5 Reasons a Shopify Store Is Ideal for Social Media Advertising

Back when social media marketing first found its feet, it was all about your organic presence. Getting likes and followers was the key to success across social media platforms. 

But thanks to changes in algorithms, new networks and user behavior, if you want to make your mark on social media, you need a bigger budget.

Paid social media marketing is essential to any marketing strategy — and companies know it. Social media advertising budgets doubled from 2014 to 2016. Some experts predict the expenditure on social advertising to be greater than $17 billion by 2019.¹

Your paid social campaign can’t simply exist in a bubble — you’ll need to integrate your efforts seamlessly with your website.

In our experience, Shopify has proven to be a tool that’s amplified our paid social tactics in ways that other website content management systems can’t match.

From tracking events to advertising and tracking discount codes, Shopify can elevate your company’s management and integration of paid social campaigns. 

1. Track Events Without the Help of a Developer

With Shopify, you can easily add the Facebook pixel to every page on your site.

Start by entering your Facebook pixel ID, which you can get from your Facebook Business Manager.

In the menu, go to “pixels” and select the ad account that you want to integrate. In the upper-right corner, there’s a section with pixel information, which includes the ID number.

To put the ID into Shopify, go to “Online Store” and click “Preferences.” You’ll see the Facebook pixel section, which is where you’ll enter the pixel ID.

The ability to add your Facebook pixel ID eliminates the need to have a developer place the code across your entire site. Plus, you won’t need to customize the code to track events — such as add to cart, website search or purchase.

Shopify automatically integrates with the Facebook pixel to track all nine standard events, so you’re no longer susceptible to human error when it comes to tracking.

2. Automate Product and Retargeting Ads 

If you install Facebook Product Feed (by Flexify), Shopify will generate a URL feed of your entire product inventory. You can then upload this to Facebook Product Catalogs, and it automatically refreshes daily.

When products are added to or removed from your store, they’ll appear in or disappear from your Facebook product feed and retargeting ads.

Prices, descriptions and images are also automatically synched, saving hours of busywork.

3. Allow Checkout on Social Platforms 

If you’re posting on Facebook or Pinterest and your products are getting clicks, why not let users make their purchase without leaving the platform?

Shopify allows you to add sales channels such as Facebook Shop and Buyable Pins — both of which are populated automatically. When you automate tasks, you free up valuable time that you can spend growing your business.

4. Provide Unique Customer Service 

Add Facebook Messenger to your Shopify store so users can immediately chat with someone from your team while they’re shopping. An assisted shopping experience can convince users to convert while they’re onsite, instead of pushing them off the site to a 1-800 number, form or a customer service email.

The benefits go beyond instant chat — users can also opt in to Messenger updates when they’ve made a purchase. Messenger will then integrate with Shopify to send purchasers order, shipping and delivery confirmation. 

Though the jury is still out as to whether live chat affects conversions, there are other features to this integration that have enough value on their own.

One of these features is the ability to view the automated conversations as they happen, and step in to answer any questions or concerns for the customer. You can also reach out a few days after the order has been delivered and ask the customer for feedback or a review.

5. Advertise and Track Discount Codes

Shopify makes it easy to generate discount codes and apply at checkout. This works with Facebook’s offer claim ads. These ads provide users with a discount code.

When a mobile user taps on the ad and enters your site, the discount code is automatically copied to the user’s clipboard. This allows users to browse the site on mobile with the discount code saved and ready for pasting at checkout.

With Shopify, you can view and export the codes that were redeemed, along with the users who claimed them. You can then use this list to create a Facebook audience for upselling or cross-promotion.

To get the user information in Shopify, go to “Orders” and enter the discount code as a filter. You’ll see a list of orders that used the code, and you can export that list which contains the customer’s name, email, mailing address, products purchased, shipping city and — in some cases — phone number.

Ready to take your social media marketing up a notch? Learn how to frame your strategy and set yourself up for success >