The social magazine app Flipboard stretches its business as it adds a Pinterest-like catalog tool.
Flipboard, in the hopes to expand its business coverage, released an update on Monday which will give users ability to create specialized purchasing guides out of stuff found in Flipboard, as well as things on the Web. The purchasing guides with product information and price tags with working links for purchase can be placed into personalized magazines for later viewing.
The company longs to cater to the most well-liked brands and to cultivate partnerships with entertainment and journalistic outlets. In fact, it has already tied up with ModCloth, Fab, eBay, BirchBox, and Banana Republic.
As a way to start Flipboard's latest venture, it is launching 11 product-oriented magazines organized by its editorial team, as well as having entertainment icons and famous people to generate a compilation of their favorite products.
The Pinterest-like catalog tool has the ability to organize the app's magazines making it easy for users to look for purchasable items.
The creation process of the magazine for any retailer with a huge number of audiences will last for two to three weeks. However, the terms and conditions on content customization are still unclear.
Mike McCue, CEO of Flipboard, told CNET in an interview, "It's similar to what we do with publishers: We create series of templates for different device screens, and map them to their look and feel." He added, "Once we have it right, we flow their product content into template. Flipboard does the work of creating templates, and partners give us content feeds and do the curating."
The company is said to offer the catalog creation for free. Mc Cue said, "It's meant to be a starting point. By having the product look this way, it will drive more readers and more discovery of products by retailers."
"We are going to put energy into being the preeminent brand advertising place," McCue added. And that is where they are planning to drive their revenue.
Flipboard's business venture is not totally fashioned with the same clean and smart finish like the app. When clicking a "buy now" link, users are sometimes directed into a mobile site to complete the purchase, but soon, the company wants to revolutionize that through deeper integration. McCue said, "In the long run, we want to make the experience of Web sites like Banana Republic more optimized for touch."
