Fashionably DigitalCreating digital presence for fashion brandsPresented by . . .

Lisa Ackerman

Introduction

In Fashion…image, presentation, emotion… is everything!

The love between Fashion and Digital has now reached maturity…Fashion Brands are setting new benchmarks in social media success.– Burberry– Bergdorf– Topshop

In this presentation I will focus on …– “What & Why” of an effective Digital Presence– “How & Where” these Fashion brands are employing those

components in their marketing strategy– “Tips” for creating an efficient digital presence across

multiple channels.

First…a quick review of the basics

What is Social Media ?

The use of electronic tools for the purpose of sharing and discussing information and experiences with others…

Vast landscape…

Key differences . . .

Why ? . . . you must be where your audience is.

93% say … should have presence in social media 85% say …should use it to interact with them + 60% of Americans interact with a brand on a social media

site 56% feel a stronger connection to brands It’s About Relationships, Not Pitches – need interaction

Monitor your brand and reputation Monitor others brands/reputations Social Media Exposure: Better & Cheaper than traditional Ads Track ROI better Men/Women 18-34 yrs * +33% prefer this marketing

eMail Fatigue

Benefits abound…

Now …

Fashion Benchmark setters are being successful due to smart integration and efficient digital presence across multiple channels with the use of – Web– Social– Mobile and – creating exclusive digital branded content.

Digital: “Give me a reason…and make it easy”

Traditional Brick & Mortar Retailers:“Is it worth the trip?”

Building Blocks

Top 8 Tips for creating digital presence for fashion brands

Tip 1: A website which is socially integrated

Searching...– Color/style – value– quality – ...but they mostly look for the cool factor – emotional connection.

They share with friends, they buy what their friends share.

They follow celebrities, bloggers, pinboards, lists, style guides and magazines.

They are active anytime, anywhere – 24/7.

The website can be the first point to access but with the help of new social tools it is also the last point of purchase (eCommerce fCommerce)

A Fashion website has to be available at every stage on users dynamic journey.

Tip 2: A good search strategy (SEO)

A good search strategy is crucial for reaching consumers covering strategic keywords for:– Product category– Color grouping– Latest seasonal fashion trend words

Social sharing can create links for fashion retailers.

Social media optimization is key for increasing rankings in organic search.

Source: Epiphany Fashion Report 2012

Tip 3: Ready for mobile

Consumers search for products and share about products anytime, anywhere.

A fashion retailer website should MUST be responsive to mobile devices

Ideally a specific multi-touch and gesture interface for iPad and Android tablet devices is suggested.

Contextual menus, and simplified content are crucial for small screen smart phones.

Tip 4: Differentiate with content

Create exclusive online products, competitions and content for extra impact.

Viral videos, look books, catwalk streaming are still strong.

Celebrity endorsements are also creating extra buzz online.

Provide white background, clean product images. So when images of your products shared on other platforms they still look good and attractive. Consumers love to pin images of their favorite clothes or share on Facebook with their friends.

Tip 5: Encourage Sharing

Don’t limit yourself to Facebook, include Pinterest, Polyvore, Google+ on your product pages.

Encourage customers to share their purchase after they complete their transaction.

Keep in touch with the actual customers on social platforms, turn them into advocates.

Follow up-and-coming social shopping, social curating sites. Integrate with them quickly to have a better visibility in a growing network.

Tip 6: Collaborate Fashion bloggers have their own community, using social search tools,

creating their own influence on trends and as a result have a strong impact on shopping decisions.

Getting the most influential bloggers in your market onboard for seasonal activities, new product launches, even creating collaborative collections are a good way to reach an interest group.

BENCHMARK & Network...follow the footsteps of Burberry, Topshop and Aldo.

Tip 7: Don’t just create, curate! Curation is the new search for fashion. Especially for female audiences,

clothes shopping is no longer based on needs. It is an emotional experience, a way to express oneself.

Highlight lifestyle aspects of your products. Use new generation start-up social shopping tools to create better visibility for your product.

Provide tools for consumers to show their taste. Like Asos’s fashion finder.

Alternatively use the tools available online. Like Bergdorf Goodman using Polyvore’s mini interface on their Facebook page.

