current employer Anthropologie. Upon analyzing the website for Anthropologie, which is
something I have never really paid much attention to previously, I have noticed that
Anthropologie does a great job at applying a central rule for website design taken from
the Adobe website. “Get to know your audience and design for them.” I am a firm
believer after having worked for the company for a while that it does indeed know its
audience and makes it a priority to design for them whether it is in the store, catalog or
the website.
The Anthropologie clientele are the more affluent members of society as most of the prices for apparel as well as home decor fall in line with those of Nordstrom or specialized boutique’s that in Colorado one would fi
nd in North Cherry Creek. For example this yellow jacket is $228 which I would venture to say most of American society would consider this a lot of money for one article of clothing like this one.The company also targets women between the ages of 28-43. This is applicable because the apparel would be probably too expensive for the younger crowd but too young looking for the old. I find it interesting however that the models for the clothing do not look like they fall within this age range. To me they appear much younger which could be a sales technique. It just seems to be a bit of a contradiction to have young models advertising the clothing when the target audience is older. Another trait for the Anthropologie clientele is that she is eclectic. She likes the new and latest thing different from anywhere else.
She also is targeted as an English speaker, as one can quickly notice that the entire website is in English and that the clientele is veered toward the American woman. There are no stores in Europe because the apparel is much like stuff that one can find in Europe. There is no market there. However, because the store is only in the States the website allows for accessibility all over the world.
I would say that overall the website is easy to navigate but there are some references that some would not understand from just eyeballing the site. For example one of the icons on the home page is for “the skinny”. To anyone not familiar with the Anthropologie clothing this is probably a foreign term. However, it refers to a style of jean specific to Anthropologie. There are few things like this on the site but to one unfamiliar with the company it would take trial and error to figure out some of the specific terminology.
To me the company does a great job identifying who its audience is and appealing to her needs with a colorful, visual website which makes it easy to shop and find what she wants from the comfort of her home.
3 comments:
I have to disagree with your comment "would venture to say most of American society would consider this a lot of money for one article of clothing like this one". I think that our society has been so inundated with magazines that show clothing and accessories that seem "outrageous" in price, and yet we as consumers regulary purchase these items. I personally have about 60 pairs of shoes, with the average price being at least $100. However, among my collection I also have a pair of Manolo Blahnik boots that are $975.
While Anthropologie does indeed cater to a clientele which is more affluent, I don't believer that it is correct to say that "most of American society" would consider the cost of the jacket to be a lot of money.
Addendum to previous comment...
The cost of the jacket may not be that unreasonable, it just depends upon whether or not someone would actually spend that amount money to buy it for themselves.
I think you explained the culture it appeals to perfectly. I agree that the site does a good job of targeting a specific audience. It has a geometric theme on the homepage and you can see it on all the other links. Because the audience is American but most of the clothes have a European feel, the website seems very innovative. Although it creative and new, it is a very typical website. It is conventional and easy to find what you're looking for.
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