Big retailer Sears Holdings Corp. is turning its flagship Web site, Sears.com, into a shopping site that could offer more merchandise, more categories and more features than its legendary Big Book.
In the past few months, Sears has added more than 250,000 music offerings, movies and video games to the site; opened an online software boutique for downloading programs for taxes, graphics, finances and computer security; and recently began selling books online for the first time.
"We wanted to round out our assortment in the entertainment category, and in order to provide a complete experience, we want to make sure that we are offering the complete assortment of not only music and movies, but also books," says Imran Jooma, vice president of e-commerce at Sears Holdings, which is based in Hoffman Estates, Ill. "We want to be a one-stop destination for our entertainment customers."
In addition, Jooma says, as the company adds more products, it also is enriching the site with new features and functionality.
"Since we have so many new products on the site, we want to make sure that our customers can find the right product," he says. "So we've enhanced the site with new tools, features and functionality."
Sears.com definitely is on a roll. In fact, according to Jooma, "For the past year and a half there has been a very concentrated effort by Sears to make sure its online and e-commerce functionality is as easy to navigate as possible, and over the last few months we've been trying to make Sears.com more engaging."
A campaign for the prom set
An example of that is a prom-dress campaign -- dubbed Prom Premiere 2008 -- which was launched in March.
The campaign, created by Sears and WhittmanHart Interactive, a Chicago-based digital communications agency, involved the launch of a Prom Premiere Web site that allows girls to share photos of dresses with family and friends via e-mail and Facebook applications.
The site -- which is available through May and can be reached via Sears' homepage or Sears.com/prom -- offers an interactive "red carpet" experience, greeting visitors with music and virtual photographers. Visitors can clickthrough the online gallery of dresses from the Short & Sassy, Glitter & Glam, Ball Gowns and Slim & Sleek collections, then can share one of the more than 70 styles online with their Facebook friends or via e-mail.
The site also offers one-click links to shoes, purses and other accessories from Sears.com to complete the prom-night ensemble.
"We wanted to create an application that captured the essence of prom within a transactional experience," Jooma says. "Prom Premiere 2008 is about girls becoming the star on their biggest night. It evokes celebrity and [a] movie-premiere [atmosphere] with music, red-carpet visuals, camera flashes and romanticized product displays. The experience allows girls to quickly browse through selections and share their favorite dresses with friends on Facebook or through e-mail."
Jooma says the social component of the campaign was introduced "so girls could seek feedback from their circle of friends before making their purchasing decisions."
It also allows Sears to take the shopping experience outside of Sears.com to other channels where younger consumers - and prom shoppers in particular -- are congregating, Jooma says.
"This is the way younger consumers communicate today," he adds. "And we felt it was a great way to be able to sell these red-carpet looks to this group for an affordable price, which really is the key."
A Look Back: Notable Events in the History of Sears
1886 Richard Sears starts selling watches to supplement his income in North Redwood, Minn.
1887 Sears settles in the company's first Chicago location and hires a watchmaker named Alvah C. Roebuck.
1888 Date of the earliest catalog, featuring only watches and jewelry.
1893 Corporate name becomes Sears, Roebuck and Co.
1896 First large, general catalog published.
1911 Sears establishes testing laboratory.
1925 First Sears retail store opens in catalog center on Chicago's west side.
1927 Sears launches the Craftsman and Kenmore brands.
1945 Sears' sales exceed $1 billion.
1973 Sears moves its national headquarters to Sears Tower.
1993 Sears stops publishing its famous Sears catalog, aka the Big Book.
1997 Sears makes Craftsman tools available online.
1998 Sears launches Wishbook.com.
1999 Sears launches Sears.com.
2001 Sears returns to downtown Chicago, opening a new flagship store on State Street.
2005 The merger of Kmart and Sears as Sears Holdings Corp. followed affirmative shareholder votes of both companies.
Source: Sears Holdings
