unlock new, sustainable sales
opportunities. The most effective onsite social tools not only
enable satisfied customers to broadcast noteworthy brands,
products, and online stores as well as their product
experiences to their social networks but also leverage on all
their onsite activities, such as purchases, wish lists, reviews,
comments, and likes, to influence the mindset other onsite
customers. Such a new approach represents a more holistic,
complete social media optimization strategy and plays a
major supporting role in your funnel optimization strategy.
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4. The Business Case for Social
Commerce Technologies
With a confluence of new cultures and new secondary
technologies, ideas that used to be pipedreams are now
possible. Two major technologies are of interest: Facebook’s
Open Graph API and mobile internet. With the former,
developers can now gain access to the social graph of
consumers, presenting remarkable opportunities for instant
personalization and socially-driven functionalities. The latter
brings to consumers true portability – the ability to connect
with their social graph anytime, anywhere.
Let us imagine the following hypothetical scenario:
 Karen is a fashion enthusiast who shops for clothes
online at least once a week. She arrives at an
unfamiliar store and finds a new top.
 She is unsure about adding it to her cart, since she
needs trusted information and reference points as to
whether it suits her style, whether it is comfortable,
and whether the retailer can be trusted.
 Looking around, she finds a new feature that allows
her to see her online Facebook friends, post the
item to her friend’s wall, and get advice in real time.
She can interact with her friends without dropping
off to her social network to find for information.
 Meanwhile, Karen’s friends see the item and follow
the link, since they trust her reference. Some of
them like what they see and eventually buy the top.
 With her friends’ approval, Karen adds the item to
her cart. She then remembers that she will need a
dress for her upcoming prom night.
 Problem: Karen knows nothing about prom dresses.
Aimlessly, she heads over to the prom dresses
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5. category page and discovers another new feature
that shows all the prom dresses bought by her
friends. She is now curious and positively intrigued.
 Some of her friends had also posted particular
dresses to their friends’ walls, so Karen browses
through these product conversations and pick the
dress that most resonates with her.
 Karen is delighted. Upon checking out, yet another
feature recommends a pair of gloves that her friend
bought to go along with her prom dress. She adds it
into her cart, since she is already in a buying mood.
The hypothetical scenario above is not beyond today’s
technological capabilities. An onsite social commerce utility
that fortuitously facilitates the shopping process at various
stages of the sales funnel, as opposed to generic share
buttons, highlights the most important factor influencing the
psyche of customers: contextual relevance, especially
during the moment of purchase. The table below illustrates
the differences in principle between the two approaches:
ACTIVE SHARING PASSIVE SHARING
Share buttons
Product conversations
Examples “Email a friend”
Purchase sharing
Social widgets
Incidental to own
Effort Required Onerous
shopping experience
Spam-like, Helpful, informative,
Perceived Value
salesman-like empowering
Minimal, since Candid context
Actionability purchase intent is provides insight and
low or absent drives impulse buying
Impact on
Generally low Persuasive, reassuring
Decision-Making
Clearly, a less abrupt and more seamless way of sharing is
possible and much more preferred. Socializing the storefront
in this way also presents a host of strategic benefits that can
be easily quantifiable using actionable metrics, thus allowing
for ROI measurement:
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6. Funnel Social Strategic Metrics to
Bottleneck Commerce Benefit Track
Solution
Store is Create affinity Build trust and Bounce
unfamiliar or from the outset credibility in rate, home
unheard of; by displaying the eyes of page-to-
reputation friends who first-time product
concerns have checked customers page
STORE-LEVEL (DISCOVERY)
abound in, liked, or conversion
purchased rate
something
Low average Recommend Social cross- Average
order size complementary selling results items per
items socially in higher transaction,
conversion average
rate by order value
leveraging on
items a trusted
friend had
purchased
Customers Curate products Streamline Category
overwhelmed by showing funnel by page-to-
CATEGORY-LEVEL (SELECTION)
or rendered most providing product
indecisive by prominently socially-guided page
unsorted products with navigation, conversion
product greatest interest reduce rate
choices among social browsing
circle friction
Product Socialize Friend activity Page views
category does category pages increases per
not naturally probability of customer,
interest exploration average
customer and purchase time on site
Specific Show friends’ Reduce cart Drop-off
products lack interaction with abandonment rate, length
social proof product (likes, by inspiring of sales
PRODUCT-LEVEL (EVALUATION)
purchases) buying cycle
confidence
Customers Allow customers Reduce cart Drop-off
need trusted to ask friends for abandonment rate, length
product advice directly by avoiding a of sales
information to on the website, disjointed cycle
make final as opposed to shopping
decision elsewhere experience
Customer has Socialize Social Visits-to-
no purchase product page validation purchase
intent (viewing inspires conversion
for research) impulse buying rate
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7. Onsite Social Commerce for Multiple
Verticals, Multiple Customer Modalities
and Multiple Customer Intents
