N-...Socks when you demand performance WEBSITE & CATALOG BEST PRACTICES GUIDE
INTRODUCTION As a brand builds their identity, it is important to look at successful competitors to have an understanding of what tactics work within the market. This guide brings together brands similar to Pro Feet in order to analyze which tactics create engaging websites and catalogs. The brands that were analyzed were in either the law enforcement market or big names for performance sock makers. Each of these websites and catalogs were dissected to understand how the brand reaches their consumers. The analysis was broken down into four categories of strategic elements. This research will serve as a guiding reference to update Pro Feet s website and catalog. page 1
I. PRODUCT VISUALS SHOWING IMAGES OF THE PRODUCT AND REAL PEOPLE The key to successful websites and catalogs is the use of images. People react to images that shed positive light on a specific product. It s important to recognize that people want to be able to imagine themselves in merchandise to decide if they are interested in buying. A company that successfully uses this tactic is Nike. The example below shows the combination of product descriptions and photos. This strategy provides a visual aid that shows the value and actual use of the product. SHOWING IMAGES OF THE PRODUCT IN AN ENVIRONMENT In addition to seeing real people wear the product, people react to seeing products placed in cultural settings. Seeing a product in an environment that is easily relatable allows the consumer to see how the product would fit into their life. A few brands that do this well are Patagonia, LL Bean and Under Armour. Patagonia and L.L Bean use similar advertising tactics and place the product on a model in an idealistic setting that a consumer wants to be in. The two brands differ, however, because Patagonia often depicts its products being worn by individuals doing adventurous activities like mountain climbing or skiing. These types of images are appealing to people because the individuals portrayed look like they are having fun. Potential customers want to have as much fun as those wearing Patagonia. Patagonia advertising above page 2
I. PRODUCT VISUALS Whereas LL Bean s advertising and website on the other hand depicts individuals doing leisurely activities. They look more relaxed and cozy. LL Bean s products are designed to be more comfortable than fashion forward. Nevertheless LL Bean and Patagonia both use images to their transport their product and consumer to an idealistic place. L.L. Bean advertising above Alternatively, Under Armour uses cultural placement to distinguish their different target markets. For example, the visuals used to advertise their tactical line differs greatly from the visuals used for their sporting gear and socks. The men s socks image below shows the socks in use in a sport environment, letting the consumer envision themselves using the product. Whereas, the Under Armour s tactical image reflects the environment of the tactical sector of their brand through the black and white use of the visual. This is a successful strategy because it is essential to distinguish the different markets of a brand to tap into their multiple personalities and atmospheres. Under Armour s Sport Line above Under Armour s Tactical Line above page 3
I. PRODUCT DETAILS SHOWING PRODUCT DETAILS A brands website and catalogue often display product descriptions and their features. This is important because it informs potential customers. A good description will play an important role in the purchasing habits of the consumer. The description should be concise yet give background on fabric, sizingand unique benefits for the consumer. Description of a Baretta coat L.L. Bean Proudly American In their descriptions certain share information about their company to give consumers compelling reasons to choose them. For example, LL Bean takes great pride in the fact that their rain boots are made in Maine. Americans tend to gravitate towards American made products. HIGHLIGHTING UNIQUE BENEFITS Websites and Catalogues that appeal to the consumer most often contain high definition banners with descriptions of product categories. These boxes sometimes referred to as call out boxes ; allow the consumer a quick peek into the product they are shopping for. The call out box has bold fonts, strong descriptions, and high definition photographs. The photographs often contain someone using the product in a practical situation (i.e. hunter wearing boots, women wearing jacket hiking). For example, 5.11 uses an array of call out boxes for those interested in military supplies. page 4
II. PRODUCT DETAILS Reference 5.11 website image below The benefits to call out boxes are almost comparable to window-shopping in real life. The banners are visually appealing devices to attract shoppers further into the website. The banners allow the shopper to develop emotions for the product before pursuing options. The banners offer a unique shopping experience on a company website. It allows the website to be colorful and dynamic, instead of a plain website with a.pdf catalog. For example, Sportsmen s guide offers a page of high quality banners that have strong language. Immediately the consumer is drawn toward the images with boldfaced descriptions and display of practical product use. See Sportsman s Guide image and banners below page 5
II. PRODUCT DETAILS SHOWING OPTIONS (COLORS AND STYLES) Variety is key. People want options when purchasing specific products. Galco is a company that specializes in gun holsters and offers a wide selection depending on how they ll be used. They have variety of holsters but their selection does not get overwhelming. Offering too much variety can become overwhelming and confusing for the customer. People want to have options but too many can be detrimental so it is important to highlight in descriptions how each of the variations differ from one another. Galco s gun holster selection: For law enforcement For females For civilians For concealed weapons Image above depicts Galco s Holsters selection THE LOGO EFFECT A logo can play a major role in influencing a person s purchasing habits especially when the logo is widely recognized. Nike, Beretta, and Under Armour have famous logos and people often purchase products just so they can flash the logo. It is important to establish the logo in connection with the brand in order to gain recognition among consumers. A tactic used by many of the most recognized brands is to post their logo on both the product and consistently throughout the websites and catalogs. Recognized logos: page 6
