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Can Macy’s Compete Against Poshmark, Instagram and Amazon with Shoppable Content and Social Selling?

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Shoot. Share. Earn. This has become the new mantra of a whole cadre of social media influencers and micro-influencers who are leveraging their networks and fashion smarts to make money. It is also Macy’s M newest and most interesting strategy for staying afloat and more importantly, becoming more relevant in the age of unified commerce.

The company just announced Macy’s Style Crew ambassador program, which was previously available only to employees. It is now being opened to social media influencers and micro-influencers. This puts Macy’s square into the realm of companies who have embraced shoppable content and social selling, such as Poshmark, Instagram, Google, Snapchat, Amazon AMZN and others.

Macy's Style Crew members can use the retailer's Video Storefronts platform to make shoppable videos and photos and share them on their social media pages. Consumers can buy directly through the post. The commission structure for influencers has not yet been made public but may fluctuate with seasons and have a sliding scale if it is like other such programs. 

Will it Move the Needle?

The immediate question for me was “is this the right tool for the wrong retailer?” One cannot help wondering how Macy’s will be able to engage the coveted Millennial or Generation Z consumer who are most likely to respond to social selling.  

About a year ago YPulse did a fashion and shopping survey asking 13 to 37 year-olds to share their “favorite store or site” to shop for clothing. As they stated *This was an open-end response question to allow us to capture the full range of Millennial and Gen Z’s favorite places to buy clothing—without our preconceived ideas shaping their responses.”  

According to the YPulse list of 16 retailers, Macy’s landed at number 11. Digging deeper into more segmented demographics, one gains further insight. When asking three specific cohort groups (ages 13-18, 19-25, and 26-37-year-olds) who their “top 5 favorite clothing retailers were,” only the latter group includes Macy’s. And it is at number five.   

I engaged my social media marketing-maven daughter (who does it for a living) to give me some feedback on the video that introduces the Macy’s Style Crew “affiliate program.” She had two interesting insights. The first was that Macy’s appears to be aiming at the oldest of the Millennials, even those on the cusp of Generation-X. The other comment was that she was surprised that Macy’s did not enlist more recognizable influencers in the pitch video. So, is there a marketing disconnect here?

Financial Motivations

Undoubtedly at the core of the initiative is the opportunity to earn. And it is clear the pandemic has challenged the financial security of many.

In May 2020, Jungle Scout conducted an anonymous survey on buying preferences and behaviors of about a thousand U.S. consumers. Generations Z, Millennials, and Gen Xers expressed concerns for their financial futures. Correspondingly these groups are also most interested in finding ways to add to their incomes. Breaking it down by demographic groups, 71-percent of Gen Xers, 77-percent of Millennials, and 70-percent of Gen-Z’s all felt a similar need.

Macy’s is caught up in the amidst of the most horrendous chapters for retail, and specifically department stores, in their 162-year history. So, has Macy’s found another bonified way to lessen their dependency on store-based selling and taken a meaningful step toward a unified commerce? And can Macy’s enlist a small army of micro influencers to “join the crew” embarking on internet-based social selling? I for one certainly hope so. That said, it would not be the first time that a good idea was undermined by less than great execution for Macys; but that’s a different Story.

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