There is the possibility to sell products directly from the fanpage/group in the biggest Russian social network vK.com (VKontakte). This feature is possible through the Shop-Script from the russian developer Webasyst.
Shop-Script is a digital platform which is designed to create retail online stores. The platform is flexible and can be applied for different shops and services.
The integration between Shop Script and the social network vKontakte is carried out in three directions:
- To option to open an internet shop as an add on for the vKonkate network, which allows the seller to receive orders directly from the site.
- The option to create “I like” links on the pages of the online shop.
- The option to create a special widget through which the users can discuss the items in the online shop.
Each method operates independently from the other, so you can use one of them or all of them.
1) Store accommodation in form of an application
In this option the Shop-Script gives the seller the option to build a showcase of the online store as an application in vK. One can catalogue the products, deal with orders and sell directly from the site. The main advantage of this integration is the ability to use the internal targeted advertising system of “VKontakte” for advertising the store and finding new clients.
2) “I like” script
This kind of integration is implemented by using JavaScript functions in vKontakte. The main function of this system is to place on the online store page the “Like” button. Every user who has an account in vKontakte can push this button and by doing so publish on his wall a link to one of the products.
The benefits of this button are quite simple, one only needs to get the code for the “Like” button and place it onto the store page. In this case there is no need to register the store on the social media platform.
It is recommended to add the “Like” button on the page of a specific product. This way the output from the button will be more valuable. The users could write comments about a specific product and not the online store in general.
3) The comments widget
If one is looking for a deeper output than just the “Like’ button, there is also the option to offer the online store visitors to leave comments on the items or the store’s publications and news. For this one will need to install the comments widget. This can be done quite easily through vKontakte and will give the clients a stage to express their opinion, for better or for worse.
It is highly recommended to integrate the online shop with the social media platform as much as possible. The integration with social networks cannot offer an immediate growth of sales, but it is a good channel through which one can attract new customers, communicate with the buyers and provide helpful and fast support, which will lead to loyal clients and good ratings.
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