There’s no denying that social media plays a big part in our lives these days. We’ve all heard the phrase ‘you are what you eat’, but have you even considered that perhaps ‘you are what you tweet’, too? Interactive touch screen displays for retail have made this a possibility.
After the success of Special K Cracker Chips in the US, Kellogg’s brought them across the pond (and renamed them cracker CRISPS!) in September 2012 and launched them in one of the world’s first tweet shops. The pop-up-shop on Meard Street in Soho, London looked much like any other retail store from the outside, open 9-5 to any passers-by. But inside Kellogg’s were busy connecting the real world with our online lives.
A play on ‘the sweet shop’, the Tweet Shop allowed customers to sample the Special K Cracker Crisps and purchase a packet, usually 60p per bag, using social currency instead. This means that instead of paying with real money, customers sent a tweet in exchange for their goods.
In order to do this, customers chose a tweet from the ‘Tweet Menu’, broadcasted it to their followers using the hashtag #tweetshop and showed the tweet to one of the Special K girls in store to receive a packet of Cracker Crisps in one of three flavours- sea salt and balsamic vinegar, sweet chilli or sour cream and chive. The team in store tracked the tweets via a giant LCD screen- a great example of how interactive displays work for retail!
In order to keep in line with regulations set by the Advertising Standards Authority, Kellogg’s were also obliged to include #spons as part of the tweets as it needs to be made clear when something is sponsored. This is similar to when a celebrity endorses a product- we all know when they’ve been paid to represent a brand so the same must apply for the public, when they have been provided with an incentive to tweet.
The concept of a tweet shop is very similar to those of referral schemes employed by companies such as Netflix- providing the public with an incentive to share the company with their friends and followers. But what is the true value of social currency? A tweet for a packet of crisps seems reasonable but where do we put a limit on how much our social influence is worth?
Check out the video below to see how tweet shopping works!
