Online Visitor Behavior, Offline Purchases and the Brand

Hello everyone, it's been a while since my last posting. Today I want to talk about online behavior towards offline purchases for the luxury watch maker, Rolex. Check it out, it's one of the most beautifully branded experiences on the Web. Please note that I'm not trying to promote the site as I no longer with for the agency that manages it.

Every month or so there would be a new watch promoted on the home page. For instance, today you'll see the Date Just 31 MM. We could not understand why women's watches weren't generating significant traffic...even when those that where promoted on the home page. My 1st conclusion was that not a lot of women were buying Rolex watches for themselves or that men weren't buying them as gifts. Was it the brand? Rolex is worn by successful BUSINESSMEN and men seem to covet their Rolex watches more than women. Or do they?

What we discovered via some due diligence with the Rolex dealers and social media was that women love Rolex watches and buy plenty of them. But they're purchasing the men's models for THEMSELVES! It turned out that women liked the larger dials on the men's watches and therefore did not purchase the watches meant made for them. See how the brand can sometimes poison/determine our conclusions? Thus, the visitor behavior (in this case) accurately represented offline purchases. Please share your experience and input to this article!