Social Media sites taking “inspiration” from each other to add more features to their platform isn’t a new thing. Snapchat introduced ‘Stories’ to the world in 2013 and not too long after that, every other social media site followed suit. Today you can wish all 700 of your WhatsApp contacts good morning by posting a Story.

However arguably the most impactful and influential phenomenon in social media in recent years has been the short-form video content feature in the form of TikToks and Instagram Reels. Amazon now wants in on it and has started rolling out what is probably one of the firsts in the industry: an Instagram Reels-Esque video feed within the app dubbed ‘Inspire’

 

What is Inspire?

Inspire is Amazon’s short-form video and photo feed accessible from a tab in the Amazon Shopping app. It allows consumers to explore products and ideas and shop from content created by influencers, brands and other customers. The content also includes links and images of the products featured in the video thus helping customers get a better feel of how the product is supposed to be.  On accessing the tab, the customer is asked to choose their interests from a list of categories including fashion, skincare, fitness, gaming and more in order to personalise their Inspire feed. The Seattle-based enterprise most likely hopes to attract the social media-savvy crowd with the content and potentially drive more sales.

 

A Potential future addition to every E-commerce site?

If one really thinks about it, the whole concept isn’t entirely new. In the last 2 years, brands(especially fashion brands) using reels to promote their products on Instagram has become commonplace. These also include collaborations with influencers and celebrities. While the success from such campaigns is undeniable, it doesn’t necessarily imply that Amazon’s new endeavour to replicate it on an E-commerce site should yield the same results. In theory though it offers a better alternative to a simple product description video on their product pages. Perhaps time will tell if the online store is on to creating the next big thing in online shopping.

 

When is it rolling out for everyone?

The feature is gradually being rolled out to customers in the US market to test the waters and from the looks of it, the company seems very invested in making Inspire a thing. Expect the feed to show up in your app early next year.

 

Conclusion

Does Inspire actually inspire customers to buy products that they didn’t know they needed? Maybe, is what we’d say for now though we reckon we’ll have a definite answer in the coming months as more markets start getting the update. While the rest of the world waits for it, social media still remains a powerful tool for your company to promote its products. Not sure how to do that? We happen to be the right people to show you how. Contact our marketplace and social media experts today!

Amazon E-commerce Inspire Jeff Bezos Reels Shopping TikTok