|
April 25, 2010 - Every marketing
and business retail study
examining the role of the
internet for retail mattress
shopping shows an important
expanded role for the internet.
Most research numbers continue
to show that 70% of consumers
still want to go into a store to
rest test, touch, feel and
experience the mattress set
before they buy it. Research
also shows a great deal of
confusion in the entire mattress
buying process, and that many
consumers (especially
30-somethings and younger) are
using the internet to do
research, to explore using
search engines, websites and
retail locators. These consumers
want to find out as much as they
can about what is out there and
which retail stores are carrying
which beds. They want to be more
informed before they head out to
tackle the mattress buying
gauntlet!
Sealy, North America’s No. 1
mattress brand, is listening to
these consumers, and they have
made major changes to their
website to meet the consumer’s
needs. Sealy just announced the
re-launch of the company’s
corporate Website –
www.sealy.com. The result of
extensive consumer research, the
new site is designed to help
solve mattress consumers'
greatest frustration -
determining which mattress is
the most correct for them.
"We listened to the voice of our
target consumers when building
our new Website," said Jodi
Allen, Sealy chief marketing
officer. "They told us the
mattress shopping experience is
incredibly confusing - the
terminology and difference
between brands and products is
difficult to understand, and the
online research experience is
often disconnected from the
in-store experience. We took the
feedback to heart, designing the
new site to help end the
confusion and create a far more
satisfying shopping experience
for our consumers, while driving
more convinced traffic to our
retail partners."
The new Sealy.com empowers
consumers by allowing them to
search seamlessly for mattress
information in the way in which
they’ve requested it – by brand,
technology and product
promotions. The site
effortlessly walks consumers
through the mattress buying
process, breaking down industry
terminology into easily
understandable and clear
language while helping them to
learn which mattress best fits
their sleep behavior and
lifestyle. Sealy.com features
easy to understand video and
text-based content that explains
the different brands, products,
features and technologies and
contains a number of digital
assets that will be available to
all Sealy’s retail partners.
The flat user experience is
unique to the category, allowing
consumers to learn most of the
information they need before
making a single click. In
addition, the site features
several innovative tools to help
connect the online research
experience to the in-store
shopping experience.
Sealy.com will feature the
entire family of Sealy brands
including Sealy Posturepedic®,
Stearns & Foster®, Embody® by
Sealy and Sealy brand. Once
consumers identify which brand
best fits their needs, they are
able to access the
first-of-its-kind mattress
builder, where they can choose
the features and technologies
that meet their personal
preferences. The result? Better
informed, more convinced
consumer traffic into retail
stores, resulting in a quicker
sales process and increased
volume.
"In addition to conducting our
own research, we looked outside
of our category at leaders who
have changed the online shopping
experience to better meet
consumer expectations and retail
partner objectives,” said Margo
Borgione, director, global
marketing for Sealy. “By
listening to our consumers and
retail partners and utilizing
best-in-class techniques from
other industries, we have
created a dramatically better
experience for mattress shopping
online."
Sealy worked with its marketing
agency Cramer-Krasselt/Chicago
to build and develop the new
website. As part of the site
roll out, the new video assets
for Sealy’s brands and products
will be available at no cost to
all of Sealy's retail partners
for use on their own
sites.
The new Sealy.com will be live
and available to consumers April
20, 2010.
About Sealy Corporation
Sealy is the bedding industry’s
largest global manufacturer with
sales of $1.3 billion in fiscal
2009. The Company manufactures
and markets a broad range of
mattresses and foundations under
the Sealy(R), Sealy Posturepedic(R),
Stearns & Foster(R), and
Bassett(R) brands. Sealy
operates 25 plants in North
America, and has the largest
market share and highest
consumer awareness of any
bedding brand on the continent.
In the United States, Sealy
sells its products to
approximately 3,000 customers
with more than 7,000 retail
outlets. Sealy is also a leading
supplier to the hospitality
industry.
For more information, please
visit
www.Sealy.com. |
