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November 30, 2023
Will Walmart’s ‘RomCommerce’ Make Shoppers Swoon?
Walmart is launching its first shoppable video series, “Add to Heart,” a holiday-themed love story streaming on Roku, TikTok, and YouTube with over 330 products available for purchase.
Dubbed “a RomCommerce of sorts,” the 23-part series — each lasting around two to three minutes — follows the story of Jessica, an interior design assistant in New York heading home for the holidays. As she navigates the ups and downs of her personal and professional life, viewers are taken on a journey filled with unexpected twists and turns, from a surprise proposal to a chance encounter with a former flame (in a Walmart aisle).
The series drops in three waves, according to Ad Age: the first six segments on Dec. 2, the next six on Dec. 5, and the final 11 on Dec. 8.
What sets “Add to Heart” apart from traditional romcoms is that viewers have the opportunity to buy the outfits worn by the cast, the makeup used by characters, and even furnishings and ornaments featured in the series. The episodes use TikTok’s Video Shopping Ads and Roku’s “OK to Text” feature, both of which allow viewers to shop while watching the storyline unfold.
Products are also available at Walmart.com/AddtoHeart where different scenes can be shopped.
Walmart said the inspiration for the series comes from a recent Mintel finding that nearly 60% of Americans are looking to make a purchase via social media this year. At the same time, a survey from streaming media platform Plex found that Americans ranked watching holiday movies (72%) over decorating the tree (66%) and baking cookies (55%) when asked about their favorite holiday traditions.
Walmart U.S. Chief Marketing Officer William White told Ad Age, “We found a great opportunity to take things people love about the holiday season … and bring them together.”
He further told Adweek that the series aligns with Walmart’s strategy to create omnichannel experiences that “shorten the distance between inspiration and purchase,” including shoppable livestreams.
In July, Walmart showcased the shopping carts of Kansas City Chiefs star quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Latin pop singer Becky G, and fictional celebrity Barbie as part of an online content series. In early November, Walmart announced a partnership with NBCUniversal where viewers can shop select episodes of Bravo’s “Below Deck Mediterranean” when they air on Peacock.
Discussion Questions
What do you think of the overall execution of Walmart’s “Add to Heart” campaign and its ability to marry social media and shoppable videos? What will be critical in converting episode viewers into shoppers?
Poll
Loading …BrainTrust
Carol Spieckerman
President, Spieckerman Retail
Melissa Minkow
Director, Retail Strategy, CI&T
Patricia Vekich Waldron
Contributing Editor, RetailWire; Founder and CEO, Vision First
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Walmart has been doing an excellent job with content creation, including reuniting some of the cast of Mean Girls for a Black Friday campaign. This latest innovation looks like another win, and is a great way of standing out during the holidays. The fact the series uses shoppable content features on TikTok and Roku is great omnichannel execution.
Brilliant idea out of Bentonville. What other retail monolith could essentially open its own production studio and then have the content, set design, wardrobe, and everything else lead straight to a shopping cart pre-filled with impulse buys? Okay, Amazon. And Apple. But still, this is taking it to the next—and totally expected—chapter: immersive retail.
Unless the acting and/or script are horrific, I expect Walmart to have a huge hit with their first “RomCommerce.” My only question is this: If it’s a so-called instant classic and shoppers expect it back again next year, how will they switch out the products? Oh, yeah, we already have AI for that.
Really, I’m surprised and delighted by what they have done. I’m not sure I’m ever going to shop it but this is real out of the box thinking by folks that have spent a bit of time in the big box. Bravo Walmart and not Bravo! Get out your popcorn and your wallets. This is going to be interesting to watch (the show and the results).
This is well produced campaign that effectively leverages social media to sell goods. For the right demographic, this could be a hit, and sell through rates of the featured products will provide quantifiable evidence. However, as with any creative endeavor, it’s impossible to predict how the content will be received by the public. Even if the overall content is good, in order to effectively produce sales, the right product placements at the right times in the spots are essential.
I guess we are at the point where retailers have to compete for eyeball time before they can compete on product, price and promotion. And in that regard, Walmart seems to have hit upon a great vehicle. I’m not sure they will put a big dent in TikTok’s viewership, but they will certainly make Walmart more relevant to certain demographics than they otherwise would have been. This is a smart evolutionary move and fully recognizes the dynamics of the current market. The competition for eyeball time is about to get craaaaazy.
Feel good. Buzz worthy. And fun to watch. Next step will be to try out the actual user shopping experience when attempting to make a purchase. Looks like the time for that is December 2nd!
