Comprehensive Marketing Analysis Report: ASOS Australia Website

This report provides a comprehensive analysis of the ASOS Australia website, focusing on its marketing strategies and the customer purchase process. It begins with an introduction to ASOS, its background, industry context, and target market, which is primarily young adults aged 16-34. The report then delves into the customer's journey, outlining the stages of need recognition, information gathering, evaluation of options, purchase decision, payment methods, and post-purchase behavior. The analysis includes personal experiences and observations, such as the author's own online shopping experience on ASOS, highlighting factors that influenced the purchase decision, such as brand reputation, pricing, delivery options, and return policies. The report also covers the post-purchase engagement, including reward points, newsletters, and product recommendations. The report highlights how ASOS leverages digital marketing, promotional campaigns, and website features to enhance brand awareness, attract customers, and ensure customer satisfaction. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of a seamless online shopping experience and effective post-purchase strategies for customer retention and future sales.

1. INTRODUCTION
This analysis will report on ASOS Australia website.
1.1 Background
Established in June 2000, ASOS can be understood as an organization that primarily deals in the
deliverance of fashion products through its ecommerce website. The company was founded by Nick
Robertson and Andrew Regan, with headquarters in London, UK. The main aim of the organization
is to acquire an increase in the market share and add more products to its existing line of offerings.
Apart from this, the company also aspires to expand its brand name to other countries. ASOS is
already serving customers in over 20 countries. The brand has received its popularity due to its
exceptional designs, content relative to fashion and a one-stop destination for all fashion related
needs. The website hosts over 80,000 products that can be viewed through the company website or
the mobile application. ASOS has delivery centres in the US, Europe and China which enables it to
serve customers in different parts of the world.
ASOS was awarded the ‘Online Retailer of the Year’ in 2008 by the prestigious Retail Week
Awards. Apart from clothing, the other products hosted at the website fall into the category of beauty
products, jewellery, apparels and even footwear. As the organization grows, it strives to increase its
offerings and potential market. The research includes a comprehensive analysis of the official
website of the organization i.e. ASOS which has recorded over 5 million visitors on a monthly basis.
In addition to this, the company boosts of 1.2 million active and regular customers.
Industry
According to reports, the Australian ecommerce industry has expanded profoundly over the last few
years, given the increase in the smartphone usage. The growth can also be traced back to the low-
cost of internet services in the region. In 2019, more than two-thirds of the Australian population
agreed that they shop online for products and services rather than visiting the traditional brick and
mortar store. The overall online retail sales for the fashion industry was recorded to be AUD 17.4
billion in a year. The growth rate was identified to be 1.8% per annum. Given the high fashion
demands in the country, it is estimated that by the year 2021, the market value of the Australian
ecommerce will increase to AUD 35.2 billion. ASOS has been ranked among the top 4 clothing
brands in Australia today. The company is a global brand name as it has emphasized on the inclusion
of the latest fashion trends and has served the evolving needs of the young generation. These factors

have led to the high demand for the products of ASOS. Given the advancement in information
technology and the growing need for finding an efficient way of buying products, the ecommerce
sales in the country have grown largely. The online industry has gained a high amount of popularity
among consumers from all age groups as it offers a wide variety of products to pick from along with
exceptional pricing. All these factors combined with the mobile technology have led to the easier
access to online retail websites, giving an exceptional improvement in the sales of such platforms.
1.2 Target Market
Since ASOS caters to the young adults, the ideal target market for the company are individuals
within the age group of 16 and 34 years. The target market has been chosen as individuals in this
age group since the company needs people who are concerned with fashion, carry the knowledge of
the latest technological advancements, can access the internet and are interested in purchasing
fashion related products from websites such as ASOS. Apart from this, since the company is dealing
in the advertisement of products from designer brands, the prices are most of the times ranked in the
expensive range. Hence, the company requires to target high income group individuals. Lastly,
considering the fact that there exist individual from different income groups in the society, ASOS
also includes products that are low cost and offers 10% discount to students which ultimately makes
it a favourable choice for students as well.
2. PURCHASE PROCESS
2.1 Need Recognition
It is important to make consumers realize their desire for a particular product which ultimately leads
to the increase in sales. In order to carry this out, it is important for a brand to increase the awareness
of its company to a large extent. However, brand awareness requires a high amount of promotion and
marketing to be done. For example, advertisements, digital marketing initiatives, offline promotions,
online paid ads etc. These factors tend to attract online consumers to a large extent. ASOS realizes
this aspect and thus it has engaged in a high number of promotional campaigns to attract consumers
from all walks of life.
An example of this would be a personal experience. I was expected to recently attend an event and
required a t-shirt to wear to the occasion. Given the fact that I am mostly occupied with studies and

