Can Nike make Instagram selling work?

Social media hasn't turned out to be the bastion of sales that brands and tech companies had hoped. But one brand that has made numerous digital moves recently is partnering with Facebook-owned photo sharing app Instagram to see if the platform can work as an official sales channel. The precise details of the integration between Nike's brand and Instagram's interface aren't available yet, according to a Bloomberg article. But the brand is promising a seamless shopping experience for some of its products through Instagram. The Instagram deal is only one of the recent developments indicative of the brand's interest in circumventing traditional shoe shopping channels. Just last month, Nike began a partnership with Amazon to sell directly on the e-tailer's marketplace. And in 2016, Nike revamped its Nike+ app as a source of targeted shoe-related content which also offers a mobile store to allow customers to purchase direct from the company. As with its other direct-to-consumer endeavors, Nike's move to sell through Instagram may be based on the observation that the sneaker scene has a unique social sharing side. Sneakers are both high-ticket and collectible, with "sneakerheads" using numerous platforms to discuss, buy and sell rare shoes. Niche startups have taken note. Last year a 17-year-old entrepreneur launched a social sharing site called Sneakmart specifically geared towards sneaker collectors. Another startup, called StockX, launched a stock market-like trading environment for the sneaker aftermarket (with an eye towards moving into other markets). While it hasn't been reported if Nike plans to do so, the idea of offering Instagram-exclusive designs could give both the brand and the social site a boost. Such a move could turn fans that only casually use Instagram, or don't use it at all, into frequent users. Nike is certainly aware of the lengths its fans will go for exclusive offers. When the brand launched its experiential brick-and-mortar store in Manhattan's SoHo neighborhood last year, it released a pair of sneakers available only at that store. The sneakers were created in collaboration with designer John Elliot and basketball player LeBron James.

• Instagram and Nike Reach for Fashion's Holy Grail – Bloomberg 
• What will a Nike Amazon deal mean for the brand and other retailers? – RetailWire
• Will image shopping jumpstart m-commerce? – RetailWire
• Can a social sneaker sales site stand on its own two feet? – RetailWire
• What if online marketplaces conducted sales like a stock exchange? – RetailWire
• Just Do Digital: Nike's Fundamental Shift To Direct-To-Consumer – Forbes