My primary question is: What took them so long?? Nikki Baird will tell you that I’ve been predicting this for longer than a decade.Streaming services and cable TV providers should be empowering this for everyone. Amazon kinda sorta gave it a shot with “Making the Cut” – in that the winning look would go on sale the next day, but that’s sort of cheating. Be merchants! Or use existing products that you think are particularly cool. It HAS to be a winner. Why reach for your phone or tablet when you can just push a button.
There are no “critical” missing pieces that I can see, except desire. It’s a way better idea that replicating HSN on a streaming service. That’s kinda lame. This….any incrememntal sale is worth it.
The sales generated by the RomCommerce campaign are (almost) secondary to the buzz the ads are likely to produce. It’s a fun way to dole out a Hallmark-style story in small bites that turn into an interactive shopping experience. Well done, Walmart.
I love this. Walmart is jumping head-first into commerce media and producing a wholesome, holiday-themed series is a great way to make a splash. No doubt others will be watching and Walmart will be learning. “Add to Heart” will build an important runway for Walmart and the industry.
It looks like I’m the only person who feels this way, so I definitely could be wrong, but I’m not a huge fan of this idea. I don’t think consumers want content created with the primary purpose of selling. I think they want content with the primary purpose of teaching or entertaining, and if it additionally advertises something, fine. This just feels inauthentic and I could see consumers being deterred by the intention of it.
I agree with you Melissa. While this is a novel idea that will appeal to a small segment of shoppers, I am not sure how many shoppers will like watching something that has multiple pop-ups to click to buy the products. However, I do like the storyline that may get people compelled to watch the series to see how it ends.
Add me to the skeptics list, Melissa. The trailer looks remarkably well-produced, and I have faith that the embedded shopping functionality will be seamless, but it feels narrowly targeted, and as you suggest, “inauthentic.”
I’ll take it on faith that there is a segment of Walmart’s audience with a real interest in this type of content. Surely, it presents a way for Walmart to gain some retail media revenue. If the economics work, why not?
Maybe its the rom-com story that puts me off. Not my jam. Maybe a cabinet-making how-to video with clickable tools would work better for a codger like me. (Hear that, Home Depot?)
Some might say the entertainment industry has been headed to this point for a long time (hasn’t “spot the product placement” long been a diversion when the main show wasn’t much good? So perhaps we should ask whether being (relatively) open about your aims is better…or worse. Can something be authentically commercial?
Well, I mean, apparently we have an insatiable appetite for video, so why not? I just hope this is more compelling than the idiotic “Gas Station TV” that I am forced to listen too while filling up the car…
It’s a great idea that uses storytelling, social media and in-the-moment shopping to connect with customers and differentiate themselves.
It’s totally in line with WMTs strategy to create compelling content for engaging with desired customer cohorts.
Walmart has taken the plunge into immersive commerce in a very authentic and compelling way with their “Add to Heart” holiday-themed love story streaming on Roku, TikTok, and YouTube. The timing of this new and authentic way for customers to engage and shop with the Walmart brand is brilliant. Collaborating with streaming services along with TikTok and YouTube is an outstanding way to attract the next generation of consumers, as 85% of all digital content viewed are short form videos.
Considering Wamart’s recent wins on Black Friday, with their Mean Girls reunion, and their significant investments in stoppable content via livestreaming and their Walmart Connect platform for personalized offers, the company is poised to have an outstanding holiday selling system. The livestreaming and shoppable content will be backed by Wamart’s outstanding advanced omnichannel, inventory management, supply chain, and fulfillment capabilities.
Authenticity and storytelling will be crucial differentiator for Walmart during the holiday shopping season, backed by their outstanding execution engine.
I’m a fan of shoppable video technology and Christmas movies but I side with my colleague Melissa on this one. There are times people expect to be sold to and times they don’t (and I wish the Sunday 8 am, solar panel telemarketers understood that). The movie’s plot is as old as time but it works. However, if it works as a movie, as entertainment, will people really want to see purchase bubbles during the video? Maybe Walmart will offer an ads free version! All kidding aside, I think it’s a great marketing move and absolutely worth a try because it’s difficult to argue against the power of shoppable video and because it’s Walmart. I just hope retailers and brands don’t try this with Super Bowl commercials!
This is completely relatable to the TikTok crowd. Good for Walmart!
A splendid example of the kind of markeitng a large company can (afford to) do that a smaller one cannot. Is it worth the effort ?? That’s harder to answer: my thought is the big challenges are (1) not making the “shows” so blatantly about product placement that it overwhelms everything else, and (2) people finding out these even exist. As for content criticism, I doubt I’ll be watching to find out.