Kelly Mooney's blog about the online shopping experience from the customer's point of view -- MooneyThinks.com

Crate & Barrel Email Polite, but Hasty

It's wedding season--at least here at Resource--and I find myself on the registry sites again. The most recent was from Crate & Barrel and the overall experience was pretty smooth, I have to say. It's what happened after that struck me as odd.

I found the right item and went through the checkout process to purchase. I am registered at the site, but for some reason I decided to checkout as a guest. Looking back, I'm not sure why. I think it was just the rush of the moment. Looking at the single button on the "guest" side and the email address and password boxes on the "sign in" side. I think for half a second it felt like work.

So I went through the form and saw that the check box for signing me up for Crate & Barrel emails was already checked. I already get (and enjoy) them, but didn't want to be signed up twice. (Do you know how many retailers send me duplicate emails every week???) So I unchecked the box, purchased my gift and moved on.

Much to my surprise, the site read this as an unsubscribe, because right after my purchase, I got an email from C&B, and the subject line wasn't anything to the effect of "Order Confirmation," which is what I would have expected.

Rather, it was an "Unsubscribe Request" email. To be honest, the email was very nice--I love the headline, "It's Been a Pleasure." Overall, really well executed, but it isn't what I had intended. Now I have to go back and re-sign up for those beautiful C&B emails.

Is Flash-y E-commerce Always a Safe Bet?

I don't want to let Nike's re-launch of its online store go by without mention. It happened a couple weeks ago, but I've spent some time gathering my thoughts and consulting with our technology folks.

Yes, it's beautiful. Yes, it's slick. And I like how products come to me in layers, rather than sending me out all over the site, but in the end, my goal is to complete the sales transaction. That may be hampered by one particularly glaring security issue.

See, I hate to be a wimp, but it's unnerving to use the checkout because the page is not secure--the URL is http, not https, and my browser's security padlock is nowhere in sight. You're not fooling me with the Verisign logo either--that just tells me you own a certificate, not that you're using it on the page I'm viewing (or the data I'm sending you). Perception is reality, so even though my development team could "pcap my session" (essentially, take a peek at network traffic) to verify that SSL was being used to encrypt my credit card number as my transaction went through, this is not a precaution typical shoppers are going to take, and likely not a risk they would assume when it comes to their credit cards.

Consumers tell us all the time that trust is a big issue with them. Nike should have followed the current best practices to secure the whole page, making it easy for consumers to recognize things like the padlock and the https. Will consumers see the Verisign logo and be OK? Likely they will, but is that really looking out for consumers? Not in my book.

Happy Anniversary, to Us

Today was a very special day here at Resource Interactive, and I'd like to take just a second to acknowledge that exactly 25 years ago Nancy Kramer, our CEO and my business partner, opened our doors--with a single client (2,500 miles away), another start-up, Apple Computer.

Since 1981, Kramer (no one calls her "Nancy") has shared a spark,a passion, an excitement for the work we do, for making our clients AND our associates successful and for "believing that anything is possible." That belief is in the water here.

With a quarter of a century of experience under our belt, more than 150 associates in Columbus, additional associates in PA and CA, international partners, and, most importantly, a list of successful Fortune 1000 clients, we believe that spark is just as strong as it was 25 years ago. Look out! We are already dreaming up the next 25 years...!

Barnes & Noble Tries to Sell 1 Book

Do you have scan fatigue? Okay, that's just a fancy label I just made up....what I mean is are you tired of receiving emails promoting so many products that it takes a long time to sift through the recommendations so you simply delete the email and move on? Admittedly, I do that more often than I probably realize. I'm a guilty participant in our culture of snippets, headlines, summaries and short cuts. Maybe that's why this email from  Barnes & Noble stood out to me. They're promoting ONE book. Just one.

To be honest, when I first looked at it, I thought about how they can pick any book they want to "sell" and who knows if it's any good. But then I read the lengthy description of  the story and was immediately drawn in. And more than just the nice visual and overview, the email communicates a discount and tells you about meeting the author in the brick-and-mortar stores, joining the online reading groups to discuss this book, and getting free reading group guides online.

Curious to know if it works for them. It worked for me.

MyShape Lacks Definition

Part of the problem with MyShape.com may be that I'm still giddy about the proposition from Zafu.com, the site that helps you understand what jeans are really going to fit your body. (For the record, I have proof that Zafu's system works!)

This was probably the main reason that I was intrigued enough to check out MyShape.com. I read about it last week and finally got around to checking out the site. While you've heard me rant about aggregators, I'm actually more prone to rave about sites that match me up with products that I might not have known I couldn't live without. And MyShape is billing itself as a site that will help you find clothes that look good on your body. Who wouldn't like that?

So I went to the site this morning. Let's just say it's not all it's billed to be. Yet, anyway. First of all, the experience is incredibly vague when it comes to specifics, plus you're asked for a lot of personal information before you do or see anything. What brands do they represent? Where's a sample recommendation? Where are the clothes, by the way? And, what if these clothes aren't my style?  You really can't tell, even from the homepage images, and I'm not going to wear a Peter Pan collar even if it fits well.

