From music to books to expensive digital cameras, consumers have become quite comfortable buying a variety of items online. But there are some purchases, like running shoes, that have traditionally required more of a personal investment.
We picked five of the top running shoe manufacturers, deconstructed their online product pages and analyzed how well online can replace the in-store experience.
44. close-up
viewof 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
58. close-up
viewof ASICS
* No reviews about Gel-Cumulus - this is for a different shoe
Star ratings for quick take-away
Brief
consumer
personal
profile
Tuesday, July 16, 13
64. Many review templates
ask consumers the same
personal/activity details
an in-store running shoe
specialist might.
Tuesday, July 16, 13
65. 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.
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66. 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
67. Is this enough aggregated
perspective to go off on?
The choice is yours.
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70. KYLESAYS:
“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
76. THERE ARE 3 GENERAL
COMPONENTS TO BUYING A GOOD
PAIR OF RUNNING SHOES:
RESEARCH
THE FIT
OUTSIDE OPINION
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77. 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
78. 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
79. 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