Issue Date: February 2, 2003
Virtual shoe store
Even for those who don't want to be like Mike, Nike has become an obsession. Thanks to high-tech designs and marquee star campaigns that look more like short films than commercials, the superbrand has many a young athlete salivating over its next shoes, especially for basketball. And just in time for next weekend's NBA All-Star Game, Nike has launched a futuristic Web site, Nikelab.com, with innovative features to show off its new kicks.
At Nike's site, preview the latest models (like the Air Max and Zoom Superfly), then click through the options to customize your sneaks.
|
Nikelab is a big functional leap from the other shoe sites I looked at, like Converse.com and Adidas.com, both with large marketing campaigns and fashionable designs to boot. Par for the course, you can go to these sites to find and buy sneakers, sometimes ahead of their release date (an advantage not to be underestimated for teens hoping to be the first in school to cop the new Zoom Superfly before it hits the shelves at Sports Authority). But what's different at Nikelab is that you can take the shoes for a virtual test drive. By clicking on the shoe name icon, then "Rotate," you can get the full 3-D view before taking a simulated run.
It's obvious these sites are not so much a commerce outlet as a marketing tool. "So many people always inquire about our next generation of shoes, so Nikelab is a creative way of informing people," says Bryan Finke, director of U.S. digital brand marketing.
Unfortunately the site sometimes is confusing. Amid all the lines of flashing, fading shoes and propaganda terms like "cushion," "speed" and "comfort" flying by the screen like a Vince Carter windmill, it's not easy to figure out where to go and what to click. But, once again, Nike has changed the game, this time on the Web.
-- David Lipschultz
|