other club activities, visiting a mall to purchase a t-shirt would lead to a wastage of time. Upon my
research on the web for leading companies to buy t-shirts from, I came across the ASOS
advertisement on Google which helped me in knowing more about the company and exploring its
products.
2.2 Information
The first aspect that leads to a positive reaction from a potential consumer to an advertisement is
when his/her expectations are met with. Hence, once I was able to purchase the product that I needed
quickly, I decided to look for more information about ASOS. I then checked out the Facebook
company page of ASOS and found regular updates on trendy and fashionable clothing by the brand
being done on a regular basis. After this, I paid another visit to the ecommerce website of the
company to search for other t-shirts that would match my preferences.
After reaching the website again, I found that operating the website was very easy. I browsed
through the Men category of t-shirts where I found my preferred CK product under the exclusive
content section. The information about the product was clear and concise which I thought was very
useful. I could also zoom in to get a better look at the product and the size chart gave me a better
understanding of the size that I should buy for myself. This ultimately helped me in getting the right
t-shirt for myself in no time.
2.3 Evaluation
The next stage is the evaluation. Here in, the consumer searches for the varied options that are given
to him/her and chooses the one that seems to be the most ideal option after checking all the
information. This process of buying an apparel is often more complicated for a customer as the
varied elements have to be carefully evaluated. For example, colour scheme, brand name, size,
texture etc. Majority of the consumers opt for an attribute based comparative analysis before buying
products such as branded apparel. Given the high reputation of ASOS for selling high end fashion
products, I opted to purchase the product from its website. Apart from this, another important factor
that affected my buying decision was the availability of a t-shirt of an American brand that was
exclusively available only on ASOS in just AUD 55.
After visiting other websites, I realized that the cost of t-shirts on other websites was AUD 75
inclusive of the shipping price and the delivery time frame mentioned was a week. This was very late

for me as I wanted to wear the t-shirt for an upcoming event. ASOS showcased a promise of delivery
within 3 days which made it the perfect choice for purchase of the t-shirt.
2.4 Purchase Decision
The stage of Purchase is where a consumer weighs all the options carefully and then decides on
where to buy the product from. My decision to purchase the t-shirt that I needed was from ASOS.
The main reason for this was the high quality, affordable pricing and fast delivery option. I also liked
the design very much. The purchase decision was also influenced by the fact that the shipping was
free of cost to Australia which made the purchase more sensible. Another thing that I liked about the
purchase option was that the company has a good return policy in case the size did not fit me
appropriately. The policies were easy for return and exchange.
In addition to this, another service of ASOS is that if the size and the colour of the t-shirt is not
available then the website would give me a compensation through a store credit which would allow
me to purchase a product of my own choice without spending my own money. The shopping cart
reflected on the things I had chosen to purchase. Upon check out, I was redirected to the creation of
an account where reward points were added. An additional 10% discount was acquired by me since I
am a student. Billing and shipping information was added and I chose my payment options with ease.
2.5 Pay
ASOS offers a variety of payment methods that can be chosen. For example, Debit/Credit Card,
AfterPay, PayPal etc. I chose to pay through the Debit card option with my Commonwealth Reward
Card to get additional points for shopping through that card. It was a convenient payment option
since I did not have to transfer funds to them or email them a receipt.
2.6 Post Purchase Behaviour
Once the payment was done, the redirection took me back to the ASOS website. Here I could track
my order, print or save the order. After this, I saw that I had received two emails. One from the
Comm Bank and the other from ASOS on the confirmation of payment and the order respectively. It
showed that the product would be shipped very soon. The next day, an email was sent to my by
ASOS that specified that the t-shirt had already been shipped and a tracking number was given
through which I could check out the delivery.

