What are the advantages of Social Login: what it is, how it works

Social login how it worksthe main features of an authentication tool with huge benefits for users and website owners.

You are browsing an e-commerce site that has impressed you a lot, and so you want to create your own account within the platform to save your favourite products, create your shopping list, and so on. But each time you have to enter a ton of information, including emailpassword, date of birth and other data, making the whole process quite long and complex. For this reason, most users give up opening their account, a real problem especially for companies, who see the possibility of acquiring new customers vanishing.

What if you could simply click on a login button, automatically creating your profile without having to remember any passwords? With Social login you can take advantage of this opportunity, as your identity is already verified by your social media. But let's take a closer look at what is special about this application and how you can incorporate it into your website.

What is Social Login?

The Social Login, also known as Single Sign-On (SSO), is a method of accessing online services via a single digital identity, an authentication system that serves to make the process of registering or logging in to a website faster and easier. It is a simplified solution that requires users to log in to their accounts by simply using the credentials of a social networking servicesuch as Facebook, Google or Twitter. Once done, they will no longer have to remember different usernames and passwords to access each service, but will be able to use the same digital identity in all websites that support it.

But how does Social Login work? The authentication process is quite simple:

1. Select the icon of one of the social media services available on the login page of the website you wish to visit.
2. You will then be redirected to the social network profile
3. You authorise the website to access your personally identifiable information (e.g. name, email address, date of birth).

Once this is done, your account has been created and you are ready to start using the services offered by the website.

What are the advantages of Social Login for users?

Social Login offers several advantages to both users and those who manage websites and online services. As far as users are concernedThe main benefit is the reduction in the complexity of storing access to various online accounts. Moreover, thanks to SSO, one can easily share content on different websites without having to remember the same personally identifiable information several times.

So why do users prefer social login over the traditional username and password login? The answer is simple: comfort. Simply click on a button (the social logo) and log in within seconds, without having to remember the login data, i.e. username and password, for each online service. There is also the security aspect: the multi-factor authentication systems used by social media offer additional protection against hackers. In short, thanks to social login, people can avoid complications and be safe at the same time. An extra layer of safeguarding your safety online as social network providers generally offer high standards of data protection.

It is also useful if you want to limit the exposure of your personal data on the network, as it allows you to use shared information on a single social account instead of personal information such as username and email address.

A powerful tool at the disposal of companies and freelancers

We have mainly focused on the benefits for users. We will now go into a deeper analysis of the benefits for companies and entrepreneurs who wish to exploit this system for their website. For web space owners there is an opportunity to:

• get to know their customers better through the information provided by social networking services, such as age, gender or geographical location.
• reduce online shopping cart abandonment rates and provide a better user experience.
• increase user participation in your online activity
• use information from your customers' profiles to personalise the user experience and offer more relevant content based on their preferences
• increase conversions from mobile devices, registration from smartphones being more complex due to the reduced display compared to desktop browsing

Conclusion

In summary, social login offers countless benefits to both users and businesses. Users can quickly access their favourite activities without having to enter detailed information or remember complex passwords, while businesses can benefit in terms of user engagement and personalisation of the user experience.