• by Melynda Fuller , January 10, 2020

When Group Nine media acquired PopSugar last year, PopSugar’s Sparkle platform came with it.

Sparkle is a mobile-optimized publishing platform specializing in social commerce; it allows marketers and retailers to build experiences for customers through a suite of mini apps.

Brands using Sparkle can activate shopping across multiple retailers, while retailers can create customized pages that feature multiple SKUs and collect purchase intent data.

Group Nine’s new ecommerce ad solution “Sparkle Ads” builds on Sparkle’s value by giving advertisers the power to create turnkey, shoppable ads from Amazon and Walmart that feature their products.

While Sparkle will launch on PopSugar’s website, Sparkle and Sparkle Ads will eventually extend to all Group Nine brands, including The Dodo, Thrillist, NowThis and Seeker.

Campbell’s and a global-cleaning company were the first brand partners to try out Sparkle Ads in its beta launch. Spark Foundry, Campbell’s media agency, assisted the brand in its participation in Sparkle Ads beta launch.

“Sparkle Ads marks the latest expansion of our ecommerce suite and creates frictionless commerce solutions that make shopping easier for consumers,” said Chris George, COO of Group Nine Media.

Group Nine plans to make Sparkle Ads available as a unit that can be placed on other publisher websites. Users will eventually be able to connect with Group-Nine affiliated retailers like Kohl’s, Shopify and The Gap, in addition to Walmart and Amazon.