While Shazam initially began as a music listening tool, brands such as Target and Diesel are embracing it this holiday season to enable scan-to-shop capabilities in their television ads.

A slew of major retailers have teamed up with Shazam to enable consumers to scan a branded logo to unlock exclusive content, including shoppable items and apparel lookbooks for upcoming collections. Scan-to-shop campaigns may play a larger role than usual this holiday season, due to their ability to entice on-the-go mobile users to discover more information and new products in a unique way.

?Shazam is one of the most widely distributed apps in the world, in the pocket of nearly every millennial and used daily by the most valued shopper segments sought by retailers,? said Larry Logan, chief marketing officer at Digimarc, Beaverton, OR. ?Mobile shoppers buy 25 percent more than non-mobilizers, and Shazam can play a key role in delivering an easy to use, direct link between desire and purchase."

Access to new marketers
The popularity of the Shazam app gives users access to a horde of new marketers, and vice versa. Whereas some brands previously relied on QR codes for marketing initiatives, they sometimes ran into trouble by requiring all consumers to download their standalone app before receiving the promised content.

However, Shazam?s ubiquity makes it an ideal channel with which to target the masses. Additionally, a large portion of its clientele consists of millennials, which may be perfect for brands seeking to reach younger customers who may not have previously been familiar with their products or services.

Last May, Target gave consumers a new way to explore and purchase its products through a partnership with Shazam, allowing users of the application able to scan any print or television ad to access shoppable content (see story).

Meanwhile, lifestyle brand Diesel is rolling out disruptive, native advertisements on Tinder and Shazam that showcase fall and winter apparel while underscoring the effectiveness of reaching younger consumers on popular mobile channels (see story).

?Shazam?s step is quite important as it provides immediate value to both consumers and brand marketers,? said Shuli Lowy, marketing director of mobile at Ping Mobile, New York. ?For consumers, expanding the scanning feature from music to a physical, shoppable experience adds an entire new dimension of usability to the app.

?The feature also allows brands to expand their gateway to commerce and provide trackable shopping experience,? she said. ?Shazam is especially well-situated to launch the scan-to-shop experience as consumers are already using the app for other forms of scanning.

?Mobile recognition technology has become increasingly more sophisticated?providing opportunities for brands to deliver dynamic, impactful engagement through scanning. When launching a scan-to-shop campaign brands must consider how they could make the UX flow smoothly as well as how they could optimize the content considering the context users are coming from.?

Taking over from QR
Shazam?s rise as a shopping app likely stems from increasing consumer demand for shoppable content on mobile. If consumers spot an item they like on a magazine page or billboard, they now expect the capability to scan the photo with their smartphone and shop the exact or similar product.

The strong call-to-action that scan-to-shop campaigns provide also deems them a top tactic for many marketers. By having a Shazamable icon, consumers can more easily be guided along the path to purchase.

Also, brands could conceivably offer ideas for complementary products based on previous purchases. Interested parties would likely appreciate the ability to scan an image to receive potentially desirable additional items.

Ultimately, Shazam?s capability of providing quick information and even faster commerce options has enabled it to switch gears from a music-only app to one of major shopping prowess.

?Our recent survey in conjunction with the Harris Poll showed nearly 80 percent of users across the board wanted additional information about a product after reading its packing,? Digimarc's Mr. Logan said. ?The more brands feed into that desire and give consumers additional value and entertainment, the more they will see success with their scan-to-shop campaigns.

?For campaigns not purely purchase-oriented, it?s all about delivering an experience that?s true and authentic to the brand, and ideally with surprise and delight beyond expectations.?

Final Take
Alex Samuely, staff writer on Mobile Marketer, New York