Newton Running
'Choose a Shoe' – Interactive product selector experience
"Rapt Media helped us create an interactive digital experience that mimics the in-person consultation a runner experiences when he or she shops for shoes at a specialty running store. Plus, Rapt’s robust analytics enabled us to use data about web visitors’ choices and experiences to support our investment and go-forward business decisions."
Erin Kersten
Director of Marketing & E-Commerce, Netwon Running
About Newton Running
Newton Running, based in Boulder, Colorado, is a leading manufacturer and marketer of performance running shoes for runners of all types, from first-time runners to seasoned marathoners. Newton Running’s patented Action/Reaction™ technology provides dynamic full foot cushioning and lightweight cushioning. Newton Running shoes are available at hundreds of specialty retailers across the country and around the world, and at www.NewtonRunning.com. The Company was named after Sir Isaac Newton and his third law, which is the technology that has made Newton Running shoes renowned.
The challenge
Newton Running’s self-proclaimed mission is “to create a running shoe that was different … Not for the sake of being different, but to make every stride better.” The mission is a successful one indeed, with most Newton Running customers buying on average two to three pairs a year. However, Newton Running’s premium offering of high performance, multiple-model running shoes, based on foot type and running surfaces, presented an interesting challenge for their online buyers.
The physical, in-store, in-person shopping experience enables a high level of customer service commensurate with the select product. Providing an online shopping experience that would be as effective as Newton’s in-person, in-store experience was the business problem the company came to Rapt Media to solve.
The solution
To bring the experience of shopping in a brick and mortar specialty run retail store online, Newton Running built an interactive product selector video that allows the online shopper to self-select the type of shoe that’s right for them.
Shoppers start by selecting whether they are male or female. They then go on to answer a series of questions about their feet, the surface they’ll be primarily running on, and how they plan to use the shoes (train, race, new runner). The interactive video experience provides the shopper with a few shoe recommendations that are unique to their responses. Clicking a shoe then takes you to its respective product detail page where the shopper can then learn more
The results
Shoppers were able to better understand what shoes were best for them. This was indicated by both the 90 percent completion rate and reduction in time spent by call center reps created by shopper product confusion. Insights into customer preferences were revealed by those that engaged with the product selector, including:
- 63% of shoppers were male
- 68% of shoppers needed a neutral shoe vs. a stability shoe
- 90% of shoppers were road runners vs. trail runners
- 61% of shoppers plan to use their shoes to train (vs. 21% that are new runners and 18% that will use them for racing)
Why Rapt Media?
Newton Running was looking for a way to show multiple customer storylines in one package, and Rapt Media’s multiple-path interactive video platform allowed Newton Running to do just that. Rapt Media’s architecture made it possible for customers to self-select the content that applied to them and follow one of those journeys to find the right shoe.
Newton Running’s creative director, Jake Marty, liked the visual-first aspect of Rapt Media’s platform. “It was nice to build on a visual setting to facilitate a non-linear interactive video build,” Marty said. He also said the user interface for uploading and changing styling was straight forward for what he thought would be a complex process.
Another reason Newton Running partnered with Rapt Media is for the data Rapt Media’s platform could provide. Newton Running liked the shopper insights the experience provided (stability vs. neutral shoes, for example), which the company sees as an opportunity for informing future product development and marketing.