This gave me some reassurance and I went to the FedEx tracking website where I entered the
tracking number that was given to me. Through this website, I was able to keep a close tab on the
journey of my t-shirt. It was being shipped from the Camden Town in London. After a few hours, I
saw that the FedEx website showed that the package had arrived at the Perth Airport and the it was
out for delivery to the registered address. ASOS had rightly claimed that the package would be
delivered in a matter of 3 days. I went to collect the package from the post office in Bentley since I
wasn’t at home when the package was sent to deliver at my home.
The next phase is the Re-engagement which comes after the purchase is completed and the delivery
is successfully done. It is considered as one of the most important stages as it carries the ability to
influence the decisions of a customer from the futuristic perspective and whether the customer would
pick the same website for the purchase or not. If the first experience was positive then the chance of
a revisit becomes stronger. Once my transaction was completed, I noticed that my consumer account
was credited with 1049 reward points. 1000 points were given since I was a new member and 49
points in accordance with my last purchase.
I realized that the points could be used by me in the next purchase to get additional discounts. After a
couple of days, I received an email from ASOS that contained its newsletter with information on the
date of sales and the best ways I could match other products with my t-shirt. In accordance with my
viewing history, they also sent me a reminder that I could still purchase the product that I was
considering earlier and recommended other items based on my purchase and viewing history. The t-
shirt that I had received was satisfactory in terms of quality, colour and size and I wore it to the event
that I had it purchased it for.
3. MAPPING THE DIGITAL JOURNEY

4. CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE
ASOS is ranked among the leading shopping destinations for apparel brands. The company ensures
that it consistently updates its company pages on social media websites such as Facebook, Instagram
and Twitter. The Facebook page has 6,225,554 likes and 6,219,351 followers. There are 9.6 million
followers on Instagram which depicts a strong brand presence. The high following of the pages
ensures that the content posted by the company will have a high viewership and the interaction
would be good as well. The brand awareness and engagement are expected to improve significantly
through this. The content on all platforms was noted to be consistent in nature. The posts had links
that could be used to visit the website immediately.
On the website, I noticed that there were links through which the social media pages of the company
can be visited with ease. According to experts, the social media traffic of the ASOS website was
higher when compared to other brands by 9-10% on an average. Through the association of ASOS
with DT and The Mint Partners, they carry the ability to customize their advertisements and make
them special for diverse types of customers as well. This is known to improve the amount of sales,
customer experience levels and the engagement on the website.

