Source: Twitter
Do Twitter users want to hear and tweet about product drops?
Twitter recently launched a new feature, Product Drops, that allows online merchants to tease their upcoming product launches.
“People come to Twitter to talk about products and product drops every day. And merchants have long been dropping products on Twitter without any native product support,” wrote Twitter in a blog entry. “We’re excited to change that and introduce new shopping features that empower shoppers to stay on top of the launches that matter most to them and provide merchants with another way to engage shoppers around big product moments.”
With Product Drops, a merchant will be able to tweet about an upcoming launch. Clicking directly on the post opens a full-screen Product Details Page with a description of the item, a photo, pricing and a clickable hashtag that shows what others are saying about the product on Twitter.
A “Remind me” button will appear at the bottom of the Product Drop post so, with a tap, a Twitter user can be alerted. On launch day, an in-app notification appears in the Twitter user’s notifications tab 15 minutes before and at the time of the drop, so they can jump on the deal. By clicking the notification, the user is directed to the merchant’s website to make a purchase.
https://twitter.com/TwitterMktg/status/1535346086772101123
Twitter is testing the Product Drops feature with select partners, including Dior, Fossil, Home Depot, LEGO and Union Los Angeles.
“Every time we drop, Twitter’s a key touchpoint for us to boost awareness,” Richard Brook, Union marketing director, said in the Twitter blog post. “We’re eager to see how Product Drops helps us take things up a notch and deepen how we engage and inform our audience around upcoming launches.”
Nike and Foot locker both make use of notifications on their apps to alert customers of sneaker drops. Instagram uses a similar “Reminders” for product drops, although Twitter is more conservational than other social networks.
Twitter continues to add shopping features, including the April launch of Twitter Shops, which lets sellers showcase up to 50 products on the app. Last November, it tested livestream shopping in partnership with Walmart.
- Be Part of the Hype: Introducing Product Drops – Twitter
- Twitter’s latest feature lets merchants tease upcoming product drops, remind customers to shop – TechCrunch
- Twitter’s latest shopping feature could make it easier to catch a PlayStation 5 drop – Mashable
- Twitter Debuts Product Drops – Adweek
- It Works for Sneakers. Now It’s for Baby PJs and Skateboards, Too. – The New York Times
Discussion Questions
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS: Will “Product Drops” offer Twitter a path to become more of a shopping platform? How would you rate Twitter’s strengths and weaknesses as a potential shopping portal?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Georganne Bender
Principal, KIZER & BENDER Speaking
Neil Saunders
Managing Director, GlobalData
This is a solid addition which will help brands make more of Twitter. There are big communities on Twitter focused on categories like CPG, fashion, toys and others that are very receptive to new innovations – so I can see this being useful for users as well. All that said, Twitter still has a lot of work to do in making the platform better for selling.
I am skeptical. There are some very successful brands with super-smart marketers testing this out, which makes me think this has at least a chance of working. But consider me leery of yet another product expansion scheme from Twitter. Maybe we can all talk about it in a Twitter Space, since they are so popular. Oh, wait…
People go on Twitter for breaking news and to talk smack. Everything else is just a distraction.
You can’t get away from ads on Facebook and Instagram so I guess it was just a matter of time before Twitter jumped in too. Twitter users are pretty vocal, so if they don’t like something they will let you know.
My initial thought on reading this is that it feels like there are a lot of steps here just to sign up for a product alert. I suspect if I were that interested in a specific product I would have visited the company’s website and signed up for notifications. I’d be too far removed from the influencer/product social media hype world. I agree with the comment that most people come to Twitter to rant and get some news updates.
Sounds like catch-up functionality, but if implemented well (UX) it could help certain brands engage with targeted audiences. Twitter has become a digital cesspool so I’d caution brands about potential trolls and viral blowback. It wouldn’t be the first place I’d go for product information, browsing or shopping.
Twitter is not a shopping platform. The sooner the good people at Twitter accept this, the sooner their users can get back to celebrating frivolous 280 character updates, beefs and drags.
This gets a solid “it depends.” In many ways, Twitter is playing catch up with other social platforms when it comes to shopping. It feels a bit too little too late, but those are interesting brands trying it out so maybe there is hope. Ultimately, if Twitter wants to be a shopping destination, they need to roll out more shopping relevant features at a faster pace. By trickling them out like this it’s more challenging to build a consumer base that knows to expect shopping capabilities on Twitter as a normal part of their shopper journey. Right now, it’s hard to see this capability achieving critical mass.
There are few drawbacks for Twitter in offering more structure to this idea. Twitter is lagging in revenue compared to other platforms and this could be a way to build. If the product drops are done well, and not positioned as an interruption of posts or conversations, then this has good upside.