Exploring the benchmark setters in digital marketing for fashion focused brands.

1. Fashionably Digital
Creating digital presence for fashion brands
Presented by . . .
Lisa Ackerman

2. 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.

3. 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…

4. Vast landscape…

5. Key differences . . .

6. 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…

7. 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?”

8. Building Blocks
Top 8 Tips for
creating digital
presence for fashion
brands

9. 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.

10. 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

11. 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.

12. 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.

13. 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.

14. 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.

15. 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.

16. 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.

17. Social Fashion
Top social networks to meet
consumers and fans

18. 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.

19. 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.

20. 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.

21. 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.

22. 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.

23. 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

24. 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

25. Ones to watch
New start-ups
promising to change
the lifestyle shopping
experience

26. 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

27. Also trending
Other digital concepts currently
hot for fashion retail

28. 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.

29. 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