A common misconception of onsite social commerce
technologies is that they only pander to the needs of the
socially-conscious demographic and thus only work in
specific verticals. Consider, however, the universal value
and influence of our social network. Specifically, shopping
advice from a knowledgeable, trustworthy friend is always
welcome across all verticals – from consumer electronics
and automotive parts to luxury furniture and artwork. It is
difficult and indeed foolish to discount the merits of the
shopping advice and purchase behavior of people whom we
personally know and/or respect. Consider the justifications
for onsite social commerce technologies across verticals:
Vertical-Specific Prime Concerns of Role of Friends
Idiosyncrasies Customers
High-ticket, high- Quality, durability, Informed friend offers
consideration items suitability or fitness tips, experiences, and
for particular recommendations as
E.g. Electronics, purposes a knowledgeable
software, furniture, enthusiast
sports equipment
Low-priced, fast- Novelty, uniqueness, Friends’ browsing,
moving items range of choice liking, and buying
behavior provide
E.g. Foodstuff, anchor ideas that
toiletries, decors drive impulse buying
Socially-conscious Peer opinion, Approval of like-
purchases aesthetics minded friends leads
to buying confidence
E.g. Clothes, and gives assurance
accessories, shoes, due to validation of
jewelry personal choice
Leisure/personal Satisfying sensory Vivid emotional
purchases experience, experiences shared
entertainment value by friends create
E.g. Books, games, deep desire to
CDs/DVDs, events, replicate experience;
cinema tickets, increase buyer
holidays discernment
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8. Even within specific verticals, onsite social commerce
technologies serve the shopping needs of a wide range of
customer modalities throughout different stages of buying.
The following analysis is based upon the model popularized
by the Eisenberg brothers:
LOGIC EMOTION
Competitive Spontaneous
“I want to get the best product or “I don’t really know much about
the latest edition/model as early this product, but the color is
FAST
as possible.” really lovely. I really want it!”
Friends’ purchase patterns Friends’ wish-lists, egg-on lists
create urgency to “catch up” and and purchase list aid in
parade own purchases. insightful product discovery.
Methodical Humanistic
“I will find out as much as “I want to talk to someone and
possible about this product and discuss about shopping.”
make a full evaluation before
SLOW
purchasing it.” Friends’ assurances and
parallel opinions result in higher
Discussion with friends having in-store satisfaction and thus
strong product knowledge forms increased shopping tendencies.
an indispensable component in
the research process.
How Onsite Social Commerce
Technologies May Support Your
Inbound Marketing Strategies
Consistent with the shift in power from retailers to
consumers, user-generated content is increasingly sought
after by consumers, and consumers are gradually more
adept at cutting through the noise of traditional marketing to
reach the trusted signal of word-of-mouth marketing.
Apart from the obvious cue to ramp up inbound marketing
efforts, this shift in consumer behavior presents two valuable
opportunities to online retailers:
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9.  Making the storefront relevant to a larger
audience that has a wider range of motivations
will increase traffic. With inbound marketing
becoming an increasingly popular methodology,
brands and retailers are slowly moving away from
the advertising model and gravitating towards the
publishing model. Content is king, and consumers
are getting tired of being marketed to. In context,
having fresh, consumer-generated content about
their own friends’ shopping activities and
experiences not only provides highly-fortuitous
information for purchase planning to serious buyers
but also appeals to the visitors who visit by mistake,
for inspiration, or to satisfy innate voyeuristic
tendencies.
 High-quality content will help online retailers
present a unique value proposition, differentiate,
and build a long-term competitive advantage.
Ecommerce is a competitive space, and consumers
are awash in choices and alternatives. Retailers that
offer fresh, intriguing information about people within
their social graph are likely to generate instant
familiarity and increase engagement. The more time
consumers spend on your website, the more likely
they are to become buyers and, more crucially,
brand loyalists.
How Friends-Driven Social Commerce
Technologies Compare with Ratings
and Reviews
Most retailers are familiar with and know the value of onsite
ratings and reviews, thus it is tempting to think that a
perfunctory deployment of a ratings and reviews section
forms an effective, complete onsite social commerce
strategy. The analogy between the two is clear, since ratings
and reviews are indeed a superset of onsite social graph-
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10. driven technologies. The key difference lies in the underlying
level of affinity: while the former strives to provide peer
opinion via affinity factors (e.g. purchase history, occupation,
gender, age, geographical location), the latter leverages on
pre-existing bridges of trust to help customers acquire
purchase planning information, i.e. “people like you” versus
“people you like”.
Consider, however, the glaring inadequacies surrounding
the mature technology of ratings and reviews:
 Ratings and reviews are old technologies that
are incapable of meeting new consumer
expectations. Between crowdsourcing and
friendsourcing advice, the former presently confers
greater breadth and diversity in views whereas the
latter confers greater dependability. However, it is
not unthinkable that crowdsourcing would be
relegated to second best in light of the rapid growth
of social graph-driven applications and
functionalities.
