Conversion rates from social channels like Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter have more than doubled compared to when we started measuring them, way back in 2011.

Social-driven conversion rates reached 1.17% in Q1 2015, up from 0.53% in Q1 2011.

Ecommerce conversion rates from social in Q1 2015

According to our analysis, conversion rates from social media users is the only KPI whose trajectory is headed in a positive direction. It’s certainly the only traffic source.

Ecommerce conversion rates from search in Q1 2015

Note: Although conversion rates from search are down from almost 3% in Q1 2011, they still beat social in terms of raw percentage-point conversion.

So what’s behind this improvement in conversion rates from traffic from social referrals?

One theory: Pinterest.

Although the big players like Twitter and Facebook established a loyal following long before 2011, Pinterest didn’t open up its private beta until August 2010. Let’s keep our eye on this theory, especially once Pinterest fully implements buyable pins.

Other possible explanations:

  • A maturing social media industry

  • More people using social media = more opportunities for conversion

  • Better ad targeting/placement

What do you think could be driving social media conversion rates? Has your business spotted a similar trend? Let us know.

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Monetate EQ1 2015

Then download your free copy of our latest Ecommerce Quarterly report. It includes insights into ecommerce conversion rates, add-to-cart rate, bounce rates, and more.

Complete list of social channels we included in our report: Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, reddit, StumbleUpon, YouTube, Windows Live, Google+, and VK. (Whatever that is.)