The following article has been published in Retail Week:
Asos has developed an application to allow customers to track particular products on its site through their web browser, whatever website they are looking at.
The online retailer has used functionality within the latest version of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) web browser, which Microsoft released on March 19.
Asos has worked with EMC Consulting to create the tool, which was launched to coincide with the release of the new browser.
Asos enterprise architect Simon Hamblin explained that customers who upgrade to IE8 will be able to subscribe to a "web slice" on its product pages. This function adds that product page to the customer's favourites bar in IE8 so they can keep track of it.
When new information becomes available on the page, for instance if the price of a product changes, the web slice becomes highlighted on the favourites bar. When consumers click on the web slice, it will then preview relevant information. Clicking on the preview takes the customer directly to the site.
Hamblin explained that the tool will allow customers to interact with Asos even when they are on other websites. He said that this was just one development the e-tailer is working on to allow its customers to shop in many different ways.
"The way that customers browse is not about them coming to the site and us pushing information on them," he said. "They want to know what's relevant to them without having to be on the site."
Hamblin said that Asos developed the application with EMC Consulting in about three weeks. Although IE8 has only just launched, it has been available as a beta version for around a year.
* Asos has revealed the name of its new online community, Asos Life. The interactive channel, which will be part of its main transactional site, is expected to go live in April.
The channel will allow customers to interact with members of the Asos team with blogs and give an insight into the behind the scenes running of the e-tail business.