10 Inspiring Examples of Shoppable Content for Ecommerce

Insights, Tips & Tricks

Written by

Hendrik

What if a new ecommerce strategy could take your business to the next level? Shoppable content represents the next big thing for businesses all around the world. Unfortunately, many of these businesses don’t know what shoppable content is and how it works.

That’s why we put together this comprehensive guide. With it, you’ll learn all about shoppable content and how you can start taking advantage of this kind of content right away!

What is Shoppable Content?

Our guide is designed to help you start using shoppable content right away. But first, we must answer a pretty fundamental question: what is shoppable content, anyway?

On the most basic level, shoppable content uses imagery to showcase different products. There are links and text typically built into the content, allowing someone to immediately click and purchase something that catches their eye. Shoppable content can appear in the form of a shoppable photo or shoppable videos, all by using interactivity.

Think of shoppable content as the perfect fusion between marketing content and a call to action. Now, there is no break whatsoever when customers decide to buy a product they just saw in action!

Shoppable Content Platforms

Now and then, a new ecommerce strategy emerges that is limited to a single platform. Fortunately, shoppable content works with a wide variety of social media platforms, and it can be in the form of images and/or videos.

Because it centers around user-created imagery, Instagram is a perfect platform for this kind of content. The same is true of Pinterest, an app many people use to imagine a makeover for themselves and their homes.

Shoppable content has even come to Facebook. In fact, you’ve probably seen it in the form of static ads, carousel content, or sponsored advertisements.

Obviously, you’ll need to tweak your approach to make the most out of each platform. But all of the platforms are a perfect way for you to start your shoppable content experience.

What are the benefits of Shoppable Content?

Below, we’ve got a list of some very specific companies and how they have used shoppable content. Before we get to that, though, it’s important to answer a basic question: what are the real benefits of using this kind of content?

First of all, shoppable videos are very engaging for the average user. That’s because shoppable content is interactive content, and users love when a video is more than a passive experience.

Second, this kind of content will seriously boost your conversions. As we said before, this kind of marketing blends the content and the CTA into one ad. If that ad should win a customer over, there is no need to wait before they can order whatever they have seen.

Third, and finally, shoppable content is very intuitive and user-friendly. From fashion-forward “zoomers” to grandma and grandpa, navigating this content is as simple as clicking whatever you want to buy. No matter what your target demographic, they will have an easy time with this content.

Now that you know more about what shoppable content is and why you should use it, let’s take a closer look at the way many businesses have been using this strategy and show you some shoppable content examples.

1. Still Classic

Stil Classics is a company that sells organizational products. It’s no wonder, then, that their shoppable content on Instagram also happens to be a master class in subtlety.

In one post, they are selling a Work From Home Kit. Instead of focusing on the kit itself, though, the artful ad shows how small the kit is and how well it fits alongside other things on the user’s home office desk.

To further help things stand out, Stil used contrasting colors. Everything is a mixture of black, white, and cream colors, which helps the different elements visually “pop” out at the reader. And Instagram’s “view products” button makes it clear what is being sold, so there is no confusion on the part of the audience.

2. UBTECH Robotics

When crafting your content, you need to make a big decision: should you go with a shoppable image or a shoppable video? UBTECH Robotics shows us how far a shoppable video can go on Instagram.

As a company, they specialize in robotics kits that users can build at home. And after building a new robot, users can interact with it in several exciting ways.

They made a decision (rightfully so) that video is the best way to show off what their robots can do. And it’s a great example of how shoppable content works: as soon as someone watches the ad and thinks “I want one of those,” they can click a link and buy it right away!

3. iPort Products

One of the best things about shoppable images is that they help put certain products in context. For example, if you sell very specialized accessories, a user might not know they need these accessories until they see them in action.

And that’s something that iPort Products understand very well. As a company, they sell accessories (including cases and charging stations) for iPads, iPhones, and other Apple products. And they craft shoppable Instagram advertisements to help us see these products in action!

Instead of reinventing the wheel, they borrowed the stark color palette (it’s almost all whites and blacks) from Apple itself. Otherwise, the ad is all about showing how their products will help you get the most out of your expensive Apple hardware.

In this way, shoppable content helps show users the full potential of new purchases and how seamlessly these new products will fit into their lives.

4. World Market

World Market is a store that sells a little bit of everything. Some people go there for eclectic accessories and comfortable furniture. Other people come for the exotic spices and wide selection of beers.

