In an attempt to assess the online communication of one of my favorite brands, Warby Parker, I want to share my findings with you.
For the record, I don’t wear prescription glasses (I have 20/20 vision), but Warby Parker makes me wish I did.
Why am I obsessed with a brand that sells something I don’t need? The answer lies in how they communicate online.
A little background
Warby Parker is an American company that sells mainly prescription glasses, contact lenses, and sunglasses. It was originally founded as an online retailer. However, the majority of their sales now come through their 160 physical retail store locations in the U.S. and Canada. At the end of 2021, Warby Parker announced plans to add 40 additional retail locations in 2022.
What makes Warby Parker’s communication so effective?
Warby Parker’s founding mission was “to inspire and impact the world with vision, purpose, and style.” They have remained true to their mission and continue to communicate that to their audience.
The vision and style part of that mission speaks for itself. They sell these guys:
By naming their frames (the way one cleverly names nail polishes), styles are easily remembered and shareable on social media. This puts Warby Parker in a better position to benefit from user-generated content. The ability of customers to communicate with the company and others is thus an important part of their online communication.
The purpose portion of their mission communicates to their customers that they are dedicated to values and causes. The value being that eyeglasses should be affordable to everyone and the cause being that for pair of glasses purchases, one is donated to someone in need. They communicate this purpose very strongly online.
On their website, we find information about the Warby Parker Impact Foundation and the Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program.
We also see that the company uses its social media channels to interact with customers who find value in the cause.
Social Media Content
Warby Parker’s social media communication is excellently targeted to their core demographic - 25-34 year-olds who don’t want to break the bank for glasses.
For example, they use a lot of humor in their communication. This is a Facebook post, but similar posts can be found on the company’s Twitter and Instagram profiles.
In this same post, we see three things millennials care about - technology, humor and their pets. Warby Parker isn’t afraid to communicate with their audience in relation to their other interests. We can see this in practice through their social media posts that promote their hashtag #WarbyBlue. We also see a lot of user-generated content, which is a great way to communicate with customers.
The user-generated content reminds me of the interaction model of communication. Traditional marketing can be viewed like the action model of communication, where the company (sender) sends messages that must be decoded by the potential customer. Warby Parker makes the communication process more interactive by recognizing that communication is a two-way street. Thus, the company interacts and engages with comments and posts user-generated content.
Responding to Customers
It is clear that Warby Parker makes an effort to communicate with customers on social media in various types of circumstances…
They respond to positive comments and repost mentions with responses…
And they even respond to the not-so-positive comments…
Warby Parker also attempts to provide education on their YouTube channel, which I think is a great way to bring in customers who might not necessarily know about them. In my opinion, they could beef up this kind of content. The YouTube channel also has a fair amount of salesy content that I’m not super impressed with. However, this educational content is gold! (Not everyone knows what they're doing.)
On their website, they communicate convenience, value and help people solve potential problems.
Let’s look at the organization of the Warby Parker website!
Top of the page:
#1 - At the very top of the page we see value and savings communicated to customers.
#2 - We see a clear navigation bar of the different products offered by the brand. On the top right, we also see a convenient way to search for retail locations and access to a client portal.
#3 - We see convenience and value being offered to customers. Users can order 5 pairs to try for free and return shipping is included.
#4 - We see solutions to potential problems. There is a fun quiz that users can take to help them select the right frames for their needs. The quiz is super cute and you can take it here.
#5 - The chat function at the top of the page communicates convenience, problem solving, and a willingness to communicate in real-time with current and potential customers.
Below the scroll
Here we see all the current offerings to shop at Warby Parker : new arrivals and collections, savings on multiple purchases, and a clear distinction of products (eyeglasses, sunglasses and contacts). What you do on Warby Parker is immediately obvious to users - you buy things and those things are clearly marked into categories. We also find the Buy a Pair, Give a Pair initiative which communicates the brand’s dedication to a cause greater than itself. While it’s not the most important thing on the website, it’s the last thing you see on the home page.
The content is broken up with information that solves potential problems. Need a prescription renewed? You can do that! Have insurance? Warby Parker accepts it!
Bottom of Page
#1 - In the footer, we see a slew of ways that you can either learn more about Warby Parker or communicate/connect with Warby Parker. You can join their email list or contact them in any way that suits you (phone, email, chat, text). You can read their FAQs or learn more about the company and its values.
#2 - All the ways to shop on Warby Parker are reiterated here.
#3 - There is a reiteration of solving the prescription problem.
#4 - All the ways one can save even more money with Warby Parker.
#5 - Provides educational resources to solve the problem of not knowing what you’re looking for.
My overall impression: The layout of the Warby Parker website is effective because it is a scrolling website where everything that is important about the brand is clearly marked and available. The placement of the cause is at the bottom of the scroll which makes it the last thing visitors remember about the brand should they click out. It does a great job of communicating ease of use, convenience, value, simplicity amidst tons of products, and it also provides ways for customers to solve common problems which could otherwise be a barrier to purchase.
Warby Parker clearly communicates its identity online
We know that communication fills identity needs. As we’ve seen, the Warby Parker brand clearly communicates its identity online.
For example, it is socially conscious, because the brand is committed to a cause (Buy a Pair, Give a Pair). We saw that this was effectively communicated on both its social media platforms and its website. We also know that the brand is stylish and trendy because of all the user-generated content as well as influencer and celebrity marketing going on.
Here’s Christia Ricci. (She looks great in these frames btw!)
Where could Warby Parker improve in its online communication?
Warby Parker has clearly made an attempt to prioritize online communication. Where I believe they can improve is on education. We can see that they make sporadic efforts to do so on their YouTube channel, but I think providing people with vision-related education would be a great way to start a conversation with people who are searching for information, but don’t know who the brand is. I think they probably could also benefit by adding some education on Instagram and Facebook. This could be as simple as a monthly live Q&A with an optometrist or clipping YouTube content into reels.
In other words, on YouTube, I’d like to see more of this:
…And less of this:
What brand do you think has great online communication? Let me know in the comments!
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