Amazon Inspire: TikTok-style ads for shopping. Amazon Inspire, now available to all, feels like a TikTok experience, but with entirely ad-based content. Thanks, Russ.
Russ Dieringer
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Amazon Inspire is now available to everyone…initial impressions.
Imagine TikTok but every video is an ad. π€
Have I lost you?
Probably!
But that's the primary impression I'm left with after initial tests.
Brands can keep this one in the test and learn bucket…
PERSONALIZATION, REACH, THE PROS/CONS
Here are some of the products I was shown ads (videos) for...
π Lobster tails (surprising!)
π Nightstand organization
π XBOX mini fridges
π Glamping set up
πStand up desks
π Bookcases
πPrinters
π Mirror
Video likes ranged from 0 to 2,400…most were in the double digits.
Several of the videos had the TikTok watermark on them.
I'm in the market for some new office furniture & equipment (Stratably turned 2 and is upgrading a few things!), so I'd say ~5% of the videos were at least semi-relevant.
Maybe that improves as I use Inspire more?
π’ On the positive front, the videos were more entertaining than they should be considering I had essentially no interest in these products.
π’ It was also incredibly seamless to buy the items.
Within two taps it can be added to cart or you can visit the related PDP.
AMAZON'S PLANS
Even if Amazon's trying to increase time on site/app, it's unrealistic for it to think it can make Inspire as entertaining as Reels, TikTok, and Shorts.
These alternatives have been in the market for longer, don't feature all ads, and aren't rubbing up against an ingrained user expectation ("I go to Amazon to shop").
But, maybe Amazon's longer-term focus is to intersperse these videos throughout the site?
For instance, putting these clips on PDPs or in different parts of the SERP.
I haven't seen this yet, but that's a more reasonable ambition than convincing shoppers to open the Amazon app for another short-form video entertainment option.
BRAND STRATEGY
There are a lot of options to grow your business on Amazon.
Most brands can't do all of them.
Besides, not all of them move the needle.
And, Amazon does cancel initiatives - not all tests work out...and that's okay!
π So where does Inspire fit in? π
Like Posts, brands will want to participate in Inspire because its free, existing content can be recycled, and video (broadly) is important.
But, like Posts, it might not make much of a difference to the business.
Perhaps Amazon tweaks the algorithm to weight products with this type of content?
I'm keeping Inspire in the lower left quadrant of our competitive edge diagram - low adoption/low impact - as we see it a test-and-learn opportunity.
SUMMARY
(1) Inspire is available to all users
(2) Feels like TikTok but 100% ads
(3) Tough road for Amazon to win here
(4) Make it a test-and-learn priority in '23
AM I WRONG?
π©π«π¨π«π©π« Is this a top priority for your business on Amazon in '23?
Where do you see this program going?