Group Giving & Getting

What’s new in the world of online retail is using technology to mimic, and improve on, the social aspect of shopping. Social shopping sites like StyleHive help shoppers compare notes before and after the fact, but now retailers like Charlotte Russe and Sears are taking it to the next level.

Apparel retailer Charlotte Russe’s ShopTogether software application by DecisionStep lets groups of friends pick favorites together in real-time. Shoppers can send friends a link to a specific product or an invitation to shop through Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, email or IM. Once they accept the invitation, ShopTogether connects them for a joint shopping session. 

Meanwhile Sears’ Givetogether focuses on team gift giving, helping family and friends team up to chip in for bigger ticket items. First, the organizer or recipient selects a product or service and creates a group gift goal. Second, they send an e-mail to invite contributors to participate. Participants give however much they choose via credit card, so no one has to act as banker for the group. The group can track progress toward the goal online. When the goal is met, the originator of the givetogether account chooses to give a Sears eGift Card to the recipient via e-mail or in person, and the recipient redeems the eGift Card online or in-store for the actual gift. (Sears also plans to expand the program to include products from Kmart.)

Said Bill Kiss, Sears’ divisional vice president of marketing, planning and program development. "Giving gifts is an important part of American life that becomes a little more challenging when loved ones are geographically dispersed. We want to deliver a pleasurable experience for the gift givers, one that leverages a sense of family or community and which ultimately thrills the recipient." 

While Sears and Charlotte Russe may not be gift stores in the usual sense of the word, the trends they have honed in on definitely apply to gift shopping as well; especially registry. Whether through a high-tech fix or some low tech creative thinking, online retailers shouldn’t assume virtual shopping is a solitary spree anymore.