If you’ve ever wanted to be an influencer but also, sort of, not, then Flip is the app for you.
A cross between TikTok and Yelp, the video reviewing platform lets pretty much anyone be a creator. To be a Flip creator, all you have to do is make a video between 8 and 90 seconds testing and reviewing products.
In an interview with The Verge, Noor Agha, CEO and founder of Flip, emphasized how Flip brings the kind of “realness” influencer-driven e-commerce lacks.
“I generally believe the influencer ecosystem of selling you stuff is not something that’s [on the rise],” he said. “I think there is a real ache for any realness online, [for] anything that is real and not scripted and not filtered a thousand times.”
Or, as reporter Mia Sato puts it, “People don’t want to keep buying products from paid shills that say each camera, pillowcase, or teeth whitening strips are amazing, brilliant, must-buys. … They want unscripted, real people talking about products, even if it’s at times excruciatingly awkward to watch.”
For an experiential piece, Sato tried her hand at being a Flip creator — but it’s fair to say her experience was so-so.
Flip creators earn 10-40% commission based on both product sales and video views. As Sato points out, the platform rewards a “willingness to try” to sway viewers with users only having to make $20 minimum to cash out.
But all in all, I don’t think TikTok Shop has anything to worry about.
