What’s the One Thing QVC, the Home Shopping Network and Snapchat All Have In Common?

1/ Posit the following…

2/ The unbundling of content for cable companies is in full swing (HBO, CBS, etc.)

3/ Yet there is one programming genre that has been untouched: QVC & the Home Shopping Network (HSN).

4/ QVC & HSN use TV as a primary means for promotion of the products they sell…

5/ …yet they also apply an ephemeral aspect to sales: the countdown clock.

6/ QVC & HSN still rely on people picking up a phone, calling in their order and paying with a credit card.

7/ QVC and HSN have a minimal web presence relative to major e-commerce players & their mobile presence is even smaller.

8/ Can QVC and HSN detach from the cable providers like HBO did?

9/ Can QVC and HSN become a vertically integrated company no longer relying on a 30-year-old way of making purchases?

10/ Doubtful.

11/ As more eyeballs move away from TV and onto mobile devices who is primed to disrupt QVC and HSN?

12/ Vertically integrated companies with large audiences building mobile experiences with a focus on content creation and distribution.

13/ So who is building a vertically integrated mobile experience with a large audience and a focus on content creation and distribution?

14/ Snapchat.

15/ With the launch of Snapchat’s Discovery tab, they have officially proclaimed themselves a media company.

16/ Snapchat also has payment capabilities baked in as well with Snapcash.

17/ Imagine Snapchat using its Discovery platform as a means of selling products to its users; payment via Snapcash.

18/ Snapchat can either create their own Snapshop Network or partner with someone and take a margin on each transaction.

19/ What’s the one thing QVC, HSN and Snapchat all have in common?

20/ Ephemerality.

21/ Imagine Snapchat creates a storefront that sells goods but only for “a limited time”…

22/ With nearly 70% of Snapchat users under 25, Snapchat is poised to sell directly to the most coveted demographic: teens.