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With moves, Nike’s revenue could rise by $300 million to $500 million.
With the advent of Instagram Stories (sorry Snapchat), more and more brands have turned to advertising on the platform. Whether it is showing an endorser wearing their product, or just simply a picture of the product, the “swipe up” feature can now take users directly to an external web page.
On this page, users have the option of learning more about the product/company advertised and potentially even make a purchase all within the app.
It was recently announced that Nike will start selling products on Amazon as well as Instagram. The move to selling on Instagram is in hopes that the younger demographic (which tends to spend hours browsing their feeds) will want to purchase the items advertised.
With this move, Nike joins a select number of other brands, such as Kate Spade and Warby Parker, in using these posts that make it easy for people to buy their products.
These posts are referred to as “shopping tags,” which launched back in 2016. When a user clicks on an ad posted by the brand, the tags pop up with a product description and price or send the user to the company’s website to complete the checkout process.
While Nike has an expansive product line, it will begin by selling a limited selection of products on both Amazon and Instagram.
On Amazon, Nike products have previously only been available via third-party sellers. In attempts to limit the amount of counterfeits being sold, the brand itself has entered the marketplace.
According to Morgan Stanley, Nike is already the top selling brand on Amazon. With the brand entering the marketplace (and Instagram) Goldman Sachs estimates that the conglomerate’s revenue could rise by $300 million to $500 million.
In the ever-competitive apparel industry, Nike, Adidas and Under Armour are always seeking to innovate in order to take the lead. Whether it is sales revenue, athlete endorsements or the newest and hottest sneakers, the arms race to be the most sought after brand is in full effect.
While certain brands have their loyal customers, wearing the “swoosh,” “three stripes,” or interlocked UA have become a status symbol.
Loyal customers and fans of each brand were in full force in recent weeks when the newest Los Angeles Laker Lonzo Ball wore a signature shoe from each during the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.
Unless you have been living under a rock for the past six months or so, Ball and his effervescent father LaVar have been promoting the Big Baller Brand — the shoe that Ball made his Summer League debut in.
After an underwhelming performance, he switched to Nike’s for game two. Not only did the “ZO2’s” go off, but so did Ball.
His performance caused a reaction from Nike athlete LeBron James, who posted a video on Instagram with the caption “Just Do It”.
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Not to be outdone, in his next games Ball wore an Adidas shoe, Under Armour shoe and Jordan brand shoe — all causing the diehard fans to speculate whether or not he was trying to leverage his performance into a licensing deal with “BBB.”
When scrolling through Instagram in the coming weeks and months, keep an eye out for these “shoppable” posts. Would you buy something from Instagram? With Nike hypothetically dipping its toe in the water, it will be interesting to see if its competitors follow suit.
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