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from the mind. It also confirms that the mind is the key aspect that ought to
be influenced and affected by luxury brands both in the online and offline
brand universe. Therefore, developing a luxury website should include a
focus on integrating elements that will enhance the mood and influence the
mind, leading to extraordinary experiences.
In order to have positive influence on the mind of the luxury client in the
virtual world, it is important to ensure that they have a “brand” experience
instead of a “person-to-screen” experience. In other words, they should be so
deeply immersed in the virtual universe of the brand that they should forget
that they are staring at a computer screen. It is only at this point that a luxury
client would have attained a “high-impact” online experience.
How may the elements outlined guide the creation of an outstanding online
experience?
Before we analyze the tactical requirements of creating a positive online
experience, let's experiment with a short scenario. If you're close to a compu-
ter, take a quick look at Rolex.com (Figure 4.2). You will likely notice a giant
size Oyster Perpetual Datejust watch or similar model on the homepage,
featuring the current date and accurate time. The high visual impact of the
watch's precise engineering, design, features, movement, materials and even
angular reflections are so clear-cut visually that you may feel that you are
holding the watch right in your hands or at least that you're almost touch-
ing it. This feeling will likely arouse your curiosity to discover the brand's
universe by clicking your way through the website. The demonstration of
precision, skill and depth on the homepage ensures that there is a strong mes-
sage and a real promise of value to be discovered beyond the homepage. The
impact of this homepage on your mind has likely been positively high.
Now skip to Dolcegabbana.com and you will notice that the homepage is
divided into multiple categories and sections that feature Dolce & Gabbana,
the parent brand; the sub-brands D&G Dolce & Gabbana and D&G Junior;
as well as other initiatives and activities of the brand like fashion shows, spe-
cial projects, product extensions etc. The display of the different sections
on the homepage gives an indication of the extent of the brand's universe
and the richness of its world but the homepage hardly inspires the feelings
that will arouse a strong curiosity to discover the world of the brand, unlike
Rolex.com. At the time of writing, the homepage of Dolcegabbana.com fea-
tured twenty sections, represented by images linked to the brand's activity in
each section. Looking at the homepage, a web savvy user is likely to under-
stand immediately that each of these twenty sections would likely lead to
other sub-sections, mini-sites, micro-sites and perhaps shopping sites. This
would mean an endless stream of web pages linked to each of the twenty
sections. If this user is enthusiastic about the brand or knows exactly what
they are looking for, they may go ahead to visit the website but web-savvy
users making an initial contact with the website may hesitate. On the other hand,