Then there's the conflicting information; one page says coming in Summer 2006 and another says coming in September. Well, we're at about mid-month and there doesn't appear to be anything there a week after some major coverage. Even the press page wasn't updated. C'mon! How hard is this? So I read all this good stuff about the site in the Times--curious as to why they are  soliciting or even complying to press if MyShape isn't shaped up and ready to go.

Beware the Dangers of Automated Email

Following my little love-fest entry with the Bobbi Brown email, I feel the need to report a small yet frustrating experience with email from Smith & Hawken. In general, as a consumer, I've never been a fan of automated email. Mainly, well, because it's automated. I only feel mildly better knowing that my question or request is "being processed."  I simply tend to just ignore them and hope for the best. That was, until now.

I sent a single email to Smith & Hawken, inquiring about chair covers -- to fit my S&H chairs because the info on the site didn't make it clear if the covers fit all S&H chairs or just some. (They tend to feature numerous products on a given page and then provide more but general info at the bottom of the page, which I've found to be insufficient for decision making.)

Within a short time I received a confirmation email saying they'd answer my question within 24 hours. Seventeen minutes later I received another automatic email from Smith & Hawken, saying they'd answer my question within 2 business days.

Turns out, they sent a reply within 48 but not what I deemed an "answer." Frustrated, I gave up but my husband didn't. He went to the store.

Bobbi Brown Glams Up Membership with Special Services

I recently restocked at Bobbi Brown.com. I'm sure they and others are benefitting from recent travel restrictions on liquid and gel-based cosmetics. Anyway.....

I had to cut down the lengthy (but incredibly informative) Bobbi Brown email to get it into the blog, but what a great example.

The main message was to welcome me as a newly registered member, and the first part is a friendly and helpful note about how to use the site and what I can get out of it. I LOVE that I get free shipping if I sign in and spend at least $75. Easy and reasonable. (Saves me an unnecessary weekend trip to the department store.)

The next part of the email continues on this path with more detail, helpful tips and visuals. Beneath that (you'll have to sign up yourself to see it) I found a listing of "Bobbi's Best Sellers," which reveals the breadth of the product lines and great little tidbits about why the products are good or why I might want them. No wasted real estate in this email.

Elegance Trumps Ease at Tiffany's

What girl wouldn't love receiving that little blue box? It's an ideal gift for special occasions and for special people in our lives. My guess is that it would be a gift sent to more women more often if the Tiffany web site had a better shopping experience. While the site makes the brand more accessible to those who don't live near a boutique, I found the shopping experience off-putting. Sure, it's elegant and sophisticated...I love that. But it's not possible to "view all," for example. Instead, you have to click through a row of scrolling images. Worse, you can't have more than one enlarged product view open at any give time. Through our research here and my own personal experience, this is counter to how women shop. We SCAN. We need to see all of our options -- visually -- at the same time, not discreetly one by one. Last, I was debating between several items for a joint gift that required input from numerous others, so I saved the items to the cart as a way of communicating our short list. To what end? A dumped cart less than 12 hours later. Arrgh!

I'm going to check out some easier options.

Martin + Osa Takes on the 30-Somethings

I was intrigued after I read the article in yesterday's NYT about American Eagle's new brand, Martin + Osa. It's targeting the audience that is beyond the sloppy college look and not ready to settle into department store or Baby Boomer retail brands (okay, me. You?).

Martin + Osa is not the first (clearly there is no shortage of competition) but it does put a well-deserved exclamation point on the idea that there is a market for clothes that are comfortable, casual and stylish--and don't look like you borrowed them from your kid sister (or your kid, for that matter).

I will say though that it's a good thing I saw the article first, because if I'd just gone to the site, I'm not sure I would have understood. Probably a teaser site, just something to have up for all the people who get interested by the initial media like I did, but still a bit of a let-down.

Subtlety is a powerful tool, but perhaps they could have used it in more moderation. Less subtlety, more information.

If you make it to "The Brand" link, and you can read type that small (okay, so I just got my first pair of "readers"), you'll catch on that it's about casual wear for people who aren't in their 20s, but the only item I see is a crinkled up rain slicker. No mention of the cashmere pocket Ts or chino-inspired track pants. You're left with putting together the idea of a very playful voice and tone and fairly sophisticated and clean visual representation. You might say that builds intrigue, and perhaps it does, but then they don't have an email capture--for updates, newsletters, or for when I can go back to the site and get the rest of the story. Why not build the database right out of the gate?

Orbitz Email Helps Travelers Prepare for Trip

An associate here at Resource received this helpful email from Orbitz two days before a plane trip to Tampa that she booked through the site. This is another one of those great examples that really isn't earth-shattering, in fact, it's not even exciting, but it's so incredibly relevant that I didn't want to let it go by.

So many sites, once you buy from them the first time, start inundating you with promotions and other things that they think they can sell you. How refreshing that Orbitz sent this email with reminders of things you need to bring with you (i.e., photo ID), links to updated security information at airports, and check-in information.

They even nailed the subject line: Prepare for your trip - Tampa 9/2.

Sure, they are trying to sell, but in a relevant way, with links to hotels and rental cars--in Tampa.