RNKD Encourages Consumer Sharing, Optimizes Voice of the Customer Strategies

New sites such as RNKD (pronounced “ranked”) are emerging to create a community of retailers’ most loyal customers. Launched in beta during November 2011, RNKD was designed as a social network that allows users to share photos of items in their closets. Photos are uploaded and organized by item category, brand and the store where it was purchased. Subscribers receive points for every photo they upload into their RNKD gallery and whenever someone “likes” their items. Points are redeemable for gift cards from retailers, including Gilt Groupe and Zappos.com.

To increase the frequency of photo uploads and overall user interaction, the RNKD platform conducts special contests such as “highest rated shoes,” “best watch collection” and “best closet.” Winners are chosen based on the size of users’ collections; the more photos subscribers upload, the greater likelihood they have of winning. Integrating a game-inspired points system increases usage and overall member engagement, according to Nick Swinmurn, founder of RNKD.

“We believed that if we tapped into what people already have in their closet, there would be an opportunity to create a stronger community,” Swinmurn noted. “Most applications focus on new items people buy or what shoppers are going to purchase in the near future. Since most people consider their closets very personal, we needed an effective incentive to get them to share what’s in them. Using rewards or gift cards was a way to show members what they can get back for participating.” The RNKD platform archives photographs of accessories and clothing, allowing retailers to observe their target consumer base and track popular items, according to Swinmurn. This provides brands and merchants with detailed insight typically not found on social networking sites.

Excerpted from "RNKD Encourages Consumer Sharing, Optimizes Voice of the Customer Strategies" (RetailTouchpoints.com, December 14, 2011)