Kaley Roshitsh, WWD - Oct 31, 2018
Using metadata technology, the social commerce app champions the power of the everyday consumer.
Imagine not having the Kardashian appeal, yet still feeling as a valued contributor to society through your own unique “social capital.” This is the benefit said to be provided by MeSpoke, a social commerce app aiming to offer the “everyday individual” this combined power to capture their audience through simply tagging the clothing and cosmetics they wear every day.
“Your last name does not have to be Kardashian to be valued,” said founder and chief executive officer of MeSpoke, Sid K. Hasan.
According to Hasan, brands need to utilize their biggest asset, which is their everyday customers, to catapult their brand image and retain loyalty.
Already boasting downloads across 62 countries, MeSpoke has seen the creation of 20,000 product tags over 115,000 pieces of user-generated content without any outside investment.
And for Hasan, this democratized vision of fashion is already establishing his rapport, with MeSpoke receiving recognition last year as one of five “Cool Vendors in Retail Merchandising and Marketing” according to Gartner.
As a global research and advisory company, Gartner has identified past digital disruptors such as: Uber and Airbnb — but the potential for the MeSpoke platform lies in attaining strategic partnerships with retailers, so that the app’s loyalty points transition into in-store discounts and incentives.
For retailers and community members, this value comes into play when followers click one of many “go shopping” links embedded in the product tags which lands a potential customer directly on the brand’s website.
While Instagram offers similar product tagging and business features for optimizing mobile shopping, Hasan believes this model is “fundamentally flawed” and riddled with inauthenticity, creating an untouchable influencer within a clutter of imagery that misses key purchasing opportunities.
Instead, MeSpoke hopes to pioneer the ideal of “brand champions,” who are essentially people who really love a product.
“We’re all walking billboards,” reiterated Hasan, who drew inspiration for MeSpoke from his high-profile neighbor while living and working in the Silicon Valley.
Offering brands and retailers a DTC pathway, MeSpoke aims to create a more authentic product discovery experience with the help of valuable metadata — disavowing traditional methods of paid sponsorship, and instead relying on science.
The MeSpoke app is one example of how metadata technology is carving out new opportunities to enhance product discovery and consumer-brand interaction while mimicking word-of-mouth recommendation and changing the notion of who can be considered an influencer.