Naver Shopping Ends Page Competition... Applies Infinite Scroll

Infinite Scroll Applied to Mobile Shopping Starting January Next Year
Increased Exposure Opportunities for Sellers' Products... Expected Boost in Ad Visibility

[Asia Economy Reporter Yuri Choi] Naver is applying an infinite scroll method in mobile shopping that allows users to see new products without turning pages. As sellers' opportunities for product exposure increase, it is expected to open the way for new sellers who had difficulty entering the top pages.

According to the industry on the 28th, Naver will change the mobile shopping search page from a paginated format to an infinite scroll format starting January next year. Currently, it is being tested on 30% of users. The paginated format divides products into pages. When searching, products on page 1 are displayed first, and users must click the page to move to the next products. In contrast, the infinite scroll format continuously shows new products as users swipe up on the screen with their fingers.

Naver is applying the infinite scroll method to enhance consumer convenience and increase sellers' opportunities for product exposure. From the consumer's perspective, they can continuously view products without clicking separate pages. Sellers also have more chances to expose their products even if they fall behind in search rankings. A Naver official explained, "On small mobile screens, even one page click requires considerable effort," adding, "Using the infinite scroll method ultimately allows more products to be exposed."

Sellers who competed to occupy the top pages are looking forward to the new system. Previously, many purchases were made from products on the top pages, so exposure decreased as pages went further back. Since best-selling products rarely dropped from the top pages, new sellers found it difficult to enter.

On Naver Shopping, users can choose product sorting criteria such as price order, review order, and registration date order, but most view products by the default Naver ranking order. The ranking order is determined based on ▲relevance index according to the search term and product information ▲popularity reflecting product clicks, sales performance, purchase reviews, and freshness ▲trustworthiness reflecting penalties for violating Naver's operational guidelines.

Mr. Kim, who operates a store on Naver Shopping, said, "Previously, whether a product appeared on page 1 determined sales, but now products that were behind will have exposure opportunities and can lead to sales," adding, "However, since scrolling can be done easily, we are considering images that can leave a strong impression."

The effect of advertising exposure is also expected to increase. Previously, ads appeared at the top of each page, but in the scroll format, they appear intermittently in the middle of the screen. Ads on lower pages, which had lower unit prices than top pages, are also expected to have higher exposure frequency.