Translating the need for touch to online fashion shopping via digital technology

TL;DR: The aim is to understand whether the development of new digital technologies and computer interfaces may decrease the perceptual gap between digital and physical product evaluation and overcome the lack of tactile input which currently characterises online fashion shopping.

Abstract: Online shopping for fashion has seen explosive growth in recent times but the sector still faces the challenge of translating the in-store experience to the online environment. Clothing has been classified as a high-involvement product category that needs to be seen, tried on and touched to be evaluated (Workman, 2010) and the lack of tactile input online presents a challenge for retailers. Although fashion is a growing category in e-commerce, returns rates are currently around 25% and represent a significant cost to the business (Retail Week, 2012). Developments in digital technologies and new user interfaces go some way towards translating the in-store experience to the online environment, through object interactivity, virtual try-on, mix and match function etc. Such image interactivity technology (IIT) enables consumers to manipulate product images on a retailer's website (Fiore et al, 2005). This provides enriched product information for the user (Merle et al, 2012) and thus reduces the sensory deprivation typically associated with the online browsing experience. Much existing research on IIT in online fashion is based on a desktop browsing experience. However, with the growth in m-commerce and use of tablets for online browsing, there is justification in moving the study of IIT away from desktops and onto touchscreen devices. Touchscreen devices allow users to directly manipulate objects on the screen, using single or multi-finger gestures such as tapping, sliding and pinching, and thus the retail browsing experience is richer and more intuitive than on a desktop. The objective of this study is to explore how increasing levels of object interactivity on touchscreen devices translate the need for tactile input to the online environment and affect (a) consumer perceptions of risk when shopping for fashion online and (b) consumer engagement with online fashion shopping. Using a lab-based experimental design, we will test the effects of a new image interactivity technology developed by computer scientists at Heriot-Watt University – Shoogleit – which enables users to digitally rotate images as well as pinch and scrunch fabric swatches on touchscreen devices. The aim is to understand whether the development of new digital technologies and computer interfaces may decrease the perceptual gap between digital and physical product evaluation and overcome the lack of tactile input which currently characterises online fashion shopping. Proceedings of The First International Conference on Digital Technologies for the Textile Industries The University of Manchester, September 5-6, 2013 2