Specialty youth-apparel brand Boy Meets Girl is teaming up with online fashion game/community Fashion Fantasy Game to drive real-world sales with virtual goods. As part of the promotion, all Fashion Fantasy Game members will receive a free virtual version of the Boy Meets Girl “Coco Hoodie” apparel product, writes Retailer Daily.
The promotion is timed to coincide with the arrival of the Bloomingdale’s mailed holiday catalog, which features the hoodie for $78. Fashion Fantasy Game members will be able to try on the virtual apparel product using their online avatars. In addition, Fashion Fantasy Game is running a design competition where members can create a virtual fashion line for Boy Meets Girl. The top three finishers will receive a free hoodie and a VIP membership to the site.
Increasingly, apparel retailers are turning to the virtual world to help boost sales of real-life physical products. Department store retailer JCPenney launched two noteworthy online features designed to boost real-world sales earlier this year.
In March, JCPenney linked its wedding registry program to bridal services site OurWeddingDay.com to offer its bridal customers online wedding planning tools and services. Under the partnership, brides who register with JCPenney in a store or online will automatically receive a complimentary membership to OurWeddingDay.com. Bridal customers will thus obtain access to OurWeddingDay.com features such as real-time online advice, an automated task list with remainders, an online event manager, a free personalized wedding site, and other services.
In February, JCPenney launched its virtual runway, a feature on its website that includes music and 360-degree views of models wearing fashion collections and allows customers to view video vignettes from designers.
In August 2009, specialty women’s retailer The Talbot’s, Inc. revamped its e-commerce site with new functionality, features and personalization designed to align its online shopping experience with in-store product offerings and catalog customer service. Updated online features include videos of current apparel products, previews of upcoming seasonal selections, a Style Advisor section with tips on how to find the right fit, an expert Q&A feature, fashion glossary, and online scheduling of in-store appointments with fashion consultants. There is also a feature where customers can read or submit personal fashion stories.
Direct specialty apparel retailer Lands’ End launched two interactive websites earlier this summer, one aimed at female swimsuit shoppers and one aimed at kids shopping for back-to-school backpacks. Both sites went further in offering expanded functionality than Talbots, providing social networking features and virtual fantasy environments similar to those of Fashion Fantasy Game.
In addition, specialty youth apparel retailer Abercrombie & Fitch launched a microsite dedicated to its new EPIC interactive store format in July. The site does not offer actual e-commerce functionality, but serves as a promotional vehicle with sound and imagery and also offers themed desktop screensavers and postcards, as well as online applications to appear in Abercrombie & Fitch advertising.
Research from PriceGrabber and Market Reporter indicates online consumers are spending more time online and are more optimistic about spending than they have been in the past year.
Although the virtual hoodies are being provided free, Fashion Fantasy Game says its members do purchase virtual goods for their avatars, with sales up by 400% in the last several quarters. The site says its almost 1 million members spend an average of 14 minutes online per visit.