II. PRODUCT DETAILS COMBINING PICTURES AND TEXT Offering a mix of descriptive words and graphics of a product s composition and benefits is important because it ensures that people are informed about the product s specifications. Nike uses text and images to explain the technology behind the Flyknit running shoes. By doing this a person can read and visually see the technology that went into creating the shoe. Certain aspects of a product cannot always be explained simply using words or pictures. Employing images and words together can create a more persuasive visual. When using both images and words is important to have a balanced and simple layout as not to overwhelm the viewer. For catalogs particularly photos should be at the center of each page, with little text and minimal description. They should serve as more of a booklet with a story, rather than a multitude of advertisements of products. Reference the Flyknit advertising above GET CUSTOMERS INVOLVED AND SHOW THE RATINGS Consumers have an inherent distrust of brands because they believe that brands do not always have their best interest at heart. They do, however, trust their peers. Customers use product ratings in the same consideration as if they were a recommendation from a friend. This feature should be displayed in an easy to locate place within the product description. Customers who rate the product will feel a strong connection to the product and product ratings will help to guide other consumers. page 7
III. LANGUAGE CONNECT WITH CUSTOMER VALUES In addition to seeing real people wear the product, people react to seeing products placed in cultural settings. Seeing a product in an environment that is easily relatable allows the consumer to see how the product would fit into their life. A few brands that do this well are Patagonia, LL Bean and Under Armour. Patagonia and L.L Bean use similar advertising tactics and place the product on a model in an idealistic setting that a consumer wants to be in. The two brands differ, however, because Patagonia often depicts its products being worn by individuals doing adventurous activities like mountain climbing or skiing. These types of images are appealing to people because the individuals portrayed look like they are having fun. Potential customers want to have as much fun as those wearing Patagonia. Patagonia s Vote for the Environment Patagonia s Promotion of Environmental Efforts WORDS THAT CALL TO ACTION Call to action language is different from connecting the language to customer values. Call to action language creates a greater ideal of who the consumer wants to be. In the banner below they show an officer who embodies the ideal person in the target market. This person is confident, they are aggressive and they push boundaries. The wording Engineered for the Extreme implies that if the consumer purchases this product they too can embody the ideal. The wording is easy to read, dynamic and concise. The meaning behind the saying is much more impactful than just the words. Visually, the words are also strong, large and stand out against the image. This is the type of visual language that will create a desire within the consumer. Patagonia also does a good job using call to action language in their website. They usually mix wording with a beautiful background and someone doing adventurous activities. All these factors put together inspire people to go out and experience nature while wearing a Patagonia product. page 8
III. LANGUAGE Below are images that inspire TELLING A STORY One of the greatest tactics for creating a connection between the consumer and the brand in general is to have a compelling story. This story brings together every element in the catalogs and the website. It dictates the language, the types of visuals and the brand values. A story uses both visuals and creative language to differentiate them from the competition. In the example below, 5.11 uses bold colors and concise statements to convey who they are as a brand and in turn who their customers are. Although the story should be an element on the website or catalog, it should also be the guiding force for all decisions about how to portray the brand. page 9
IV. ORGANIZATION CONSISTENCY IS KEY Attractive websites and catalogs have clear and defined organization. There are header tabs for each consumer and then more specific tabs inside the selected page. The key to a productive website is ease of navigation. A consumer does not want to be overwhelmed with too many graphics, text, and flashing banners. Having a consistent layout wins the consumer over. Consumers need to be lead or handheld into the buying process. MAKING PRODUCTS EASY TO FIND Organization allows the website to prosper. The emphasis needs to be on navigation. Headers that lead to banners with strong language and high quality graphics, then a page of products accompanied by simple and confident descriptions. If a consumer is looking for basketball shoes the process is straight forward. The user select s the men s Tab, finds the basketball or athletic section, chooses an appealing or highly reviewed shoe and begins to customize. See Nike s page layout below for an example. See Nike navigation below page 10
V. CONCLUSION The strategic elements highlighted in this guide are reoccurring tactics used by companies with very successful advertising. Pro Feet has the opportunity to take inspiration from these companies and modify their website and catalogue so that it encompasses the elements that will help it to continue to improve. This research draws the conclusions that easy to use navigation tools, a powerful concept and images of real people are essential to creating an effective website and catalogue. Pro Feet is unique because unlike many other brands, they stretch across multiple sectors and have varying target audiences. In order to understand how other brands are able to separate their targets, the team looked at Nike and Under Armour s websites and catalogs. The conclusion was that they use clear organization. The organization on their website leads each target audience to the specific section of their site. Whether they are a hunter, a college athlete or a soccer mom, it is easy to distinguish what parts of the site are aimed towards which group. Pro Feet s website does have the distinct categories under Shop Online and with different images of the target market but there needs to be a stronger distinction in the headers and on the homepage. When a customer visits the homepage, they would think that Pro Feet sells socks only for teams. If the homepage housed four distinct tabs that identified Team Socks, Esteem Athletics, Law Enforcement/Public Service and Military. These tabs would lead to separate pages that hold the subsections for the different target audiences. The Esteem Athletics and Team Socks pages should also feature the Pro Feet videos on their tab pages because currently they are hidden in the media tab. By creating an easy to use organization structure, each target audience will have an easier time finding their needs. A common theme that was shown throughout the competitor analysis was people as models. Brands used real people to model the product and show how the product looks while in use. This visual allows the consumers to see themself in the product. The use of models also allows for a stronger connection to a cultural environment. Many of the companies who specialized in tactical gear, use visuals that place their product in a setting that the consumers can see themself in. Pro Feet has the ability to join their competitors in using real people in their visuals. The Live Oak Creative Team has the creative talent and knowledge to do a photo shoot that is low cost and will produce many options to create visuals. The team has contacts at a local police department, who would be willing to be models for the Law Enforcement pictures. These shots can be focused on the environment and be photoshopped to create stunning visuals. These visuals can then be used for online advertisements, the headers on the website or as the images that go on display cases. page 11