Does Online Measure Up to In-Store: Running Shoes

transcript

IN-STORE?measure up to

Running Shoes

DOES ONLINE

Tuesday, July 16, 13

THERE ARE

SOMETHINGSWE BUY BY

runningLIKEshoes

QUESTION:here’s

“how well canONLINE SITESREPLICATETHE IN-STOREEXPERIENCE?”

WE FOCUSED ON

5 SITES & 5 SHOES

* SHOES PICKED FROM RUNNERS’ WORLD SUMMER 2013 SHOE GUIDETuesday, July 16, 13

Gel-Cumulus 15

BROOKS

Defyance 6

NEW BALANCE

Free 3.0

SAUCONY

Ride 6

AND WENT SHOPPING...

FOR PERSPECTIVE,I ENLISTED THEHELP OF Kyle

not only does he manage a running store,he also uses the internet to research shoes.

we tried to fillin the graphTOGETHER,

onlineshopping

in-storeshopping

to determinethe size of the OVERLAP

THIS IS WHAT WE FOUND...

101how to researchrunning shoes

1Tuesday, July 16, 13

most running shoes are manufactured on a tiered system,

which means companies end up carrying similar “levels” of shoes at similar prices.

SIMPLY PUT... There can often be

very little difference between a number of shoes.

this iswhere

is veryuseful.ONLINE

Kyle uses company websites to look up shoe specs.

the little differences between shoes are found in details like:

Weight

Cushioning system

Heel-to-toe drop

close-upview of ASICS

EXPANDED

Weight

Heel-to-toe drop(info to calculate)

CushioningEXPANDED

close-upview of BROOKS

Cushioning

DOESN’T DISPLAY:WeightHeel-to-toe drop

close-upview of NEW BALANCE

EXPANDED

Cushioning

WeightDOESN’T DISPLAY:Heel-to-toe drop

close-upview of NIKE

Weight

Heel-to-toe drop

Cushioning

close-upview of SAUCONY

EXPANDED

Cushioning

Weight

DOESN’T DISPLAY:Heel-to-toe drop

WHAT DIDWE FIND?

There is NO industry-wide standardization of what product details a company must display online.

Product details are often couched in text, video, or graphics rather than set off in some easily detectable way.

THUS, if you’re not already familiar with these sites, it can be difficult to compare specs between shoes.

how to fit yourrunning shoes

Even after doing your research, it all really comes down to

how the shoe fits.

for online to completelyreplicate the in-store experience,companies must reproduce the individual in-store fitting process.

some companies don’t provide that

online alternative.

Two general size and width guides make

up the extent of the Asics fit guide.

EXPANDED

While New Balance boasts a large variety of widths, there is no guide to individually find the

right fit.Tuesday, July 16, 13

Even the customize option doesn’t provide

much variety - standard sizes, and 2 width options

Picking between shoes in the

Nike FREE line? Charts like

these are all you get *All of the shoes in the line have a so-called “sock-like” fit.

other companies have figured it out.

ARE TRYING HARDER.

BOTHBROOKS &

SAUCONYMAKE USE OFSHOEFITR

EXPANDED

Brooks provides even MORE options

WHAT DIDWE FIND?

The industry as a whole doesn’t seem to agree that adding in-depth fitting guides is an online priority.

Applications like SHOEFITR can greatly benefit online shoe shopping, but only if more companies adopt it.

BUT despite these efforts,Kyle points out that

only a running shoe specialist can tell you if that bunion will put pressure on that spot.

SIMPLY PUT... Even the most innovativeonline applications can’t replace analysis of the

individual foot.

OUTSIDE OPINION(reviews vs. expert consultation)

AT THE END OF THE DAY,SPECS AND DIAGRAMS CAN’T TELL YOU EVERYTHING...YET.

EXPERT CONSULTATION CAN GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE THAT YOU’RE MAKING THE RIGHT INVESTMENT.CAN THE SAME BE SAID FOR REVIEWS?

REVIEWS FROM OTHER CUSTOMERS CAN BE INCREDIBLY HELPFUL,IF THEY’RE DONE RIGHT.

* No reviews about Gel-Cumulus - this is for a different shoe

Star ratings for quick take-away

Briefconsumerpersonalprofile

Quick, pre-setquestions forgeneral aggregate review summary

Questions about individual fitBrief consumer

activity profile

Questionsabout individual fit

Consumerpersonal and activityprofile

Brief consumer activity profile

Questionsabout individual fit

Consumer personaland activityprofile

WHAT DIDWE FIND?

Many review templates ask consumers the same personal/activity details an in-store running shoe specialist might.

THUS, if all the consumers reviewing a shoe have similar personal/activity details to your own, chances are you’re looking at a good shoe for you too.

But whereas in-store specialists talk to hundreds of consumers, the shoes we looked at only got between 5-10 consumer reviews.

Is this enough aggregated perspective to go off on?

The choice is yours.

CONCLUSION

THE BIG CONSUMER QUESTION:“HOW MUCH INFORMATION DO I NEED BEFORE MAKING AN ONLINE PURCHASE?”

KYLE SAYS:

“The idea is that doing research can make you a bit of an informed consumer. But even the most informed consumer isn’t trying on the shoes.”

even as a running shoe specialist, Kyle says he always uses the internet when he wants a new shoe.(he’s even used mobile sites to lookup shoe specs on the fly.)

he just doesn’tbuy the shoes

ONLINE(He has to try them

on in-store to seal the deal.)

BUT PEOPLE ARE CLEARLYSTILL SHOPPING ONLINE ANYWAY.

SO WHAT’S UP?Tuesday, July 16, 13

INSTEAD OF TRYING TO SPEAK FOR THE PEOPLE,WE REALIZED WE HAD TO JUST LOOK AT OUR RESULTS AND ANSWER OUR INITIAL QUESTION:

IN-STORE?measure up toDOES ONLINE

THERE ARE 3 GENERAL COMPONENTS TO BUYING A GOOD

PAIR OF RUNNING SHOES:

RESEARCH

THE FIT

OUTSIDE OPINION

• Websites provide more product detail than is generally available in-store

• (Ideally) you can quickly compare specs between products

• Because there’s no standardization of which product specs to display and how to display them, making quick comparisons across sites can be difficult

THE RESEARCH

• If you’re a running shoe connoisseur, there are apps that quickly recommend related shoes, and estimate fit

• You can’t try them on

• Most companies don’t tailor their online fit guides to the individual foot

THE FIT

• Websites provide a variety of personalized review templates that bring consumers closer to others who’ve used the product

• You (potentially) have many perspectives, versus just one in-store

CONS:• Online reviews either get many perspectives or none at all; a running shoe specialist looks at hundreds of cases

• A running shoe specialist can ensure the shoe is right for the individual foot

OUTSIDE OPINION (via reviews)

YESTHE ANSWER?:

BUT DOES ONLINE FULLY REPLICATE THE IN-STORE EXPERIENCE?

NOTHE ANSWER?:

WHILE ONLINE CAN PROVIDE MUCH OF THE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE, WEBSITES MUST DO MORE TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE INDIVIDUAL CONSUMER.

WHEN IT COMES TO PRODUCT SPECS, WEBSITES MUST FOCUS ON QUALITY, AVAILABILITY & CONSISTENCY.

THEY MUST ALSO

PAY MORE ATTENTION TO FIT.

ONCE THOSE THINGS HAPPEN,

its up to theconsumerto decide.

Does Online Measure Up to In-Store: Running Shoes

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