Oakley lets customers see through virtual eyes

Oakley Inc.’s web site, Oakley.com, boasts an internally designed lens widget that puts shoppers behind the lenses of its eyewear. The feature enables shoppers to change tints on various models of glasses and see what the world looks like through each lens and how it compares to the naked eye. Customers can choose among various settings, such as a golf course, football field, forest or desert trail, or a snowy half-pipe.

“One thing that differentiates us is the lens widget. We want customers to know how it looks through the lens,” Ken Loh, Oakley’s web director, tells Internet Retailer.

The tool provides an important link between the shopping experience in a bricks-and-mortar store and online, according to web site design analysts. “Online shoppers often miss the tactile qualities of in-store shopping, like knowing the fit, comfort and the overall feel of a product. These are tough challenges for any retailer to duplicate, but the Oakley site’s Lens Tints feature helps customers bridge that gap and brings them another step closer,” says Manivone Phommahaxay, senior experience design consultant at Internet marketing firm Molecular Inc. “What Oakley’s done well is to build credibility by showing customers that it understands their needs. The feature essentially says to customers, ‘We know you value performance as much as you value style,’” Phommahaxay says.

The web site, which was redesigned in 2007, includes other interactive features such as 3D spins, community posts and custom products.

Oakley is No. 447 .
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