Nordstrom and Target are forming a partnership with Curalate for the Like2Buy platform, which will turn Instagram into a shopping haven for its users.
Nordstrom, Target, and Charlotte Russe are the first companies looking for the Like2Buy platform to boost sales as it gives Instagram users the option to purchase what they see on their feeds.
Using the Like2Buy platform, users can access the profile pages of the retailers to look through galleries of Instagram pictures that they can buy from. Clicking on the picture will take the user to the website of the retailer, where product details and reviews are available. The user can then purchase the items through a secure page set up by the retail company.
In addition, if users are still thinking about purchasing an item, pictures can be saved to a "My Likes" Instagram gallery, where the user can get back to the items at a later time.
Apu Gupta, co-founder and CEO of visual marketing and analytics company Curalate, lauds Instagram as an "amazing" platform to engage customers. He said that a study by Forrester Research revealed that Instagram led to 58 times more engagement for brands compared to Facebook, and 120 times more engagement for brands compared to Twitter.
Gupta said that frustrations from both retailers and users stem from the fact that while customers are getting engaged with the brands through the image-sharing social media platform, it is not easy for the customers to make a purchase. Like2Buy, Gupta adds, will make it very simple for users to purchase products that they see on Instagram.
"We connect with more than 500,000 customers on Instagram by posting items we hope they find inspirational, beautiful and fun," said Nordstrom social media director Bryan Galipeau. "Like2Buy enhances the experience for customers who want to take the next step and learn more about the great fashion we're featuring, to make a purchase or save items for another time."
Like2Buy will be made available by Curalate to the over 450 companies that it is working with, including Neiman Marcus and Gap. However, the companies need to inform the Curalate that wish to have the service activated.
Like2Buy is already up and running on the Instagram page of Nordstrom, and is set to launch on the Instagram page of Target within the coming few days.
Another retailer that has signed up for the Like2Buy service is fast fashion brand Charlotte Russe.
"Our shopper is using social media to influence purchases," said Charlotte Russe social media and PR manager Kristen Strickler. "And the more steps they have to take to buy something, the more it drops off."
"Making Instagram shoppable is something we've been wanting to do for a long time," Strickler added. "Fans have been constantly asking."
