L.L.Bean was just recently ranked the 6th most powerful brand in New England. Known first for its founder Leon Leonwood’s high quality Maine Hunting Shoe in 1912, the company expanded from these guaranteed-for-life Bean Boots into offering more outdoor apparel and gear. Its latest foray in 2010 has been with a new brand called L.L.Bean Signature. It follows a calculated effort by the company starting a few years ago to take its brand to new levels. (We have seen some creative marketing around this right here in Boston, most notably a campaign with the MBTA.)
Some call it vintage, others more refined and even preppy, L.L.Bean Signature targets a younger demographic looking for more stylish and modern clothing. But beyond the clothing is the e-commerce site itself that features a slew of rich media and functionality sure to wow we younger consumers who expect a lot from the Web. Here are 10 reasons online shoppers love L.L.Bean Signature:
1. About Page: Company About pages are becoming more interactive, leveraging media to create a connection between the brand and the shopper. Ultimately this connection drives love, loyalty, and more “Add to Cart” clicks (not to mention, explaining to customers the difference between the new line and traditional L.L.Bean). The Signature site’s About page leverages images and video to help create this brand connection, but doesn’t forget to describe the site in simple words, either (see below). Beyond that initial page, shoppers can further explore sections like “Our History,” “From Our Archives,” and “The Designer.”
2. Videos: Viewing product videos increases the likelihood that a consumer will add a product to her cart by 144%. L.L.Bean leverages this media, spanning the entirety of the Signature homepage to show key products and combined looks from the collection — in motion. Six in number, the videos allow online shoppers to get a sense of the fabrics and fit that make up the collection. You can also view them stringed together as a mini-segment.
3. Music: Annoyed when you open a website and music automatically plays? Me too, except with L.L.Bean Signature. When visiting the homepage, you hear music from Maine artists, allowing you to further connect with the brand and its history — that “quintessential outdoor apparel provider” and its home-spun Maine roots. Alongside the videos, the music in many ways makes you feel as though you are browsing in a physical retail environment, and not an e-commerce site. Hate it? It’s only on the homepage when videos are rolling, and you can switch it off easily.
4. Rich Images & Zoom: The desire to see an item in person before making a purchase is the top reason cited by consumers around why they won’t buy online. As mentioned, video is a great extra, but the ability to view images of a product from multiple angles is a must-have. L.L.Bean provides multiple viewpoints for each product as well as the ability to zoom in to see intricate details.
5. Reviews & Recommendations: Individual product pages offers reviews, and L.L.Bean has done a good job encouraging and inviting an initial set on their Signature site. Each product page also includes recommendations for other looks you’ll like that are actually relevant. (Yes, a basic e-commerce feature, but many retailers’ recommendations are simply off.) Perhaps more important, L.L.Bean also presents these products in a clean and informative way (simply a photo with item name and price), making me more apt to click through and see more.
6. Feature-Rich Product Category Pages: Each product category page is filled with features that allow you to explore individual products without having to click on through and reload a new page. Change product colors right from the category page, or leverage the Quick View feature to learn more about each item. Love it? Add it to your shopping cart without reloading the page or click on through to see even more details in a new page.
7. Shopping Bag: Similar to the category pages, a click on the shopping cart will unroll a drop down of items — without making you open a new page. As is throughout the e-commerce site, enjoy big product images that remind you why you liked the product enough to add it to your cart. Unfortunately, however, you can’t remove items from that shopping bag without being redirected off from Signature to the main L.L.Bean checkout page.
8. Fit Page: More often than not you are a different size with various retailers. L.L.Bean has made it easy for new shoppers to understand their fit, with a section placed front-and-center walking you through details. And, hey, if you do order something and it doesn’t fit, no worries: L.L.Bean offers free shipping, and easy returns.
9. Customer Service: Just like on the main L.L.Bean e-commerce site, how you’d like to interact with customer service is totally up to you. Want a quick chat pop up? No problem. Prefer to correspond over email? Go for it. Want someone to call you personally about the issue? You can also schedule that.
10. Facebook: A big brand with lots of products going after a more targeted set of consumers, L.L.Bean was smart to create its own voice and community for the Signature brand on Facebook. 4,535 people Like the brand already. Expect to learn about new products by connecting with the brand’s rich history with tidbits of info around how the fit and style was updated with care for the Signature line.
What’s your biggest pet peeve with online shopping? What is your favorite e-commerce site feature? Let us know in the comments!
