TikTok Shop is taking on Amazon – one viral video at a time | Hacker News Reader

TikTok Shop is taking on Amazon – one viral video at a time

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21 pointsrntn11 comments

Expecting the very obvious trash social media sites (all of them) are hawking to be good is the online equivalent of expecting the pills they sell in shady gas stations that also sell ninja throwing stars to turn you into a tiger in bed.

It will be very interesting to watch how this unfolds.

Newegg of all companies runs good deals on their TikTok store. It's algorithmed to shit though, so the deals are effectively random.

What even is "good"?

Look at what Amazon sells. Page after page of generic products with nonsensical names. Investors and shareholders don't care, as long as people are handing over their payment information and buying something. That's all that seems to matter when it comes to tech valuation - the mere promise, however distant, that people will buy more crap on your digital land so you charge your little sales tax on every sale.

Gas station pills and ninja stars are how I imagine Joe Exotic became the Tiger King.

Amazon is also taking on tiktok.

The second tab on their app (inspire) is a tiktok inspired social network where creators can highlight products and earn money. I find it pretty fun to scroll for a while.

Is it really "fun"? That sounds like you're choosing to mix Tik-Tok and product advertising. I'm sure it's great for dopamine but... why would you choose to do that? Are you on the hunt for products that you aren't aware of yet? I genuinely cannot understand why someone would be interested in this.

I obviously can't speak for @dudus, but the "fun" is a distraction. Which is not a bad thing! But you open the app with some purpose, stumble upon the feed, and then you scroll. And it's kind of fun.

I don't think anyone seriously expects Amazon's TikTok style shorts to replace TikTok. But, by the same token, I really think it's absurd to suggest that people are going to start going to TikTok to make their purchasing decisions around toilet paper and shampoo.

Shopping is entertainment for many people. Therefore product discovery can also be entertainment.

I mean in the old days (like 20 years ago) people liked to spend their free time at the mall, so...

LOL. Inspire is nothing close to inspiring. Additionally, if Amazon was doing so well, it would not have struck such a lucrative deal with Tiktok to push Amazon product content on Tiktok platform. Amazon is losing its footing. It is grossly dated, and they fire anyone who can bring actual innovation to its services.

Instagram did the same thing very successfully. Considering "influencers" spur so many high value purchases nowadays it makes perfect sense to cut out the retail middlemen.

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