Tip 8: Catch the trend quickly As a fashion brand, you are expected to be the “trendsetter”.

If animated gifs are popular again, try to integrate them into your campaign quickly.

Don’t be a copycat, but also don’t miss the voice of the consumer. If they want you to be on Pinterest, be there.

Try and test new platforms and continuously evaluate their impact. Move on if it doesn’t work for you.

Social FashionTop social networks to meet consumers and fans

Facebook

As the ultimate social network globally, Facebook presence is almost as important as a website for a fashion brand.

From F-Commerce to integration with other social networks like Instagram, social games to creating exclusive applications Facebook is a main destination for fashion brands.

The Facebook page of the year in 2012, Bergdorf Goodman is a good example for this new type of engagement. They have integrated social platforms Polyvore and Instagram with specific apps into their Facebook platform.

Twitter

It is an instant news spreading and communicating mechanism for any brand.

New products to providing links to exclusive content, fashion brands find many creative ways to use Twitter.

Burberry an excellent Benchmark– 2012 LFW, Burberry campaign– Burberry has a combined following

of over 1,642,781 on Twitter, making it the most followed luxury brand on Twitter.

YouTube As the 2nd most popular search engine,

YouTube is a fantastic platform for fashion brands.

In a visual industry, the value of strong moving imagery is extremely high.

In addition to sharing catwalk shows and TV style adverts brands can also use YouTube as a way of showcasing trends and as an influencing mechanism.

Pinterest

Pinterest is probably the most talked about social network these days.

With high engagement numbers, impressive link generating figures and a heavily female biased userbase it is a very promising platform for fashion brands.

Brands like Burberry, Asos, Guess and DKNY already using this platform creatively to connect with their fan base.

Pinterest is creating efficient results especially when aiming to create the lifestyle aspect around a brand and connecting with the consumer on emotional levels.

Tumblr

Thousands of fashion bloggers are using the microblogging platform to share their likes with the online community.

Tumblr encourages fashion engagement with its brand by sponsoring leading bloggers to visit New York Fashion week for the past 2 years.

Especially with easy Instagram integration, this platform became the choice of photo bloggers.

Brands like Topshop, McQ by Alexander McQueen are also running their own Tumblr blogs with unique content to this platform.

Instagram Instagram is a photo sharing site that allows users to share snapshots of their lives through artistic sepia filters.

Brands can reach +50M viewers in creative and engaging ways

Facebook’s $1B acquisition in 4/2012

Warby Parker: Eyeglass Brand Playboy: Adult Media Burberry: Fashion

Polyvore

Polyvore allows users to create and share their own collections, which are all linked to actual retailers’ websites. Users can also search for products based on price and popularity.

Mix and Match your outfits, create a style collage and share.

The most valuable part for fashion retailers is Polyvore’s open analytics interface. They also provide a newsletter to retailers so they can follow trending items on their collections: http://www.polyvore.com/cgi/analytics

Ones to watchNew start-ups promising to change the lifestyle shopping experience

Others..

More and more players are coming into social shopping market as there is definitely a growth opportunity here.

– Weheartit.com– Svpply.com– Lyst.com– Mulu.me– Dailylook.com– Looklet.com– Lookbook.nu– Buyosphere.com– Discoveredd.com– Nuji.com– Olioboard.com– Getvega.com– Styloko.com

Also trendingOther digital concepts currently hot for fashion retail

Trending Digital Walls: With Tesco Korea and

Glamour on LFW 2012, this new shopping experience is promising for the retail brands.

Augmented Reality: Trying a dress at home or without a need to change is a promising idea for fashion retailers. There are already good working examples, the latest by Selfridges in UK.

Live Streaming: Luxury fashion brands like Burberry using live streaming mechanics in addition to YouTube to benefit from the power of video sharing. The LFW 2012 several shows were streamed live and also on digital screens in town.

Thank you to SlideShare.net &…Giving credit to the visual creators and sources…

Maverick.Digital•www.Businessinsider.com

•www.thecloudcompass.com

•Edited and Presented by Lisa Ackerman

Visit their website for more information.www.mavdig.co.uk