Nordstrom.com's Successful Launch

Nordstrom, one of the nation’s largest upscale apparel and shoe retailers, hired Conners Communications to help launch Nordstrom.com summer of 1999. Nordstrom’s goal for launching Nordstrom.com was to capitalize on the brand and communicate with loyal, existing customers while gaining the interest of new, younger, hip customers by the internet. Customers had high expectations and quality with Nordstrom, but customer base had not grown for a couple years.

A second goal for Nordstrom was to capture a larger audience by successfully positioning Nordstrom as the leader in e-tailing. Creating buzz and excitement around key events such as the launch of Nordstrom.com was the plan for Conners Communications. Conners also formulated messages and a public relations plan that focused on the positive elements of Nordstrom history, for example, the company’s reputation of having incredible customer service.

In result, many top journals and magazines published positive feature articles on Nordstrom.com as well as multiple business publications and newspapers commenting on how Nordstrom.com was one of the most successful launches for an online retailer.