Stepping Ahead: How Adidas Outpaced Competitors with Optimal

Adidas, one of the world's leading sportswear manufacturers, partnered with Optimal to enhance their digital ecosystem and global brand positioning. By leveraging Optimal's diverse UX tools, Adidas gained crucial insights about their complex product portfolio, streetwear sub-brands, and e-commerce navigation. The result? A more cohesive brand architecture, streamlined digital experiences, and improved customer engagement across their digital touchpoints.

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The Challenge: Finding the Perfect Fit in a Fragmented Digital Landscape

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Let's face it—the sportswear industry is incredibly competitive, and Adidas knew their digital strategy needed to be as innovative as their products. They were facing some real hurdles:

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• Complexity in organizing their diverse product lines within the MiCoach multimedia ecosystem
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• Uncertainty about how customers perceived their streetwear collections, particularly the "Trilogy" line
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• Navigation challenges across their global e-commerce platforms, especially in key markets like the US and UK
• Inconsistent labeling and terminology throughout their digital properties
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With millions of customers engaging with their products both physically and digitally, Adidas needed data-driven insights to optimize every touchpoint of their customer journey.

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The Solution: Optimal's Multi-Method Research Approach Gets Moving

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Adidas turned to Optimal to gain clarity on their digital ecosystem. Here's how they put Optimal's research platform to work:

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Multimedia Ecosystem Architecture: MiCoach Card Sorting

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Adidas conducted comprehensive card sorting studies to understand how customers categorized and perceived their MiCoach multimedia subsidiary. This wasn't just about website organization—it was about creating logical connections between diverse offerings including fitness apps, smart watches, video games, and even physical installations like the performance center at Ajax Football Club Youth Academy.

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Streetwear Brand Perception: Open Card Sorting for "Trilogy"

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The streetwear market demands authenticity and cultural relevance. Adidas used open card sorting to explore how consumers categorized and mentally organized their "Trilogy" streetwear collection. This allowed them to understand the cultural positioning of the brand and identify opportunities to strengthen its market appeal.

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Global Digital Navigation: Tree Testing Across Markets

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Understanding that different markets may have different shopping behaviors, Adidas implemented tree testing for their primary customer-facing website navigation. By focusing on the US and UK markets, they were able to identify navigation pain points specific to these key regions and create more intuitive pathways through their digital storefronts.

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Terminology Optimization: Survey-Based Page Labeling Research

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Even the most intuitive navigation structure can fail if the terminology is confusing. Adidas used Optimal's survey capabilities to explore website page labeling across their US and UK markets, ensuring that product categories, features, and calls-to-action resonated clearly with their target audiences.

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Results: A More Agile Digital Experience from Browse to Purchase

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Adidas' investment in Optimal's diverse research tools paid off in multiple ways:

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• MiCoach Ecosystem Clarity: The card sorting studies revealed key insights about how customers understood the relationships between different MiCoach offerings, allowing Adidas to create more intuitive connections between their multimedia products before the line was eventually discontinued.
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• "All-In" Campaign Integration: Insights from the research helped Adidas better position their global "all-in" brand campaign, ensuring consistent messaging across their digital properties and strengthening overall brand cohesion.
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• Streetwear Authenticity Enhanced: The open card sorting for the "Trilogy" line uncovered valuable perspectives on how consumers categorized and perceived the streetwear collection, leading to more authentic positioning that resonated with their target market.
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• Regionally Optimized Navigation: The tree testing across US and UK markets allowed Adidas to create navigation structures that accommodated regional shopping preferences. The result? More efficient browsing experiences tailored to specific market needs.
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• Consistent and Clear Labeling: Survey results on page labeling led to standardized terminology that reduced confusion and improved the overall user experience across their e-commerce platforms.
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Conclusion

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Adidas' partnership with Optimal showcases the power of a multi-method, data-driven research approach. By utilizing different research methodologies for different aspects of their digital ecosystem, they were able to gain comprehensive insights that drove meaningful improvements.

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The sportswear industry may be about helping athletes perform at their best, but Adidas proved that optimizing digital performance is just as crucial to business success. With Optimal's research tools providing actionable insights, Adidas has positioned themselves as a leader not just in sportswear design, but in digital customer experience as well.

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Want to learn how you can get started gathering meaningful user insight? Reach out to us today.

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