This past week marked the launch of Google's highly anticipated Boutiques.com. And for any of you who are familiar with similar sites, such as Like.com, Boutiques' take on the e-shopping experience is a breath of fresh air. This site is unique in the way that it combines shopping with an element of social networking, which means that not only can you create your own online boutique, you can also follow other boutiques that strike your fancy.
This Website uses Google's search element with Like.com's visual matching component to yield a much more personalized result. Boutiques prompts the user to pick which photograph portrays an outfit that is “more your style.” Once you have clicked through the myriad of celebrities, models and street style fashionistas, the Website assesses which style category you fall under (i.e: Classic, Romantic, Casual Chic, Edgy, Street or Boho), and from there gives you the chance to differentiate between silhouettes, colors and patterns you love and hate.
Signing up for the site is quick and painless, you just have to create a username, display name, enter your chosen e-mail and password and voilà! Though, the idea of this site is fabulous, the execution is far from perfect. I will say that the site is fairly user-friendly and allows you to navigate within the same window the whole time, which I consider a huge plus. There are other things about the site that I'm a little unsure about. Though Boutiques does give you the option to “love” or “hate” each item that is suggested for your store, either choice you make doesn't seem to have a direct effect on what is displayed in your store.
For an item to continually display in your boutique, you have to “save” it or it will disappear, and good luck trying to find it again. Which means that even if you like an item, but don't necessarily want it displayed in your boutique, you may just be out of luck on those boots or that bag or whathaveyou. All-in-all, I enjoy exploring the site and what it has to offer thus far, there are just a few more things it needs to work out before it can become a top contender in the e-commerce world or even hold a place in fellow fashionistas' favorites.
Post a Comment
Let us know what you think...