Social media in the fashion industry

Regular people in Madrid making changes to fashion articles on Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia.

Social media use in the fashion industry has enabled average consumers and regular people to have much more interaction with fashion designers and high-end clothing, shoes and accessory firms. Unlike traditional advertising platforms, such as billboard ads, magazine ads and television commercials, which the fashion company and their advertising agency had complete control over, when fashion companies do a social media marketing campaign in the 2010s, average consumers and regular people can post online comments immediately below the fashion company's social media advertisement. This accessibility is due to the increased usage of social media since 2009. Social media is a real time platform that reaches across the globe; this has had a great impact on how consumers interact with the fashion industry. Social media has brought about new channels of advertising for fashion houses to reach their target markets.

These new channels include, but are not limited to: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and Pinterest. Since the global financial crisis in 2008, global consumption of luxury fashion goods diminished. Retailers had to shift their focus to "classic" lines to recapture their target market, as consumers were less likely to take risks on avant-garde items. (Kapferer, 2012)^[1] confirms: "The recent economic crisis prompted the affluence population – the top 20% of income earners representing 60% of the market – to refocus on real value and great classics, and to pay the expected price." Although the marketing strategies and tactics have changed, the primary aim of marketing fashion remains the same, "ultimately attracting and retaining customers" Webber (2009).^[2] In the social media era, fashion houses needed to reshape their marketing strategies to capture consumer's attention. This is where the shift from traditional print media to more interactive media started to occur. Social media is able to use different forms of media such as: videos, live streams and interactive Web 2.0 features to engage their target market.

The use of social media surged in 2009 to promote luxury fashion brands. Labels were now able to connect and build lasting relationships with customers at the push of a button. Initially social media was believed to be damaging for the fashion industry, because regular consumers could post critical comments about products and designs. However, some observers argue that despite these potential drawbacks, social media is a powerful opportunity to reach and engage a wider audience (Mohr, I; 2013). The Internet, as a means of advertising is able to reach a much wider, diverse group of people, as there are far fewer limitations compared to traditional print media. For example, people in their own homes using the Internet are able to access almost anything compared to previously having to go out and purchase fashion magazines to access the same content. Word of mouth is one of the most powerful sources of information to influence consumers decisions. Information on particular products can easily accessed by consumers on social media, which can either make or break reputations. "Word of mouth- interpersonal communication about products and services between consumers- is one of the most influential sources of marketplace information for consumers. Regardless if bad or good these messages can go viral" (Arndt, 1967; Alreck & Settle, 1995)

Fashion brands use social media for advertising and to engage their target market. Other uses include reporting on fashion news, providing customers with company updates and announcements about new fashion lines, events and promotions, and providing customer service to clients. For example, organizations can use Facebook to promote fashion events and release news-style stories about these events, including digital photos and videos. They can use Twitter for shorter updates and announcements. The fashion company and its ad agency decides which sites to use and controls, to the degree that it is possible, how these sites display their image and content. Companies' awareness of society's dependence on technology as an information-searching tool has encouraged fashion brands to invest in improving their social media presence. Social media has enabled consumers to feel more "connected" to fashion companies. It has also proven to give more exposure to individual brands.

Advertising through apps

Mobile apps, on smartphones such as the iPhone, allow users to shop brand sales, receive style tips, and customize fashion trend news feeds. Geo-location technology provides a meaningful way for brands to connect with shoppers at the point of purchase, giving them the ability to check-in and find tips, recommendations, offers and prizes, resulting in stronger brand loyalty and spread through word of mouth.^[3] Companies have found ways to utilize apps on both social networking sites and mobile phones. Gilt Groupe, a private discounted site for luxury clothing, created Android apps to promote their products. According to the Vice President of Product Management for Gilt, "The Gilt for Android App was specifically designed for Android-powered devices. Android users can now shop Gilt sales, preview upcoming sales, and invite friends from anywhere via multiple messaging channels, including sharing the app via QR code. In addition, unique to Android devices, is the Gilt widget which is always viewable on the phone so that Android users can see today's sales even if they don't have the Gilt app open."^[4] Gilt has found multiple ways to market itself through just one custom-made app. Gilt Groupe earns about 4% of its revenue from purchases made from the iPad. Shoppers using the device are increasing their spend at a higher rate than consumers using other devices. The retailer, says 177,000 consumers have downloaded its iPad app. And the average order value for a purchase made from an iPad is about 30% higher than for purchases made from an iPhone.^[5] Facebook allows independent developers to create apps that market for several brands, or custom-develop an app for one brand. The widespread use of these applications is Facebook commerce. Target released an application that allows users to virtually play with the clothing by mixing and matching outfits while trying them on. The merchandise displayed in the game constantly changes to reflect only what is being sold in Target stores. It also increases traffic by linking users to that same item on their website.

