Project SnowBird: Exploring The Gaps In Virtual and Physical Commerce Experiences: An Introduction
Kevin Wong December 5th, 2008
Curiosities never seem to settle around here and we’re excited to share a little information on some work we are about to take on in the coming months ahead. Our goal is to extend our imagination regarding the commerce experience through the voice of snowboarders. More specifically, we want to look at how non experts enter the snowboarding arena and the challenges they endure as they try to not only learn the skills to enjoy the sport, but also acquire the right goods to do it well (not to mention look hot).
The reason over this excitement is because this is information that we can share with the public – transparently and specifically – with tangible examples. Previous discussions might have felt nebulous because we were respecting the confidentiality of our clients. However, this being an internal effort, we have more liberties to share, build upon and discuss our understanding.
What to look forward to? We’re in the midst of finalizing our research plan and acquisition of proper equipment to hit the field prepared to capture our observation. The next stage will include an analysis of what we’ve observed and hopefully an open dialog of the claims we make. We’re going to update this stream, as well as on our main blog to keep you informed with materials from the field, so please give us your feedback in the comments!
Later on, we will begin to explore concepts that have been informed from our observations and share them as well.
Sounds pretty typical right? Well you can make that assumption, but we believe there’s a lot of room to be creative within the processes to make this interesting for anyone, not just designers and researchers alike.
Expect another post shortly covering our research approach and what we hope to deliver. Thanks!
Entry Filed under: Case Study: The Wall, Research, design
5 Comments Add your own
1. Gabe | December 5th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
By the way, if you are reading this in the next couple days, and you happen to be in the process of shopping for snowboarding hardgoods or softgoods, please let us know if you’d like to participate in the research. We’d love to observe and interview people who might be about to embark on some new purchases for the upcoming season… we can even provide you with some incentives…
2. Carlos R | December 16th, 2008 at 5:36 pm
If you guys need any help in your research I would be very interested in assisting. Unfortunately or fortunately I am a snowboarding instructor and have been ridding for 10 years + . We are working on a blog for the North East that voices the needs of people with different skill levels. The idea is to reach out and learn what the true needs are and provide content that fills the voids. I am also a graphic designer and I am very impressed with the company and the work.It is very progressive.
cheers
3. Kevin Wong | December 17th, 2008 at 12:28 am
@Carlos R Thanks for reaching out and the kind words, Carlos. Unfortunately we reached our limit with the number of participants to include in the study. However, I would love to talk to you more about each others findings from the research. I’ll be posting some more entries shortly and would be interested in getting some feedback. Also, do you have a link to the blog you are working on?
4. brad at Bonfire | December 17th, 2008 at 6:59 pm
Hi Kevin – great idea for a study. This is one of the biggest issues in the sport; how to capture new consumers and provide an authentic experience. SnoCon is a leading shop – and a great place to base your work.
5. Kevin Wong | December 17th, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Thanks Brad. John Logic has been instrumental with regard to the work we are currently conducting. It’s been an absolute pleasure seeing how SnoCon operates and the enthusiasm everyone expresses while in store (both employees and their customers).
Have you noticed increases in sales towards soft goods vs hard? Would like to know your thoughts on that.
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