 Ratings and reviews are increasingly perceived
as unreliable. In 2010 Social Shopping Study
conducted by PowerReviews and the e-tailing
group, it is revealed that a staggering 39% of
consumers doubt that reviews are written by real
customers. Moreover, products are almost always
highly rated, nullifying any actionable differentia that
can lead to sounder purchase decision-making. With
friendsourced advice, the identity of the author is
known and additional corroboration can be pursued
to further buttress buying confidence.
The following quote by Jennifer Saranow Schultz (Wall
Street Journal, Shop Talk: Retailers Explore Links to Social-
Networking Sites) may also be helpful:
“Retailers routinely post customers’ product reviews
online, hoping that favorable comments will boost
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11. sales. But there’s a more powerful influence on
shoppers that [online] retailers have yet to harness:
the advice of friends.
Many retail sites have email-a-friend features … but
that approach has one big drawback: Shoppers are
unlikely to get immediate feedback while they’re still
at a retailer’s site, so their decisions may be
delayed, putting sales at risk…
The biggest [social] networking sites have
developed tools that make it possible for a member
shopping on a retailer’s site to get immediate
feedback in the form of any reviews friends have left
there, as well as a history of friends’ purchases on
the site.”
Feasibility Concerns and the Future of
Onsite Social Commerce Technologies
Perhaps the greatest concerns surrounding onsite social
commerce technologies are that of its infancy and the lack of
control over the type of content posted. For instance,
deploying a Facebook “Like” button and having no likes after
many weeks does not sound appealing, nor does
inadvertently displaying a flurry of negative comments from
the people your customers trust most. There often exists a
fear of negative consequences arising from deploying new
technologies, and rightfully so. However, note the following
propositions:
1. The best onsite social commerce technologies
leverage heavily on existing social networks to
rapidly kick-start social activity on retailers’
websites. The ghost-town effect that is dreaded by
online retailers is unlikely to materialize given the
correct exploitation of social capital. For example, a
host of different high-frequency, low-commitment
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12. interactions on the website can be tracked and
displayed to create some degree of familiarity, the
interaction of lowest-commitment being check-ins
into certain product pages.
2. Negative comments bolster credibility and quell
suspicions with regard to reputation. The 2010
Social Shopping Study (mentioned above) revealed
that 38% of consumers find the lack of negative
reviews degrades their trust in reviews. The clearest
advantage that friends’ advice has over anonymous
product reviews is that the latter is premeditated,
possibly even driven by some questionable motive,
while the former is casual, solicited, targeted, and
trusted.
3. Quality content, positive or otherwise, is
essential if a brand wants to maintain or grow
market share. Part of the reason that Amazon is so
successful is that it has registered itself in the minds
of consumers as the content hub and headquarters
for consumer research. Joshua Porter, author of
Designing for the Social Web, calls this
phenomenon the Amazon Effect.
My opinion is that elaborate social features on ecommerce
websites will be the norm rather than the exception in the
future, such that any online retailer that refuses to connect
visitors to their social graphs in useful ways will be deemed
severely deficient or untrustworthy. The more advantageous
paradigm to adopt may be to learn to manage and respond
earnestly to genuine grouses, instead of prohibiting or
artificially curating social interactions.
Conclusion
While onsite social commerce technologies are unlikely to
influence the minds of price-focused bargain hunters,
conscientious consumers who are looking for a unique,
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13. differentiated, or best-fit product are likely to find shopping
influences from within their social graphs very helpful and
reassuring. The core value of onsite social commerce
technologies is thus to remove the bulk of the cognitive
costs associated with online shopping and make online
shopping more guided, convenient, and enjoyable.
Ultimately, the purpose of this white paper is not to present
any specific actionable plan on how to effectively socialize
the storefront and what technologies to adopt. My aim is to
pique your interest in onsite social commerce technologies
and how they can be leveraged to significantly increase
sales. I hope that this white paper has provided a valuable
perspective with regard to the subject matter, and I look
forward to discussing the matter further with you. My email
address is alvin@fezzl.com. ■
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14. About Zuupy
Zuupy is the flagship product of Fezzl Pte Ltd, a privately-owned Singaporean company. Zuupy is a
simple onsite tool that allows online shoppers to interact with their friends via Facebook on retailers’
websites while shopping to obtain shopping advice and recommendations. Zuupy also allows visitors
to view what their friends have bought as well as various other product interactions such as
comments and likes to drive social merchandising.
Creating Ecommerce Value with Onsite Social Commerce
By Fezzl Pte Ltd
Contact us:
(65) 9038 0368
info@zuupy.com
Fezzl Pte Ltd
8 Prince George’s Park
Singapore 118407
© 2010 Fezzl Pte Ltd