Nigerian small and medium-sized businesses are increasingly turning to WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and other social platforms to sell their products, as the cost and complexity of maintaining traditional websites push many entrepreneurs towards cheaper and more direct ways of reaching customers.
For many SMEs, the smartphone has effectively become the shop, catalogue, customer-service desk and sales counter.
Instead of spending money on website development, hosting, maintenance and digital marketing, business owners can upload products to WhatsApp Status, Instagram or Facebook, respond to customers through direct messages and complete transactions through bank transfers or other digital payment channels.
The shift does not mean websites are disappearing. Rather, it shows that many small businesses are prioritising platforms where their customers already spend time.
A 2024 PwC Nigeria MSME Survey found that WhatsApp Business was the most-used technology among surveyed MSMEs, at 23 per cent, followed by Facebook at 19 per cent and Instagram at 15 per cent. By comparison, only 7 per cent reported using an online store.
The figures highlight a wider change in how Nigerian businesses approach digital commerce.
For a fashion seller, food vendor, beauty entrepreneur or small electronics dealer, social media can provide immediate access to potential buyers without the upfront investment required to build a conventional online store.
WhatsApp, in particular, has become important because it combines product promotion with direct communication.
A seller can post a product on Status, receive enquiries through private messages, negotiate prices, confirm orders and send payment details without moving the customer through several different platforms.
A 2025 BusinessDay report documented Nigerian MSMEs using WhatsApp as a major sales channel, with business owners describing how product pictures, Status updates and broadcast messages helped them attract customers.
This model is particularly attractive to businesses operating with limited capital.
For an entrepreneur who is still trying to establish a customer base, spending heavily on a website may not appear as important as having a professional WhatsApp Business account, an active Instagram page and reliable delivery arrangements.
The attraction is not only about what SMEs want. It is also about how Nigerian consumers prefer to shop.
Social commerce allows customers to ask questions before buying, request different colours or sizes, negotiate prices and receive immediate responses.
That conversational element can be important in a market where trust remains a major factor in online transactions.
Research by the GSMA found that more than half of surveyed Nigerian MSMEs relied exclusively on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp for their e-commerce activities. Only 14 per cent used social media, e-commerce platforms and their own websites together.
The same GSMA research found that 95 per cent of surveyed Nigerian MSMEs reported increased sales through online trade, while 62 per cent reported lower business costs.
That combination of wider reach and lower operating costs helps explain why social commerce is becoming an important part of the SME economy.
However, the growing popularity of social commerce does not mean websites have become irrelevant.
A website can give a business greater control over its brand, provide a central location for product information and potentially make the company appear more established to customers, suppliers and investors.
It can also reduce dependence on a single social media platform.
Social commerce comes with risks. An SME that relies entirely on WhatsApp, Instagram or Facebook is operating on platforms whose algorithms, rules and features can change. Account restrictions, technical problems or loss of access can immediately affect sales.
Customers may also have fewer protections when buying directly from informal sellers, particularly where there are no clear refund, return or complaint procedures.
This is one reason some businesses are adopting a hybrid model: social media for attracting customers and generating conversations, with websites or other digital systems providing additional structure as the business grows.
The movement towards social commerce reflects a broader transformation in Nigeria’s digital economy.
The country’s SMEs are not necessarily rejecting e-commerce. They are adapting it to the tools that are cheaper, familiar and already embedded in everyday communication.
For many small businesses, the journey now starts with a WhatsApp number or Instagram page rather than a domain name.
That means the competition for Nigerian SMEs is no longer simply about who has the best website. It is increasingly about who can attract attention on social platforms, respond quickly, build trust and turn online conversations into completed sales.
As social commerce expands, businesses with limited resources are likely to continue using social platforms as their first digital storefront, while larger and more established companies maintain websites alongside them.
The result is a distinctly Nigerian form of digital retail: social media creates the discovery, the conversation builds trust, and the transaction can happen without the customer ever visiting a traditional online store.
