Warby Parker just sold its 500,000 pair of eyeglasses. This may not seem like much to industry giants like Luxxotica, who owns Ray Ban and Oakley, but it’s a milestone Warby Parker is happy to celebrate. To understand why Warby Parker is excelling, we must first examine their marketing mix. Like a good recipe, if the marketing mix includes just the right mixture of all the right ingredients, the recipe is a success. The company’s way of doing business and their history fuels this success.
Warby Parker began only 5 years ago by 4 college students who sought to find a way in which to purchase eyeglasses in a more affordable fashion. Without risking any of the benefits received when shopping at a brick and mortar shop, Warby Parker revolutionized the way consumers purchased eyewear.
To purchase eyewear online, Warby Parker spent thousands of hours in research developing what they thought would appeal to customers. Customers wanted a more affordable way to purchase their eyewear but also wanted to look fashionable all while paying minimal prices.
They traditional pair of prescription glasses could cost upwards of $500. This was appalling to Neil Blumenthal, Andrew Hunt, Jeffrey Raider and David Gilboa, the founders of Warby Parker. The largest portion of the cost was a profit to optical retailers. Warby Parket cuts out the middle man, the retailer, and sells directly to their clients.
But how would the group find a way that customers could try on eyewear before they buy it? Who would purchase a big ticket item without the means to try the style on to assure the fit was right and the style was appealing? They discovered the solution.
Home try-ons was the answer! Warby Parker ships–at no cost–five pairs of eyewear to customers. The customer then has five days to try on the glasses and decide, or not decide, on the pair that suits them best.
The absolute worst case scenario would be a customer failing to return the five pairs of glasses. Warby Parker takes precautions against this mishap by gathering the customer’s credit card data prior to shipping. A Warby Parker customer sales support team member stated that they make several attempts after the five day period to contact the customer in attempts to return their items. If this fails, the customer is charged $85 per pair, or $425 maximum.
The glasses are shipped with nonprescription lenses. So, if a customer finds a pair that suits their fancy, they may return the pairs they “borrowed” and order their very own, customized pair.
With prices starting at $95 per pair, the idea caught on like wildfire. Customers soon began to tell their friends about the company. Although marketing ads weren’t used in the beginning stages as they are today, customer satisfaction creates 50% of the traffic today. (O’Toole)
In this case we’ve seen the positive effects of consumer satisfaction. Any negative consumer reviews can halt profits. This has been referred to as the “Twitter Tax”. (Baskin) Companies must use honest marketing tactics in order to avoid “truth gaps”. (Baskin) Truth gaps exist when claims go unsubstantiated. Warby Parker goes to the opposite extreme in ethically conducting their business. As founder, Neil Blumenthal states, there are no “crazy uncles” at the company. (O’Toole) People feel smart to wear Warby Parker glasses and proud to stand behind their company.
You can see why Warby Parker has been coined “the Netflix of eyewear” by GQ magazine. (O’Toole) What’s more, is that Warby Parker has also tugged at consumer’s heartstrings by donating one pair of eyeglasses to those in need for every one pair purchased. This means that they have 1,000,000 pairs of eyeglasses in circulation. They seem to fill a social value that even further supports its purpose.
Warby Parker states that 15% of the global population does not have access to glasses. With glasses, individuals are 35% more productive with income increasing by 20%. (Warby Parker) Warby Parker seeks to make the world a better place. Their method is quite unique. You may wonder where the name “Warby Parker” originated. Inspired by Jack Kerouac, the founders took the name of two of Mr. Kerouac’s earliest characters discovered in his recently discovered personal journals.
One character was named Zagg Parker and one Warby Pepper, hence Warby Parker. “Kerouac inspired a generation to take a road less traveled and to see the world through a different lens.” (Warby Parker) In a thesis written by Dirk Brauner of Maastricht University, he states the buy one, get one principle (BOGO) concept has gained in popularity. And that its effectiveness supports the cause-related marketing strategy by influencing behavioral intention and consumer trust in the reliability of the advertisement message. (Brauner) Consumers long to trust the business in which they support. Supplying eyeglasses to those in need seems to instill a sense of confidence that the company has moral values and that’s something consumers can support.
According to the text, Principles of Marketing, marketing mix is made up of four things: product, price, place and promotion. Further, there are four Cs that go along with these four Ps: consumer solution, customer cost, convenience and communication. (Kotler) Building lasting lifetime relationships is what every company desires. To create that, customer satisfaction must be at the top of the priority list. They also must identify the individual needs of each customer and adjust accordingly. A plan must be in place to seek the right customers to fulfill this role. The company must pay close attention to the relationships they build with their partners as well. Good partner relationship management can strengthen an already solid relationship between the customer and the business.
The right marketing mix uses complex econometric analysis to analyze the effects of sales related to varying marketing inputs. Proctor and Gamble (P&G) moved their marketing mix efforts to Nielson in 2011. (Neff) In many cases, companies who develop rapidly or become too large may seek assistance form marketing firms to ensure profits continue.
Both academic marketing professors and marketing professionals alike agree on one simple concept. Technology is at the core of all marketing processes. Technology includes product development, supply chain management and customer relationship management. (Saini) Warby Parker seems to encompass all of these characteristics.
Warby Parker not only had a vision to make the purchase of eyewear more affordable and more convenient, they also sought out to improve the world we live in. They encompass the idea that a company with strong morals and a genuine interest in humanity can succeed in a world where greedy businesses outnumber them by far. Consumers support these efforts and the reward is ultimately profit. Perhaps more businesses should seek to reevaluate their priorities to incorporate the marketing mix that makes Warby Parker successful.
Works Cited
O’Toole, Mike. “Warby Parker, One Million Eyeglasses, And The Next Generation Of
Brands.” Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 22 July 2013. Web. 22 July 2013. Warby Parker. “How Can We Offer Such High-quality Prescription Glasses for $95?”
Warby Parker. 1 Feb. 2010. Web. 22 July 2013.
<http://www.warbyparker.com/how-we-do-it>.
Kotler, Philip, and Gary Armstrong. Principles of Marketing. 14th ed: Printice Hall, 2012.
Print.
Brauner, Dirk. “Framing Effects in Cause-related Marketing: BOGO vs. Money.” Thesis.
Maastricht University, 2012. H. Web. 20 July 2013.
<http://arno.unimaas.nl/show.cgi?fid=25360>.
Saini, Amit, Rajdeep Grewal, and Jean Johnson. “Driving Customer Relationship
Management (CRM) Performance: The Role of Knowledge Stores and
Technology Assimulation.” American Marketing Association. Institution for the
Study of Business Markets, 31 May 2008. Web. 20 July 2013.
<http://www.marketingpower.com/ResourceLibrary/Documents/Content%20Partn
er%20Documents/ISBM/Driving%20Customer%20Relationship%20Management
%20(CRM)%20Performance.pdf>.
Neff, Jack. “P&G Shifts Marketing-Mix Biz to Nielsen, DemandTec for Faster ROI
Reads.” Advertising Age News RSS. N.p., 12 Aug. 2011. Web. 23 July 2013.
<http://adage.com/article/news/p-g-shifts-marketing-mix-biz-nielsen-
demandtec/229235/>.
Baskin, Jonathan Salem. “The Competitive Advantage of Truth.” Advertising Age CMO
Strategy RSS. N.p., 25 Oct. 2010. Web. 23 July 2013.
<http://adage.com/article/cmo-strategy/marketing-competitive-advantage-
truth/146687/>.
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