Taking a step away from the conventional, Flipkart has announced the launch of its chat service called Ping, which is designed to enable customer to shop with friends. The move has been made to render a social edge to online shopping experience.
“Shopping is primarily a social activity and going for it with friends and family has been the norm since time immemorial. Online shopping, on the other hand, has largely remained a solo experience. Ping aims to transform online shopping by allowing users to talk to each other [in] real-time in order to make decisions and decide on what to buy,” maintained Punit Soni, Flipkart’s Chief Product Officer.
“India is leading the mobile revolution in the world & mobile is no more just a choice” – @punitsoni #FlipkartPing pic.twitter.com/sQ0SXa6RiY
— Flipkart (@Flipkart) August 25, 2015
Ping is now available in Flipkart’s Android app, where it requires an invite. Check out what Twitteratis had to say about this new feature:
#FlipkartPing is revolutionary for online shopping. Now I can be social on @Flipkart too! Social networking level 1000x! — Tanya Dubey (@tanyadubey21) August 25, 2015
Very interesting and innovative thing by Flipkart #flipkartping, No need to leave app to discuss any products with friends. Cool..
— Pushpak K (@pushp4k) August 26, 2015
Since Flipkart is planning to go mobile only soon, the launch of this chat feature looks like a measure to cement the purpose of the company’s app. It is a strategic move to enhance customer engagement on smartphones as Ping would render an interactive online shopping experience to users.
