MikMak is using mini infomercials to help retailers turn their stories into sales

MikMak, the New York-based startup that is trying to make short and catchy infomercials (aptly named minimercials) the future of commerce, is launching a new feature to help retailers monetize their stories on Instagram and Snapchat.

The new product is called Attach, and serves as a middleman between a retailer’s daily story on a platform like Instagram and the actual product available for sale on the retailer’s website.

Typically, when watching a retailer’s Instagram story or Snapchat ad, users are prompted to “swipe up” to purchase the item. The swipe typically takes you to the item’s product page where you can buy it.

But MikMak thinks this is a flawed approach – and the numbers seem to agree. Some retailers are seeing bounce rates hovering around 90% after someone swipes up from their story to buy.

Rachel Tipograph, founder and CEO of MikMak, explained that this is because people watch stories on Instagram or Snapchat to be entertained – and the second they swipe up to a boring product page they are mentally removed from this mindset. That’s why so many people quickly retreat back to the entertainment of their stories.

So Attach smooths this transition by letting customers swipe up and land on an entertaining and catchy infomercial for the product they want to buy. They can then hit a button to add the product to the retailer’s cart, or just tap the screen to watch more minimercials for products made by the same retailer.

The product has been in beta for a while, integrating with brands like GoPro, BirchBox, Dr. Brandt and more. And so far it has been working pretty well – Dr. Brandt has already seen a 500% increase in direct sales conversion from Instagram stories, and half of customers who swipe up also tap through and watch multiple minimercials.

And besides these conversion rates MikMak is also giving retailers the ability to control the customer experience, as checkout is still done on the their own website.

Check out the video to get a better idea of how the process looks, or head over to Instagram and watch the daily stories for @birchbox @drbrandt @beautyblender, all of which feature MikMak Attach.