Project Overview


Background
Yatsy is a Korean sock brand established in 2022. Following a promising launch of the business, customer influx has been slower than anticipated, leading to stagnant profit growth. Due to this, the client is unsure of the brand strategy and wants to re-evaluate the brand's direction and connectedness with the target customer.  

Target customer
The brand's target customer was fashion-conscious consumers, females, in their 20s and 30s, living in the Seoul area. Also, customers who love online shopping, looking for unique things/brands, and are interested in patterns and colors. 





Research Approach


Timeline


Week 1
  • Kickoff meeting                                                 
  • Research brief with stakeholders                            
  • Revision + Literature Review
  • Research Approach Confirmed

Week 2-3
  • User Interview/Survey 
  • Analysis and Report





Research Objectives

  • Explore target customers’ mindsets
    • What is the target customer looking for in a socks brand regarding various factors (price, design, quality, etc)?
    • What are the key factors influencing customers' purchase decisions when choosing a sock brand?

  • Determine whether Yatsy has proper strategies for the target users
    • Does the brand currently offer proper products that the target customers are looking for? 
    • Are the target customers able to find something unique about the brand compared to the competitors?




Methodology

1. Market Research
After several meetings with stakeholders and an initial literature review, I recognized the need to understand the Korean market trends and the consumption tendency of the target customer. The client does not yet have a full picture of Korean socks and apparel market trends, so this seemed to lead to the blurring of target customers' mindsets. 

  • Culture and Trends in Korea
  • Competitor analysis 

    2. Customer Interview
    As this is looking for target customers’ attitudinal insights in buying socks, a user interview was selected as a method to uncover the mindset of target customers. Questions were categorized and formed based on the market research result. As semistructured, questions varied slightly depending on their screening survey result.

    • 6 participants 
    • Recruited purposively through the existing user base
    • Semi-structured interviews around 45 minutes 
    • Conducted both virtual and in-person interviews


    Interview Revision:
    In the first interview, the participant had difficulty recalling specific sock brand experiences. To address this, I included a question about their experiences with our competitors, aiming to gather direct insights on specific brands they have encountered.





    Participants

    Participants were thoughtfully selected through a screening process, ensuring an accurate sample selection.






    Summary Findings



    Market Research


    *Market Analysis Report Infographic.



    Competitive Analysis

    Extracted 5 competitors from the literature review. Competitive Analysis results were organized into 4 big categories (strengths, weaknesses, How to Win, and Why customers choose Yatsy over the competitor).


    *Competitive Analysis organized on Figma


    Insight:
    Strength/weakness/how-to-win sections were specifically utilized to form interview questions.






    High-Level Summary


    1
    S
    ocks design coherent to simple and basic outfits were the most important
    factor that the target customers were looking for.



    2
    Model shots significantly influence sock p
    urchases by showcasing the overall outfit’s coherence.




    3
    Website design overwhelmingly influences purchases.
    A websit
    e that highlights the brand’s unique image instills trust in customers.



    4
    Instagram and editor shops were the major sources where the
    target customers discover unique clothing and socks designs.



    5
    The ideal price range is between
    8,000 won to 10,000 won.



      


    What we heard...


    “Socks with patterns or colors are generally worn with simple clothing. While I typically prefer casual attire, I tend to keep the rest of my outfit simple when wearing fashion socks.”


    Young, 27

    “I consider socks as ‘point’ accessories, like keychains, so it's important for them to match my existing clothes. But, if the price is too high, I won't buy them no matter how attractive they are.”

    Alice, 25




    Summary Details

    The detailed research summary was divided into 5 parts (Customer Mindset, Website Design, Model Shots, Instagram, and Price). 



    *Slide decks. Use the navigator to go to the next slide.



    *Slide decks. Use the navigator to go to the next slide.



    *Slide decks. Use the navigator to go to the next slide.



    *Slide decks. Use the navigator to go to the next slide.




    Next Steps



    Guiding Principles
    Based on the research results, we came up with guiding principles for rebranding.





    Mood Board Workshop
    I led a 2-hour internal workshop to rebuild the brand mood to have a consistent brand identity shown throughout product design, website, and Instagram.



    *Facilitated mood board workshop with Yatsy designers on Miro




    Impact on Product Development



    1. New Brand Identity

    Created a new brand mood board to guide the team in redeveloping the strategy for website design, model shots, and product shots.


    2. Target Customer Outfit Archive

    One key insight from the interview was that the target customers have a distinct fashion style and are significantly influenced by model shots when purchasing socks. As a result, we started collecting a range of target customer outfits to better suggest model shots that closely align with their styles and help them visualize how the socks would fit into their daily or favorite outfits.


    3. Ensured New Guidance for Product Launches

    The team realized the significance and urgency of branding and curation of socks over the design. This led the team to develop a new plan for branding that aligns with our overall theme.




    Impact on UXR



    1. Prioritization

    Working with a new brand, I gained valuable insights into the significance of prioritization. Through ongoing conversations with the team following result delivery, I developed a practical approach to setting up the optimal prioritization framework for the brand. This experience enabled me to deliver strategies that were both effective and aligned with client goals.


    2. Utilizing competitive analysis for screening and interview guidelines

    This experience served as a catalyst for broadening the scope of my secondary research and literature review practices. It provided me with the opportunity to leverage competitive analysis as a valuable resource for creating screening criteria and interview guidelines, allowing for a more diverse and comprehensive research approach.

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