The MikMak App Is Targeting The Millennials

Growing up in the ‘90s, I always saw the best infomercials like OxyClean and ShamWow!, but of course these types of hyperbolized commercials would be considered cringeworthy these days, especially because it’s hard to capture the interest of millennials. However, the former Global Digital Director of Gap, Rachel Tipograph created MikMak, an online retail app for millennials that uses a wide variety of commercial styles to see what draws in this huge age range of teens and young adults.

MikMak sells things like cosmetics, tech gadgets, and home decor. Each one of their products have short and sweet infomercials that range from informational to funny and everything in-between. As MikMak is currently in its public beta phase on iOS, Tipograph is using this time to find out what type of infomercial works best on her target audience. She said that most really dig a balance between humorous and informational because the comedy keeps it entertaining, but at the same time, the product details are helpful to know about when you’re debating whether or not to purchase something.

MikMak wants to keep the general feel of their app to be kind of like YouTube — it’s as if your friend were to be recommending a product to you as opposed to a random energetic man who’s telling you to hurry and call some 1-800-number.

MikMak reminds me of YouTuber Ryan Higa because Higa has done infomercial parodies where he would exaggerate everything. He’d talk twice as fast as a normal spokesperson, come up with ridiculously hilarious prices, and say everything with a super sarcastic, tongue-in-cheek tone. Considering Higa currently has over 14 million subscribers and was the number one most subscribed YouTuber from 2008 to 2011, it’s apparent that this type of humor works great with millennials.

Hopefully MikMak will find success using the same humorous, informercial-type tactics. If you’ve been looking for a new pair of sunglasses or need some new earbuds and a good laugh, download MikMak from the App Store to try it out.

Image: mikmaktv/Instagram