adidas Outdoor wanted their product finder to be completely user-centric, with a rich, visual quality that inspired as well as informed.

The agency started thinking about what customers were looking for when they were being helped by a sales assistant in-store. Information, yes, but also a human quality that doesn't translate as intuitively to the e-commerce environment. Language was key. The agency mapped out with the client the data the tool needed to query, and wrote questions relating to it in a conversational way. So the query to get to 'waterproof shoes' wasn't a static box to be checked, but the answer to the question, 'I want to be ready for....wet conditions', coupled with a looping video of a hiker in a stream.

This simple shift meant that the experience was dynamic - an entertaining way for people to refine their needs while discovering the breadth of product on offer.

Adidas worked with a trusted partner to bring the Product Finder to life. From concept to execution, it took just three months for the first MVP to be launched on their app with the Shoe finder. On 5 June 2020 the Product Finder was rolled out to 31,000 unique users on the adidas app in the UK and Germany. Located prominently as a banner in the 'Shoes' section of the app, customers were prompted to try the Shoe product finder before anything else.

The Product Finder was designed to elevate adidas Outdoor's brand, providing a best-in-class tool that helped their customers find their ideal outdoor product quickly, in a visually inspiring way. The conversational UX design was based heavily on the in-store sales experience, and it's the combination of these elements that makes for a rich, engaging customer journey that envelops the customer into adidas' world while inspiring them to get outdoors.

The agency mapped out the data required to make the personalised recommendations, and used a lightweight CMS to house the content. The CMS is easy to update, so the adidas team can update the products directly. Built with a modular approach, there are multiple opportunities to apply the tool across a variety of omnichannel platforms. It was adapted to be applied on retailer Zalando, and was activated recently on Runtastic and at the Infinitetrails running event. When it's possible to shop in-store again, the Product Finder can also be adapted to for in-store displays, augmenting the physical retail experience.