Instagram

Since 2011, the popularity and usage of the smart phone, in particular iPads and iPhones increased. This altered the way consumer's were interacting and accessing with the fashion world. Instagram launched in 2010, the app since then has gained over 200 million users, over 25 billion images shared so far, averaging 1.6 billion likes per day (Wilson, A. 2014).^[6] These figures suggest that content postedis very exposed and Instagram is a good tool to reach a large number of people. Instagram is now seen as one of the most powerful tools in shaping the way consumers perceive brands. Mohr, I. 2013 states: "Instagram in particular has been a game changer for up to date, direct interaction between brands and consumers. This has been a popular method of exhibiting fashion as there is little filter to the content posted. It is raw and straight from the brands themselves". It is rare that a message is un-manipulated on its way to the consumer from the brand; so social media has been a game changer in the sense that the content posted is raw. social media is great.

With over 200 million active users, access to fresh content from creative, likeminded people is virtually unlimited. Many fashion forward Instagram accounts with large followings are able to turn their passion into a business, generating huge income. Fashion labels that understand these accounts influence, have harnessed their huge exposure and often pay high amounts for features of their clothing. (Penny, S. 2015)^[7] confirms their influence: "Creative influencers are becoming increasingly popular and lucrative channels for brands. Unlike many celebrities, they are not just mouthpieces for brands. Instead, audiences view them as authoritative and trustworthy – which in a world that is increasingly reliant on word-of-mouth over traditional advertising can be priceless" Vogue's editor-in-chief Anna Wintour also has realized the power of social media and used it to create hype around the Magazine. "In 2013, when industry doyenne and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour instagrammed herself reading her own September issue, Wilson 'encouraged' Vogue to challenge to challenge its fans to make the same pose. Thousands did. Many involved babies and dogs. I call it the moment Anna blessed Instagram" Whitford, E (2015)^[8] explains.

Fashion blogging

"Blogs are usually maintained by an individual or business with regular entries of commentary, description of events, or other material such as graphics or video. 'Blog' can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog" (Bodnar, K. 2011).^[9] Fashion blogging has become popular since 2011, blogs often cover the industry as a whole, personal style, reviews of clothing items and collections. Fashion bloggers have a very high status of legitimacy and those with large followings have power in the fashion world. Bloggers success comes from being individual, relatable, achievable and having some elite status for legitimacy. The status of bloggers has shifted from being amateur to trendsetters and are often gaining invites to the top fashion houses shows during fashion week. As said by Mohr, I (2013) "Once considered fashion-obsessed amateurs, style bloggers have matured into fashion trendsetters and the savvy marketers command four and five figure fees from brands" As said by Mohr, I (2013).

Advertising

Marc by Marc Jacobs

Another example of a designer harnessing the power of social media to promote and expose their brand was Marc Jacobs model casting. Marc by Marc Jacobs is a secondary line aimed at selling lower priced goods but still have the reputation of a designer label. To showcase his new line, Marc selected models from Instagram that had the hash-tag #Marc. The campaign had almost 70,000 entries from around the world. The head designer discussed his casting: "It seemed like a great idea to me, as casting through Instagram seemed cool, current and strong. We wanted the ads to shout with youth and energy. To be fresh and reclaim the spirit that the collection had when we first conceived of it- to be another collection not a second line". Marc by Marc Jacobs not only promoted his line, but also made it more relatable and achievable to his target market through social media.

