Google has a powerful presence on the web and mobile, but not so much on e-commerce.
It does have that Shopping section on Google Search, where its large advertising network showcases numerous products from sellers. But that's about it. This is why Google wants to tighten its grip on online shopping by introducing a shopping app it calls 'Shoploop'.
With it, the company wants to use its acquired dominance on the internet, and bring it to online consumerism.
Born from Area 120, which is Google’s in-house lab for experimental projects, Shoploop is essentially a video shopping platform designed for discovering, evaluating and buying products, all in one place.
It's like a social media network, but built not by users' post, by from product reviews and affiliate links.
With the app, users can save products to check out later, or simply follow the creators for more content.
The idea came after Google realized that people often follow a very specific path to buying products. Once people come to something of their interests, they will often seek reviews from real people, and then return to an online shop to complete the purchase.
According to a blog post from Lax Poojary, the General Manager at Shoploop:
"Curious, I asked her what she was doing. It turns out she'd seen somebody promote a makeup product on social media, and wanted to check it out—so she watched reviews on YouTube to see how it would look in real life and whether other people liked it. Then she looked it up on an e-commerce site to buy it. This took three different apps or websites, at minimum, to find what she was looking for."
"This was the original insight for a new experiment Area 120 is launching today: Shoploop, a video shopping platform for discovering, evaluating and buying products, all in one place."
Shoploop basically wants to combine all of the aspects into one single unified experience.
The app puts interactive images, titles and descriptions on the more traditional e-commerce website, and putting videos that are shorter than 90 seconds to help users "discover new products in an entertaining way."
"We want to help people experience the look and feel of products they’re shopping for in real life without going to a physical store. Shoploop helps you get product reviews from real people who are knowledgeable about the products in a particular area."
Once users find a product that interests them, they can either save the product to buy it later, or go straight to the seller's website to complete the purchase.
Users can also follow their favorite Shoploop creators for more content in the future, and share videos they like.
So here, Shoploop blends online shopping with social media, where the content itself is the product. What makes it unique is that, Shoploop reverses the process of sellers looking for buyers, by putting the emphasis back to potential buyers, by allowing them to discover the product they want before purchasing it.
It's almost like a telemarketing channel for influencers, but with some social media entertainment as ingredients.
At its launch, the app focuses on content creators, publishers and online store owners in the beauty industry in categories such as makeup, skincare, hair and nails.
Initially, Google is limiting access to only select markets.