So I was shopping for ceramic unicorns...
And came across this new upvote-or-downvote-for-recommendation-experience from Amazon:
So a few really clever things happening here from the Amazon side:
- Free Data - I found myself saying, "It's just a quick thumbs up or thumbs down? What could it hurt?" But then realized that I was logged in to my account, so presumably the Algorithm (which sounds so impersonal, what if it was just Al?) would track all of my responses and use that to retarget me to the end of time.
- The Combination of Reviews and Recommendations - I would wager that there is a strong behavior that those items with higher reviews get more positive, thumbs-up responses. Reviews are the oil that makes the Amazon engine run - and this is just another exhibit of how they command attention.
- The Muting of Prices - Look, when I started looking for ceramic unicorns I was expecting ~$20 price points, so the $40 and $43 options are INSANE to me personally. But by showing the prices grayed out and in the top right corner (vs. the usual large typeface red below the reviews) it feels more like it's about the item and not the price.
- The "Completeness" of a Shopping Experience - this was a complete shopping experience, albeit a shallow one. But the experienced focused - in priority - on the 3 things I care about most while shopping on Amazon: the look, the reviews, and the price.
- 12 < 14. In this experience you only see 12 items vs. 14 when you see Sponsored Products and Customers Also Viewed:
6. It's Not Good - As you select and deselect items, the recommendations get worse. WAY worse:
Some how I ended up with graduation gear and a ceramic greyhound...
7. But it is Fun - After going completely off course, I tried to right the ship and get back to seeing my initial batch of ceramic unicorns but after a few more likes and dislikes, it didn't seem possible. Here's where i ended up with a $195 Desktop Tiger and some dinosaurs and dragons:
Could you replicate this in-store?
It would be an interesting exercise to see if retailers would or could bring this to life in a physical store. It's likely that a button would be cumbersome and difficult to install on top of being completely avoidable in a COVID world. Could it work in stores where shoppers already have their devices out to shop prices and compare features? Maybe. But for the moment, it makes sense for online shopping.
Suffice it to say that Amazon has a ways to go with this new experience. Unlike a Reddit up or down vote to crowdsource quality, this has the pendulum on the other side where it is hyper personal to my taste preferences. I'll keep a close eye on what type of retargeting and recommendations I receive. Click here if you want to try your own unicorn shopping recommendation experience.