It used to be reserved only to the most premium customers of the most premium brands. But technology, and COVID19, are changing things. And now, you too can have your own personal stylist walking you around shelves – as lululemon is offering a virtual shopping experience with an educator over video chat or phone call. They call these stylists/sales associates “Educators.”
The virtual personal shopping – which lululemon is still trying to figure out its ideal length of time – can’t get any simpler. Once customers request a video chat, depends on availability, an assistant joins you in your living room, conversates about what you’re looking for, and recommends the right gear accordingly.
“Meet one of our digital educators over video chat to shop from the comfort of your couch (for free),” the virtual shopping page says, and here’s a short description of what customers can expect:
- Product recommendations – answers to all your questions
- Fit and size help – a deeper look into product details
- Gifting – ideas and help in finding the perfect gift
“I didn’t know what to expect as I had not done this before, and this was my first such lululemon shopping experience. It was great, and Heidi was fantastic! I prefer online shopping to in-store, and this was a great way to get assistance while not leaving my home,” Laurea A., lululemon customer, recently wrote about her experience with the shopping tool.
It seems like lululemon is among the leading retailers to be paving the way and navigating fashion in the age of COVID19. CNBC analysts say that GAP’s Athleta brand appears undervalued because of its surging rival, lululemon. This isn’t the first time the two brands have been compared for their athleisure gear, either.
Lululemon’s new virtual shopping experience has compromised a fundamental value proposition by leading a new trend that many brands will surely follow.
It’s no secret that “People are using their bedrooms as fitting rooms,” says Haniff Brown, founder and CEO of fit-tech startup Fit:Match, that will open up a first-of-its-kind fit studio that scans people to make product recommendations using AI.
In response to the whole virtual shopping trend, Optimove’s VP Marketing, Amit Bivas, said that “it feels like B2C marketing is adopting B2B tactics. These virtual sessions are a classic B2B move. And it goes both ways, with B2B marketers taking on B2C tools, such as chat, direct mail, etc.”
Post Experience Feedback Survey
Following lululemon’s virtual call, shoppers receive a “Video Chat Post Experience Feedback Form” on their shopping experience to improve it for future sessions – seeing how the whole concept is still very new. The survey begins with the following message:
“Thank you for joining us on video chat. We’d love to hear what you thought of the experience—the more feedback, the better.
Out of the 11 questions on the survey, here’s a few that we liked in particular:
With questions like these, it’s evident that lululemon is taking the whole initiative to a whole new level. Is this the end of RL fitting rooms?