Tommy Hilfiger

Popular fashion brand Tommy Hilfiger has incorporated social media into their marketing strategy effectively. They have understood the power that it has and the influence on consumers. By having someone who is well known and admired the brand received positive attention. Gigi Hadid is one of the most popular super models of 2016, with the Instagram following of 15.5 million people. She has graced the cover of Vogue, W, Harpers Bazaar, Elle, TeenVogue, Numéro, Schön! And CR Fashion Book, along with appearing in music videos and television programs around the world. (PVH, C. 2012).^[10] Tommy Hilfiger has cast Gigi as the brand ambassador for their fall 2016 collection. Releasing footwear, sportswear, sunglasses, watches and fragrances all with Gigi's influence. "Dubbed a "social supermodel," Hadid has been credited with reshaping the world of modeling in the 21st century, and reinventing the role of the supermodel in millennial culture" She has a great relationship with her fans all over the world through her various social media accounts, (PVH, C. 2012). By being Ambassador for tommy Hilfiger brings this large followings attention to the brand and exposes the line to a much larger audience than traditional print media. Also to walk in Tommy Hilfiger shows are influential social-models such as: Kendall Jenner, Georgia May Jagger, Hailey Baldwin, Lizzy Jagger, Bella Hadeid, Binx Walton and Stella Maxwell. (PVH, C. 2012). The designer himself comments on his relationship with Gigi: "I've known Gigi and her family for years, and it has been amazing to watch her grow into one of the world's top models and most-followed fashion influencers." Gigis influence will be of great benefit to Tommy Hilfiger's Fall 2016 collection.

Charlotte Russe

Charlotte Russe has a successful social media campaign with a strong following on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. Their social media campaign is focused on "user-generated content and social engagement."^[11] Charlotte Russe holds a weekly trivia contest on Twitter, which compels consumers to visit their website. According to Wright Lee, "Charlotte Russe is running 'Be The Next Charlotte Russe Design Star' a T-shirt design contest where the winner will have his or her shirt produced and sold online.".^[11]

Diane von Furstenberg

Diane von Fürstenberg is one of the most popular designers on Twitter. According to Hitha Prabhakar, sources inside von Fürstenberg's company claim that "[w]ithin the last year of having a major online and social media presence, von Furstenberg's online traffic has increased by 13%."^[12] The brand uses the re-tweeting capability on Twitter to capture the attention of their target market.

Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton is a late adopter of social media sites, but that has not stopped them from building an advantageous campaign. According to Dana Gers, who specializes in marketing communications for luxury brands, "Louis Vuitton broadcasts its spring 2010 ready-to-wear show live exclusively to Facebook followers, offering a big incentive for recruiting new fans and a reward to its most passionate customers."^[13]

Topshop

In 2012, Topshop partnered with Facebook to achieve the largest online audience of a live-stream London fashion show. Over 200 million people were exposed to images and content form the runway. A direct impact was seen by Topshop as customers were able to immediately purchase the looks form the runway, with the first dress on the catwalk selling out before the end of the show.^[14]

Positive/negative aspects

Positive

• Raw, un-manipulated content published by the brands itself
• Consumers have instant access to content
• Brands and their ad agencies can post content instantly, to respond to rapidly changing trends
• Useful tool to create hype and "buzz" around a product
• Relatively easy to locate consumers in the target market and reach them
• Can promote sales and deals easier than traditional print media
• A much less expensive public relations/marketing tool than traditional advertising (magazine ads, billboards, etc.)
• Able to reach large, diverse range of people all over the world, not just purchasers of fashion magazines
• Consumers are able to give direct feedback in the form of likes, comments, views, and shares.
• Celebrity endorsements on social media increase sales dramatically

Negatives

• Negative feedback and critical comments can go viral, which can hurt brand reputation
• The glamour surrounding the fashion industry, which was in part due to its exclusive, elite status, may have been diminished due to the increased accessibility of fashion designers on the Internet
• Too much information is being sent to consumers over the Internet, which can make it hard to break through the "clutter" of information overload

Engagement ads

Facebook developed engagement ads that allow more communication between advertisers and Facebook users. Here are some terms Facebook provides to help advertisers know how engaging their ads are:

• Interactions: Total number of comments, wall posts, and likes.
• Interactions Per Post: Average number of comments, Wall posts, and likes generated by each piece of content you post.
• Post Quality: Score measuring how engaging your content is to Facebook users. A higher Post Quality indicates material that better engages users.
• Posts: Number of posts your Page has made either on the Wall or in video.
• Page Views: Number of times your Page has been viewed by Facebook users.
• Stream CTR / ETR: This graph is a measure of the Click Through Rate and Engagement Rate for your content appearing in the Facebook News Feed. If a user clicks on one of your posts, that will be counted as Stream CTR. If a user likes or comments on one of your posts, that will be counted in the Stream ETR. Please note that Stream data is based on a sample and therefore is an estimate of your Stream CTR and ETR. (Coming soon)
• Media Consumption: This graph tracks how many photo views, audio plays, and video plays your content have received.
• Discussion Posts: Total number of discussion posts written by fans.
• Reviews: Number of times your Page has been rated in the Reviews application.^[15]

References

External links

• "New Page Insights: Fan Interaction Graphs." 5 July 2010.