For their shoppable content on Instagram, World Market really leans into this. One of their ads shows multiple items (including a picture frame and a miniature globe) artfully arranged as part of an attractive home display.

This kind of advertisement is very effective because it shows the buyer exactly how they could transform their own home with these products. And making everything part of an artistic display shows buyers how all of the different threads of World Market products can be woven together into a tapestry.

5. Glacelis

When it comes to shoppable content, you can still do “new” versions of classic advertising techniques. And this includes advertisements based on upcoming holidays as a way to drive additional sales.

On Instagram, Glacelis did this by releasing a shoppable image ad ahead of Mother’s Day. The image looks like a fashionable living room, complete with artistic pillows and prints celebrating what mom has done.

As simple as it is, this kind of post is great for those struggling to find their mother a great gift for Mother’s Day. And it’s always possible that mom will see this ad and discover some of her own inspiration!

6. AYR

AYR is a company that sells more “basic” supplies, including simple t-shirts and jeans. To develop some killer shoppable content, they also discovered an interesting new way to showcase their products.

For one of their Instagram ads, AYR features a photo of Hugh Grant and his partner. The two of them are both dressed down, but the shoppable post identifies exactly what they are wearing, allowing users to buy these items with a single click.

The overall message is clear: with the right clothing, even someone dressed casually can channel their inner movie star. And AYR is promising a closet full of clothing that is both chic and comfy at the same time!

7. Frances

Mother’s Day isn’t the only holiday that works well for shoppable content. The company Frances helps show off how almost any holiday can be a great opportunity to energize buyers.

On Instagram, Frances released a shoppable advertisement ahead of Earth Day. And to honor the holiday, their post highlighted products such as reusable water bottles and matching ceramic mugs.

In addition to channeling the holiday, these advertisements are a great way to win over eco-conscious shoppers. By showing that your company is also devoted to causes such as the environment, you can naturally win over greater numbers of people.

8. Scotch & Soda

Sometimes, you can integrate shoppable content directly into your website. That is a lesson that Scotch & Soda teaches us with their stylish, interactive lookbooks.

Their strategy is as simple as it is effective: the advertisement looks like it came straight from a luxury magazine, complete with an attractive couple hanging out in an exotic jungle. But simply hovering over their images gives you info about the clothing they are wearing, so you can “steal their look” quite easily.

Part of what makes this ad so effective is that the company really caters to its unique audience. A lookbook is a traditional tool used by the fashion industry to showcase how hot new styles can look. By incorporating a lookbook into their advertising, the company shows that they fluently speak the same visual language as their key demographic.

9. Kate Spade

Want to build better shoppable content? It all starts with focusing on the user experience. And this is something Kate Spade teaches us thanks to their shoppable #MissAdventure videos featuring Anna Kendrick.

They started by focusing on a dilemma: typically, when users click on something in a shoppable video, the computer or phone exits the video so they can complete their purchase. The only problem is that they never saw the rest of the video and potentially missed out on more things they might want to buy.

That’s why their shoppable videos simply keep track of everything the user clicks on. At the end of the video, users can review their shopping cart and finalize their purchases.

By making this one small change in shoppable video content, Kate Spade shows us that businesses are still discovering the full potential of shoppable content.

10. Crate & Barrel

Shoppable content was born when businesses realized they could pair their marketing and their CTAs together. But what if you combined the shoppable posts with other forms of content marketing?

This is something Crate & Barrel does very well. Their typical shoppable content features something like a photo of a kitchen and an assortment of knives and other kitchen tools that users can buy. Simply press the “shop the room” button and all the displayed furniture appears on the right!

Here’s where they change things up, though. Instead of simply linking out to where users can buy these products, Crate & Barrel also includes this kind of content as part of their blogs explaining how these different products work.

Obviously, “how-to” style blogs have been a great way for companies to explain what shoppers can do with their new purchases. By blending this how-to content with shoppable content, Crate & Barrel does a good job of convincing users who are on the fence to go ahead and buy the products they really want to buy.

In other words, Crate & Barrel has shown us the future: shoppable content has the potential to completely reshape the sales funnel as we know it!

What's next? Use SPOTT!

Now you know what shoppable content is and what it can do for your business. But do you know who can really help you master interactive content?

At Spott, we specialize in all forms of interactive video and interactive images. We see this interactive content as nothing less than the wave of the future, and we’re here to help eager businesses catch that wave. Watch an inspiring example below, all created while using our interactive video software.

Curious about learning more? Simply head to Spott.ai or book a demo here.

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