IN-STORE?measure up to
Running Shoes
DOES ONLINE
Tuesday, July 16, 13
THERE ARE
SOMETHINGSWE BUY BY
FEEL
Tuesday, July 16, 13
runningLIKEshoes
Tuesday, July 16, 13
QUESTION:here’s
the
Tuesday, July 16, 13
“how well canONLINE SITESREPLICATETHE IN-STOREEXPERIENCE?”
Tuesday, July 16, 13
WE FOCUSED ON
5 SITES & 5 SHOES
* SHOES PICKED FROM RUNNERS’ WORLD SUMMER 2013 SHOE GUIDETuesday, July 16, 13
ASICS
Gel-Cumulus 15
Tuesday, July 16, 13
BROOKS
Defyance 6
Tuesday, July 16, 13
NEW BALANCE
880v3
Tuesday, July 16, 13
NIKE
Free 3.0
Tuesday, July 16, 13
SAUCONY
Ride 6
Tuesday, July 16, 13
AND WENT SHOPPING...
Tuesday, July 16, 13
FOR PERSPECTIVE,I ENLISTED THEHELP OF Kyle
Tuesday, July 16, 13
not only does he manage a running store,he also uses the internet to research shoes.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
we tried to fillin the graphTOGETHER,
onlineshopping
in-storeshopping
Tuesday, July 16, 13
to determinethe size of the OVERLAP
Tuesday, July 16, 13
THIS IS WHAT WE FOUND...
Tuesday, July 16, 13
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.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
SIMPLY PUT... There can often be
very little difference between a number of shoes.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
this iswhere
is veryuseful.ONLINE
Tuesday, July 16, 13
Kyle uses company websites to look up shoe specs.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
the little differences between shoes are found in details like:
Weight
Cushioning system
Heel-to-toe drop
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of ASICS
EXPANDED
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of ASICS
Weight
Heel-to-toe drop(info to calculate)
CushioningEXPANDED
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of BROOKS
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of BROOKS
Cushioning
DOESN’T DISPLAY:WeightHeel-to-toe drop
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NEW BALANCE
EXPANDED
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NEW BALANCE
EXPANDED
Cushioning
WeightDOESN’T DISPLAY:Heel-to-toe drop
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NIKE
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NIKE
Weight
Heel-to-toe drop
Cushioning
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of SAUCONY
EXPANDED
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of SAUCONY
EXPANDED
Cushioning
Weight
DOESN’T DISPLAY:Heel-to-toe drop
Tuesday, July 16, 13
WHAT DIDWE FIND?
Tuesday, July 16, 13
There is NO industry-wide standardization of what product details a company must display online.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
Product details are often couched in text, video, or graphics rather than set off in some easily detectable way.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
THUS, if you’re not already familiar with these sites, it can be difficult to compare specs between shoes.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
how to fit yourrunning shoes
2Tuesday, July 16, 13
Even after doing your research, it all really comes down to
how the shoe fits.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
for online to completelyreplicate the in-store experience,companies must reproduce the individual in-store fitting process.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
some companies don’t provide that
online alternative.
MANY
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of ASICS
Two general size and width guides make
up the extent of the Asics fit guide.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NEW BALANCE
EXPANDED
EXPANDED
While New Balance boasts a large variety of widths, there is no guide to individually find the
right fit.Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NIKE
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.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
other companies have figured it out.
ARE TRYING HARDER.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
BOTHBROOKS &
SAUCONYMAKE USE OFSHOEFITR
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of BROOKS
EXPANDED
EXPANDED
Brooks provides even MORE options
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of BROOKS
Brooks provides even MORE options
Tuesday, July 16, 13
WHAT DIDWE FIND?
Tuesday, July 16, 13
The industry as a whole doesn’t seem to agree that adding in-depth fitting guides is an online priority.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
Applications like SHOEFITR can greatly benefit online shoe shopping, but only if more companies adopt it.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
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.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
SIMPLY PUT... Even the most innovativeonline applications can’t replace analysis of the
individual foot.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
3
OUTSIDE OPINION(reviews vs. expert consultation)
Tuesday, July 16, 13
AT THE END OF THE DAY,SPECS AND DIAGRAMS CAN’T TELL YOU EVERYTHING...YET.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
EXPERT CONSULTATION CAN GIVE YOU CONFIDENCE THAT YOU’RE MAKING THE RIGHT INVESTMENT.CAN THE SAME BE SAID FOR REVIEWS?
Tuesday, July 16, 13
REVIEWS FROM OTHER CUSTOMERS CAN BE INCREDIBLY HELPFUL,IF THEY’RE DONE RIGHT.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of ASICS
* No reviews about Gel-Cumulus - this is for a different shoe
Star ratings for quick take-away
Briefconsumerpersonalprofile
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of BROOKS
Quick, pre-setquestions forgeneral aggregate review summary
Questions about individual fitBrief consumer
activity profile
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NEW BALANCE
Questionsabout individual fit
Consumerpersonal and activityprofile
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of NIKE
Brief consumer activity profile
Tuesday, July 16, 13
close-upview of SAUCONY
Questionsabout individual fit
Consumer personaland activityprofile
Tuesday, July 16, 13
WHAT DIDWE FIND?
Tuesday, July 16, 13
Many review templates ask consumers the same personal/activity details an in-store running shoe specialist might.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
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.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
But whereas in-store specialists talk to hundreds of consumers, the shoes we looked at only got between 5-10 consumer reviews.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
Is this enough aggregated perspective to go off on?
The choice is yours.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
CONCLUSION
4Tuesday, July 16, 13
THE BIG CONSUMER QUESTION:“HOW MUCH INFORMATION DO I NEED BEFORE MAKING AN ONLINE PURCHASE?”
Tuesday, July 16, 13
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.”
Tuesday, July 16, 13
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.)
Tuesday, July 16, 13
he just doesn’tbuy the shoes
ONLINE(He has to try them
on in-store to seal the deal.)
Tuesday, July 16, 13
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:
Tuesday, July 16, 13
IN-STORE?measure up toDOES ONLINE
Tuesday, July 16, 13
THERE ARE 3 GENERAL COMPONENTS TO BUYING A GOOD
PAIR OF RUNNING SHOES:
RESEARCH
THE FIT
OUTSIDE OPINION
Tuesday, July 16, 13
PROS:
• Websites provide more product detail than is generally available in-store
• (Ideally) you can quickly compare specs between products
CONS:
• 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
Tuesday, July 16, 13
PROS:
• If you’re a running shoe connoisseur, there are apps that quickly recommend related shoes, and estimate fit
CONS:
• You can’t try them on
• Most companies don’t tailor their online fit guides to the individual foot
THE FIT
Tuesday, July 16, 13
PROS:
• 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)
Tuesday, July 16, 13
YESTHE ANSWER?:
Tuesday, July 16, 13
BUT DOES ONLINE FULLY REPLICATE THE IN-STORE EXPERIENCE?
Tuesday, July 16, 13
NOTHE ANSWER?:
Tuesday, July 16, 13
WHILE ONLINE CAN PROVIDE MUCH OF THE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE, WEBSITES MUST DO MORE TO PAY ATTENTION TO THE INDIVIDUAL CONSUMER.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
WHEN IT COMES TO PRODUCT SPECS, WEBSITES MUST FOCUS ON QUALITY, AVAILABILITY & CONSISTENCY.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
THEY MUST ALSO
PAY MORE ATTENTION TO FIT.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
ONCE THOSE THINGS HAPPEN,
Tuesday, July 16, 13
its up to theconsumerto decide.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
Tuesday, July 16, 13