Roots Canada adds social commerce features to web site

Roots Canada, a leading Canadian lifestyle retailer, announced it has added social commerce features to its e-commerce site atwww.roots.com. The product suite, provided b y Bazaarvoice, lets shoppers communicate with one another, write product reviews, post photos and ask questions.

"Our customers have a very strong emotional tie to Roots — we receive hundreds of letters, emails and photos from our customers every day," said James Connell, Sr. Director, eCommerce, Digital Marketing and New Media at Roots, in a press release. "Bazaarvoice allows us to tap into that passion in a way that can be shared with the broader Roots community, as well as members of our company. By creating a place for consumers to chronicle their experiences, we are building a robust community that is strongly engaged with our brand. At the same time, we are able to use very specific feedback to improve core business functions like marketing, merchandising, and customer service."

The Roots marketing team actively monitors user-generated content, not only to find problems that need to be solved but also for opportunities — the content is used for blog posts, email campaigns and on-site messaging.