The factor that I found to be the most interesting is that the ASOS website was easy to navigate. The
categories and information on them were easily available as well. It is a very simple website to find
links to the products that a visitor might be searching for. The homepage saves the time to find the
right category and the page on which the ideal product may be present. I found the design of the
website to be very aesthetic with the professional looking appearance. The colour combination and
the font matched perfectly as well. Even though the quality of the images was high and the sharpness
was good, the website loading speed was great.
The zoom option was very good as it allowed me to take a better look at the products that I wanted to
buy. Clarity in description of the product with detailed information on specifics such as material
used, design type, presence of zippers, type of washing, the size worn by the model etc. were
considered to be the most important attraction by me. The filtering option further helped me in
further sorting the products based on my budget and design. One thing that surprised me was that on
exploration, I opened a lot of tabs and whenever I added a product to my cart, all the tabs alerted that
a product had been added. The checkout steps were very easy as creation of the account could also
be done through Facebook account. Entering the shipping address and payment option was also
straight forward.
Another important thing that I really liked about ASOS was the free shipping service irrespective of
how low the price of the order was. The status of a student helped me in getting the eligibility of free
shipping though. On other websites, if the purchase amount is below AUD 100, they tend to charge
extra for shipping but not at ASOS. Moreover, the delivery time was right and I was very satisfied
with my entire experience as I got the t-shirt before the event which was within 5 days.
The only thing that I did not like about ASOS was that the mobile application of the company was
not as efficient as the website. I could not zoom some products properly on the mobile application
which I could on the website. Apart from this, if I scroll down, additional options are given on other
websites but on the website of ASOS, I had to click manually to go to the next page. The last factor
that I did not like was that whenever I added a product to the cart, a new page would come up. In
case I wanted to add more products to the cart, I had to go back to the previous pages to do the same.
The cart option was not available on each page separately. The presence of only three payment types
is actually less when compared to other websites that offer the same type of retail clothing services.
To conclude, I would like to highlight that the aspect of SEO is exceedingly useful for any customer
to search for the right type of website to find the product or service that they may be looking for.

This marketing technique has also worked very well for ASOS. If a customer is searching for retail
products that are linked to the products offered by ASOS, the website of the company ranks among
the first 5 options on Google which is actually very good. This further helped in increasing the brand
awareness and improves the engagement between the potential customer and the company that is
offering the product or service in question.
5. RECOMMENDATION
Based on the above discussion, this section will include a series of recommendations that are
designed to assist ASOS in being a better provider of products and services in the retail sector. In
order to reduce the percentage of customer dissatisfaction, the company can adopt the approach of
behavioural targeting. Through this, a software can be used to track the movement of a potential
buyer on the website and offer them solutions that might be appropriate to their search. This is
expected to further help the company in improving the awareness of the brand among existing and
potential customers across the globe. The promotional offers can benefit the potential first-time
customers and benefit the customers while it also helps the company in acquiring a new consumer.
The mobile application of ASOS can be made more friendly when compared to the applications of
other brands and the overall services of ASOS on its website. Today, 77% of the consumers tend to
use mobile applications to make purchases. The IT department of ASOS can offer improved content
and fix the zoom issues to make it more likable. An automated scroll down option can make the
ASOS website more appealing and easier to use for the customers. The manual button sometimes
becomes tedious for the normal consumer. A ‘go to top page’ button can be added to help customers
in reducing the pressure of scrolling up as well.
Furthermore, ASOS must consider the introduction of a few more payment gateways like other retail
websites. Other safer transaction options can also be chosen to ensure that the transactions are safe.
For example, sending a secure link of the bank gateway to the customer. With the exceptional
designing and content of the newsletters by ASOS, it is recommended that the company takes into
account the signing up of more customers to the email content. This can be done to acquire more
customers since the emails can consist of recommendations based on the history of the purchases
made.
New potential consumers can be sent invitation emails that can consist of special offers as well. 15%
discount can be given on the first purchase. The company collects email addresses of only the people

who start to check out. It can take the email address upon visitation even if the visitor does not buy
anything, an email with recommendations can be sent to them by ASOS.
In addition to this, an improvement in the overall design of the website is recommended. The design
as of today is every simple and the addition of some visual content or videos could help in attracting
a higher number of potential customers online. Interactive websites with a model moving 360
degrees around and giving a complete view to the customers on how the product shall look like can
be a one-step forward in the direction to improved customer experience. The engagement would
definitely increase multi fold.
To conclude, I would like to highlight that ASOS can consider other methods to improve the online
journey of its customers. Through the use of supermodels or assistance from fashion bloggers, the
products can be further promoted. This can enhance the customer experience and the company can
showcase credits on famous people using their products comfortably.