Lately I have been absolutely transfixed in a search for the best collaging tools for fashion bloggers. I have been scouring the Internet for tools that have great visuals that could also provide a monetizing element. While Polyvore seems to reign as the current go-to tool, a new company, Shop My Label, may provide the sweet spot we bloggers have been looking for: commerce and collaging, in one place.
To get the scoop on this new company and how it might be useful for fashion bloggers, I caught up over the phone with Shop My Label’s Founder and Chief Creative Officer Dearrick Knupp, and Jimmy Donlon, their SVP of Retail Business Development.
What is Shop My Label?
Shop My Label is a social commerce marketplace where users, called shopkeepers, can curate “shop windows” and earn money (via commissions) when someone purchases an item from one of their windows. The site is currently in Beta, with a commercial launch scheduled for early December.
What makes Shop My Label appealing to fashion bloggers?
- There are no application barriers, you can sign up and start creating windows instantly.
- Shop My Label gives you access to more than 3,000 brands through retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Singer22 (Lord & Taylor and Nordstrom will be added to SML in early 2013.)
- Shop My Label does not have a payment threshold. This means that after the universal 30-day hold on your commissions, if you’ve made only $10, you can request a check for exactly that amount.
- All purchases come with free shipping.
- Customers can complete buys from more than one brand or retailers in a single transaction, which encourages multiple purchases per customer.
- Every sale, from every brand and retailer has a flat 10 percent commission rate.
- In December, Shop My Label will launch their Blogger Marketplace Widget. With this, fashion and beauty bloggers can put SML’s shoppable visuals directly into their blog content, and readers can purchase from the window without leaving your blog.
- Your shop windows can be branded and personalized with your blog’s logo, personal style photos and Instagrams.
It’s easy to use, and almost there.
I think this tool is an exciting step in the right direction for monetized visuals for bloggers. Creating an account is easy, as is creating your shop window and then sharing it on Facebook, Twitter, Google + or a Pinterest board. (I created a quick example in about 5 minutes…) Currently, your windows cannot be published to your blog as working images, but you can save the image, post it, and link it to your Shop My Label account.
Personally, I think the success of SML amongst fashion and beauty bloggers will hinge on the Blogger Marketplace Widget launch in December. This tool will allow your window to be an active, shoppable commission source that lives right on your site. That’s something I could definitely see myself using all the time for my personal blog.
As far as just how useful Shop My Label is for bloggers now, it depends on how you want to spend your time. Many of us already have so many digital balls in the air (if you will) between our social media channels, affiliate networks and our actual blog, that adding another one in the mix is no joke. However, if you’re a blogger just getting started, you like making collages, or you’re looking to test out a new revenue stream, it’s worth your time to try it out.
