Become A Social Media Merchant - Business Ideas

Pat Walls

•

Updated: September 15th, 2022

Become A Social Media Merchant

Please note that the data provided in this article are estimates and may vary depending on various factors, and should not be considered as perfect or definitive.

A social media merchant business is a type of e-commerce business that utilizes social media platforms to sell products or services. This type of business involves building a presence on popular social media sites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and using these platforms to reach and engage with potential customers.

To run a successful social media merchant business, you must clearly understand your target audience and the types of products or services that will appeal to them. You should also have a strong online presence, well-designed social media profiles, and a website showcasing your products and services.

Another important aspect of running a successful social media merchant business is staying up-to-date on the latest trends and best practices in social media marketing. This includes using hashtags and engaging with your followers, as well as using paid advertising to reach a wider audience.

It is also essential to have a solid customer service plan, as social media provides an easy way for customers to reach out with questions or concerns. Responding promptly and professionally to customer inquiries can help to build trust and loyalty, leading to repeat business and positive word-of-mouth referrals.

Finally, it is essential to regularly track and analyze your social media marketing efforts to understand what is working and what may need to be adjusted. This will allow you to continually improve your strategy and ensure that your social media merchant business stays relevant and successful.

Becoming a social media merchant requires a great deal of effort, dedication, and most importantly passion.

If you're interested in how to sell social media marketing services, or selling social media marketing services online, you can use this page as a guide for everything you'll need to know.

Key Stats

market size

$9.2B

starting costs

$13.7K

gross margin

40%

time to build

210 days

Startup Costs

	Min Startup Costs	Max Startup Costs
Office Space Expenses	$0	$7,000
Inventory Expenses	$350	$14,750
Software Expenses	$150	$2,794
Website Costs	$13	$215
Advertising & Marketing Costs	$0	$2,450
Total Startup Costs	$513	$27,209

See all startup costs ➜

Successful Businesses

Business	URL	Rank
Minds	minds.com	11,697
HeySummit	heysummit.com	28,119
Search Social Media Profiles	peoplelooker.com	40,858
Curator	curator.io	85,444
Firebelly – Social Media Marketing Agency	firebellymarketing.com	217,879
FelixMerchant	felixmerchant.com	288,115
Consumer Fusion	consumerfusion.com	557,834
Merchant Financial Group	merchantfinancial.com	688,580
Released Solutions	releasedsolutions.net	819,394
LITT	thelittapp.com	1,086,567
Widefocus: 2019	widefoc.us	1,145,919

See all businesses ➜

Pros & Cons

Pros	Description
Flexibility	You can put as much time into the business as you'd like. If you like the work and have some initial experience, you can start small and manage all aspects of the business on your own.
Ability to start your business from home	It's not necessary to have a physical storefront or office space to get your business started. You can do everything from the comfort of your own home, at least in the beginning!
Little startup costs required	The cost to start a social media merchant costs significantly less money than most businesses, ranging anywhere from 12 to 27,209.
Rewarding work	Starting a social media merchant can be really rewarding work. After all, you are solving an immediate issue for your customer and you're working on something you truly care about.
Scalable	With businesses and processes changing daily, there will always be demand for new features, products and services for your business. Additionally, there are several different business models and pricing tiers you can implement that will allow you to reach all types of customers.
Traffic to your website	A social media merchant gives people a reason to visit your website and to keep coming back to you!

See all pros ➜

Cons	Description
Crowded Space	Competition is high when it comes to your social media merchant, so it's important that you spend a good amount of time analyzing the market and understanding where the demand lies.
Finding The Right Supplier	Most businesses in this space go the supplier/manufacturer route, which isn't a bad thing! However, finding the right supplier can take a lot of time, energy and trial/error. If done properly, this process can save you months (if not years) of time and energy. More on this below in the "finding a supplier" section.
Security Issues	With any Saas business, data loss and security issues may arise throughout your process of building your product. It's critical that you understand exactly what you're responsible for and how to avoid potential issues down the road.
Lack of benefits	With a social media merchant, you are typically self-employed and responsible for finding your own insurance, which can be quite costly and time-consuming.
Isolation	Often times, as a social media merchant, you typically work alone and do not have much face-to-face interaction with other team members.
Taxes	As a social media merchant, you typically pay self-employment taxes which can be quite high. It's important to understand what you will be paying in taxes each year so you can determine if the work you're taking on is worth it.

See all cons ➜

Marketing Ideas

1

Affiliate Program

Affiliate marketing is a great way to bring in a new revenue stream, especially when you don't sell products or services.
Simply put, an affiliate program is an agreement where a business pays another business or influencer ("the affiliate") a commission for sending traffic and/or sales their way.
The affiliate typically gets a unique link where clicks and conversions can be tracked.

Learn more about affiliate program ➜
2

Word of mouth

Word of mouth is when a consumers reflects their interest in a company’s product or service in their daily dialogues.
Therefore, word of mouth advertising is essentially a free advertising triggered by the customers experience.
According to Nielsen, 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family.
Therefore, in today’s hyper-connected world, a single recommendation through a word of mouth can have a huge impact to your business.

Learn more about word of mouth ➜
3

Social Media Advertising

Social media advertising is the use of social media platforms to connect with your audience with the objective to build your brand, increase sales, and drive website traffic.
According to Oberlo, approximately 48% of the global population use social media, and the number is ever-growing.
Therefore, social media allows brands access to cost-effective advertising by enabling them to interact with a large audience.

Learn more about social media advertising ➜

See all marketing ideas ➜

Key Stats

Startup Costs

Successful Businesses

11,697

28,119

40,858

85,444

217,879

288,115

557,834

688,580

819,394

1,086,567

1,145,919

Pros & Cons

Marketing Ideas

Affiliate Program

Word of mouth

Social Media Advertising