If you’re looking for ideas, it then asks if you’re shopping for a certain event or category, like vacation outfits or desk-to-dinner, or for more general style inspiration. Depending on how you answer changes the course of the conversation. If you’re indeed looking for vacation outfits, the prompt will take you out of the chat and to The Outnet’s vacation trends shop on its site. But those shopping with less direction are introduced to The Outnet’s “stylish friends”: editors and influencers who have worked with The Outnet on one of its video series. The bot takes users through a series of more whimsical prompts that range from standard (“Is your style more ‘laid-back L.A.’ or ‘East Coast elegance’?”) to borderline absurd (“Would you ever leave the house without underwear?”). Each response conjures up a content hook featuring an influencer, like a 15-second video clip that auto-plays in the chat or an excerpt from a Q&A, followed by a prompt to shop a featured brand or category.
Image Credit: glossy.co
“This is a new channel for us to broadcast the content that lives on our site and help customers navigate our assortment,” said said Andres Sosa, evp of sales, marketing and creative at The Outnet. With the bot, The Outnet wants to make the most of both its in-house content and its Facebook followers, while avoiding expensive paid posts and promoted videos. The competitive landscape for e-commerce marketplaces has made the cost of customer acquisition skyrocket, and as social media marketing shifts from organic to paid reach, pulling in customers through editorial POV-derived inspiration is critical in controlling marketing spend.
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