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Role of Social Media in High End Fashion Marketing

Role of Social Media in Fashion Marketing: How the luxury fashion brands are using social media accounts to reach their customers?

The world of fashion marketing is vibrant and filled with diverse colors. However, due to the high level of competition, the fashion world cannot do without marketing. While brand name and image matter, it is equally important that the brands use the best strategies to market themselves. In the world of fashion too marketing and advertising drive sales, revenue and on top of all popularity.

Whether it is a luxury brand or an ordinary brand targeting the middle class consumers, all need to market their products and brand. The rise of digital technology has changed the way fashion brands have been marketing themselves. From websites to email marketing and social media, the fashion brands are using them all to create impact. Social media has particularly emerged as a platform that  has changed the style of marketing for fashion brands. Every fashion brand big or small is there on the social media and  continues to engage its followers in previously unknown ways. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest all are being used to promote fashion products and brands. Indeed these platforms are effective and they are helping these fashion brands reach millions of customers. From Gucci to H&M, all the fashion brands are using these social media channels to promote their brand and products.

Facebook is the primary station for the fashion marketers. The reason is that the kind of functionality and reach Facebook can offer is not offered by the other social media channels. Customers can follow your brand, watch your marketing videos, like your products and advertisements and also add their discussions. Several also use social media for posting complaints or issues.  Facebook has more than 2 billion members which means access to a larger customer base. It is why most brands have largest number of followers on Facebook. Apart from flowing posts, all the images and videos uploaded by the user can also be found in a single place on Facebook.  This functionality is also offered by Twitter. However, Facebook has some distinct benefits in terms of marketing.

Facebook strategies of Versace, Gucci & Chanel –

Versace is one of the best known luxury fashion brands. It has more than 4.8 million followers on Facebook.  From beautiful models wearing colourful Versace clothes to important events all are marketed and promoted through this social media channel. Thousands of followers like every image and video and Facebook can really give the fashion marketers an edge. Apart from images, fashion brands also use written content to promote their products. As in case of Versace, it suitably introduces every image in its Facebook posts. This adds beauty to its marketing strategy and style.  Not just Versace, Gucci, Chanel and others are also there on Facebook. Gucci has more than 16 million  followers on Facebook. Its style is distinct from Versace and it uses less of models for promotions. Models are less prominent in its Facebook marketing strategy. Instead it uploads videos and images of only its products. However, like Versace, Gucci too uses written content with the images and videos to deliver its message.

In marketing communication, content holds an important value and adds quality to the message. It is why apart from images and videos, brands focus on content to deliver there message with highest efficiency. Chanel also has a very large band of followers on Facebook. In Chanel’s marketing strategy too the products are more prominent than the models. Apart from products and events, Chanel promotes its new stores through its Facebook account.

Twitter Strategies of Versace, Gucci and Chanel –

Versace’s social media posts look incomplete without its beautiful models. Twitter is also a very important  stop for the marketing of its products.   Here also, Versace has more than 4.3 million followers.  Twitter is a lot different from Facebook but it is easier to follow and get followed on it. Moreover, markets consider it highly efficient in terms of real time promotion. Tweeting, getting retweeted receiving tweets and then getting liked, it all helps at engaging the followers and customers.  Versace has sent more than 5000 tweets till now and these tweets are just like its Facebook posts. However, Chanel has a larger band of followers behind it on Twitter. More than 14 million follow Chanel on twitter. Images and self playing videos are at the centre in the Twitter account.

Tweets help catch attention of the users in real time and in some areas marketers consider it better for marketing than Facebook. Content flows something like a newsfeed and both images and videos look attractive in rectangular boxes which is of course good for marketing.  Tweeter might not have the same discussion functionalities like Facebook, but still people can retweet and respond which offers efficiency and effectiveness in terms of marketing. In the fashion brands’ social media posts, the use of large images is easily noticeable. This is good for attracting and sustaining attention of the customers.  Gucci is a leading fashion brand that was founded in Florence in the year 1921. It has more than 5 million followers on Twitter. However, the content posted remains the same between Facebook and twitter account. Social media provides reach, effectiveness as well as cost efficiency. There is no other medium that  can provide as much at such low costs. Social media marketing becomes an essential in the case of the fashion brands – both high end and low end.

Luxury fashion brands on Pinterest and Instagram 

Fashion brands that promote clothings and  accessories mainly make use of images and videos for promotions. It is why the image sharing sites like Pinterest and Instagram are an inseparable part of their social media marketing strategy. Both Instagram and Pinterest offer a very good functionality for the fashion brands. Instagram is particularly a favorite of fashion marketers. It also offers access to a large pool of customers and followers. Versace has made more than 3 thousand posts on Instagram and has more than 10 million followers. These posts are beautifully showcased on its Instagram page. Apart from giving likes, the users can also comment on these posts on Instagram.  Chanel has made only around 900 posts but has an impressive number of followers that is higher than 25 million. Gucci has made close to four thousand posts and has more than 19 million followers on Instagram. The best thing about Instagram is its look. The Instagram account looks more or less like a photo album, and that adds to its appeal. Pinterest also provides similar functionalities but appeals less than Instagram. It is not that users just like posts on Instagram but they also comment and discuss.  On Pinterest they can save pins (Each post is called a pin).  There are so many boards related to Versace on Pinterest that are created by its fans and followers. These fans and followers have posted thousands of pictures of Versace products and styles. From one account to another these pins get shared by the followers worldwide. Image sharing websites like Pinterest offer an image functionality that is great for marketing.   

Versace, Gucci and Chanel on Youtube

The marketing story of the fashion brands does not end at these image sharing sites.  YouTube is another important social media stop for the brands trying to expand their reach among their fans and followers. The fashion brands also make efficient use of Youtube for video marketing. From fashion shows to events, videos can be of great help at marketing the products and the brand. All the big fashion brands hold fashion shows and the videos of these shows can be made available to a  very large number of fans and followers through social media. YouTube being  video sharing site has a very large audience. Gucci has uploaded 292 videos on YouTube and has more than 165000 subscribers. Chanel has uploaded 678 videos and has more than 961,000 subscribers.  Versace has also uploaded more than 200 videos and it has more than 58K  subscribers.

  Now, this is the age of video marketing and videos are considered very effective in digital marketing. It is why the role of YouTube is important. However, the other social media sites including Instagram also allow to upload videos. The biggest benefit of social media sites c an be understood in two terms – cost efficiency and reach. All the major fashion brands spend millions on marketing and advertising. However, social media allows to reach millions at zero costs. It is matchless in both these areas. However, another area is user engagement where social media has proved itself most effective. The world of fashion has grown highly competitive and brands have to do everything to market themselves. High end fashion has invested in several channels for marketing including both digital and traditional. However, the privileges accorded by social media are not available using other means. It is why you can find and follow the high end fashion brands on nearly all the social media channels. In terms of effectiveness too, social media has proved better than any other channel.

Sources:

Social media accounts of Versace, Gucci and Chanel