SYDNEY – Gone are the days when you pick your t-shirts based just on your size and favorite color.
Japanese fashion brand Uniqlo and Isobar Australia just launched UMood, a first of its kind retail activation in one of its stores in Pitt Street, Sydney. Powered by neural technology, UMood can suggest t-shirt designs that would suit its customers’ mood.
“Clothing is one of our greatest forms of expression, and every day we express our mood through what we wear,” she said. “We’re excited to be the first retail brand in Australia to experiment with this kind of technology and enable a new shopping experience for our customers,” said Tracy Lang, UNIQLO Australia’s Marketing Director.
The people’s moods are measured when they sit in the machine, developed by Isobar and Dentsu Science Jam, a Dentsu Aegis Network company, while watching a series of videos and images. Their brainwave reactions to the stimulus are being tracked using a neuro headset.
UMood also has an online version that can be accessed by customers outside of Australia. This time, virtual customers will be asked to answer a series of questions using a set of images. Based from the people’s answers, the application will suggest up to three t-shirt designs that fit whatever the person was feeling at the moment.
“Customers demand choice but they can also find themselves overwhelmed by it. We set about developing a fun & interesting way to assist them, by analysing their minds. UNIQLO is a fashion pioneer, UMOOD is a great demonstration of that,” commented Konrad Spilva, CEO Isobar Group ANZ at Isobar.
A lot of brands have been experimenting with the power of moments and emotions to stand out from the all the noise and get through to their target audience, and we’ve seen some of them do it successfully. One case in point is Spotify. This online music streaming app gained the loyalty of millions of music lovers around the globe by curating their playlists not based on the usual genres but on ultra specific moments like bed weather or a doggy day out.
But a word to the wise, there’s a thin line that draws being strategic and creepy when working with moments and human emotions. According to Hando Sinisalu, Founder and CEO of Europe-based organization, Best of Global Digital Marketing, if this technique is not used properly, brands might come out as intrusive instead of understanding–a marketer’s ticket to consumer oblivion.
CREDITS:
Group Account Director: Tim den Braber
Creative Technologist: Tom Wilson
Producer: Jessica Snell
Strategic Planner: Alice Green
Associate Creative Director: Rob Barnett
Art Director: Holly Langford
Copywriter: Michael Punton & Emma Park
Designer: Marguerite Moloney, Augusto Jacquier & Tim Hobday
Regional Innovation and Mobile Director: Erik Hallander
Account Manager: Tish Tambakau
Production: Aron Tardini & Xavier Verhoeven
Public Relations: Ogilvy PR
Neuro technology: Dentsu SpaceJam
