It's pretty nuts to me how many people already use Instagram as a business platform, literally for sales. I have a couple of friends for instance who own a vintage clothing/furnishings store and do MOST of their business posting items on Instagram, getting DM'd from people wanting to purchase, and then handling payments and pick up or delivery off of the platform. They're only one case of many I've noticed from folks who'd otherwise be on Etsy (or are also on Etsy, but have an easier time curating customers on Instagram and avoid the high fees).
Shopping coming to Instagram
51–57 of 57 posts
Re: Shopping coming to Instagram
#52Earlier quoted context omitted.
Everyone and everything is manipulative. Life is all about perception. Packaging is designed to make you want to buy one thing more than another. Would as many people buy Red Bull if it was in a standard stubby can instead of the slimline can? No they wouldn't. Is it therefore unethical for Red Bull to sell their beverage in a slimline can? Is it unethical for a salesperson to talk to you? For a shop to have a sign?…
I object to advertising in principle. It causes people to become more consumerist. It exists to generate a desire to purchase stuff, usually by promoting feelings that one is missing out otherwise. Plenty of people try to sell the idea that ads let us have content "for free", and that all we have to tolerate is "a little annoyance". There's even bigger reasons to oppose them than mere convenience, though. For one, it…
Thank you for elaborating on your perspective.
> It exists on a spectrum with free speech, but all your examples have an easy answer: It's unethical for you to suggest someone have kebab for lunch if you are getting paid for it and not disclosing it.
What if I'm getting paid in gratification of having a kebab for lunch instead of some sort of currency? I'm selfish and I want a kebab, similar to me being selfish and wanting a job.
Re: Shopping coming to Instagram
#53Imagine that landline phone calls were initially free and had to be "monitized" via adverts. Or, if it ended up being the case that they couldn't be sufficiently monitized and thus were considered a "failed business model". This age of freemium is producing all sorts of wack products. Why can't I just have a phone company that adds Twitter-like functionality in my paid plan. Oh right, because even though it's all "fr…
I'm sure the phone company could have built twitter, but it would have cost you $0.1 per tweet and $1 for pictures. The phone companies built quite a lot of innovative stuff early on (e.g Minitel), but it was even more proprietary, incompatible, and monopoly priced.
Re: Shopping coming to Instagram
#54Good source of revenue for them. UI/UX reminds me of https://www.thinglink.com/. Would be nice if it was open to everyone (anyone selling, cross-platform, worldwide).
Re: Shopping coming to Instagram
#55Imagine that landline phone calls were initially free and had to be "monitized" via adverts. Or, if it ended up being the case that they couldn't be sufficiently monitized and thus were considered a "failed business model". This age of freemium is producing all sorts of wack products. Why can't I just have a phone company that adds Twitter-like functionality in my paid plan. Oh right, because even though it's all "fr…
I'm sure the phone company could have built twitter, but it would have cost you $0.1 per tweet and $1 for pictures. The phone companies built quite a lot of innovative stuff early on (e.g Minitel), but it was even more proprietary, incompatible, and monopoly priced.
And regulated by the government, so that everyone received service, that was inter-operable, and sustained.
Re: Shopping coming to Instagram
#56This is anything but seamless. As soon as I saw them slide out that webview with the vendor's site I nearly vomited. They had a chance to make buying items that users like so much more painless, but they only delivered a partial experience. I don't want to bother with creating an account for every random vendor, typing in my CC info, and then having to rummage through emails to get tracking info. This is a great idea…
So the typical experience then?
Re: Shopping coming to Instagram
#57Earlier quoted context omitted.
Everyone and everything is manipulative. Life is all about perception. Packaging is designed to make you want to buy one thing more than another. Would as many people buy Red Bull if it was in a standard stubby can instead of the slimline can? No they wouldn't. Is it therefore unethical for Red Bull to sell their beverage in a slimline can? Is it unethical for a salesperson to talk to you? For a shop to have a sign?…
I object to advertising in principle. It causes people to become more consumerist. It exists to generate a desire to purchase stuff, usually by promoting feelings that one is missing out otherwise. Plenty of people try to sell the idea that ads let us have content "for free", and that all we have to tolerate is "a little annoyance". There's even bigger reasons to oppose them than mere convenience, though. For one, it…
I actually agree with a lot of what you have to say, and I will offer that this TED talk gives a very interesting perspective on advertising you should try giving a few minutes to: Rory Sutherland: Life lessons from an ad man
http://www.ted.com/talks/rory_sutherland_life_lessons_from_a...