Mar 24, 2008 6:03 AM, PROMO Xtra

Retailer Sears Roebuck & Co. is getting ready for prom season by turning a portion of its basic Web site over to teen fashions for the big dance.

The “Prom Premiere 2008” pages, available at http://www.sears .com/shc/s/dap_10153_12605_DAP_Prom?adCell=A3 through May, is designed to let visitors—mostly girls 15 to 17 years old—experience some of the glamour linked to prom-going in their imaginations. On arrival, they’re met with a red carpet, online video and a battery of paparazzi. Visitors can then click through a gallery of dresses categorized into collections: Short & Sassy, Glitter & Glam, Slim & Sleek and Ball Gowns.

Once they find the style and color they like, users can e-mail the dress to get their friends’ opinions, or they can upload the dress to their Facebook profile page. The site also lets them click through to other pages in the Sears e-commerce site where they can find shoes, purses and other accessories that will suit their chosen look.

Sears will drive traffic to “Prom Premiere 2008” with in-store signs and displays as well as online advertising to the 2.4 million U.S. users of Facebook.

“There is nothing more exciting than preparing for prom,” said Jenny Cyra, vice president and general merchandise manager for women’s apparel at Sears in a statement. “The quest for the perfect dress is not an easy one. That’s why Sears is thrilled to offer this innovative, easy-to-use destination for this milestone occasion.”

“This generation of high school students is already very tech savvy,” said Thomas Zanoni, group account director at WhittmanHart Interactive, which designed the Prom Premiere pages for Sears. “We felt that the usability and social networking aspects were key.”

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