How To Succeed With Digital Marketing

Social Media Monitoring: Part Two

Last week I discussed Tommy Hilfiger's "Team Hilfiger" fall 2015 campaign. I went over the premise of the theme for the campaign and the company as a whole. I also began to talk about the campaign's marketing efforts and overall results. In this post I would like to revisit the campaign and go further in depth to see how their social media presence and public relations can be assessed and how it can be improved. I also will be doing a comparison of the Rafael Nadal Underwear campaign to see how their marketing efforts differed since they happened at the same time this fall.

Looking through the various social channels it was evident that the brand divided their marketing efforts for the fall 2015 campaign across multi tiered staging. They began with their runway show (which took place February 16, 2015). They sent invitations to not only key editorial players, but also fashion bloggers. They encouraged attendees to use the hashtag #TommyFall15. The term referred to the entire season collection, versus just the fall 2015 ad campaign. There were 3,060 posts in total for #TommyFall15 on Instagram- which is doubled to TommyFall14. This leads me to believe that Tommy Hilfiger only recently began to emphasize social media and utilize hashtags. 

In Chapter 10: Tapping the Groundswell With Twitter, Li and Bernoff describe the importance of capitalizing on Twitter. The authors say, "Twitter is in many ways the visible face of the company in the groundswell." (210) Prior to Snapchat and Instagram, Twitter was the only real way for a blogger or editor to share recaps from the runway live. Although there are competing platforms, Twitter was a very popular social channel for this campaign. Even now the hashtag is used several times during any given day. The company did "listen" to the Groundswell, by incorporating bloggers and everyday people around the hashtag. 

There was very little chatter following the runway show in February until the beginning of August when they launched the fall 2015 campaign, "Team Hilfiger." That same month the company switched gears to a completely different campaign called, "Tommy x Nadal" on August 25th. The new campaign began with famous Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal playing a match in NYC at Bryant Park. He signed a two-year agreement to be a brand ambassador to be the face of the newest Tommy Hilfiger underwear.

Tommy x Nadal TV advertisement

“Because we’re so global now, Rafael Nadal resonates globally in most countries in the world. He also looks amazing in the underwear and the clothes,” Hilfiger said.

MeltWater IceRocket:

The trends convey that that "Team Hilfiger" was more effective than "Tommy x Nadal," but that "Tommy Fall 2015" was the most popular search overall. 

Social Mention:

 VS.

For both the terms "Tommy x Nadal" and "Team Hilfiger," they have very similar Social Mention results. They both had neutral sentiments. Although they had very little variation in results, Tommy x Nadal had a stronger passion, yet a smaller reach. This makes sense because of his level of fame and strong sports following, but still an entire collection would have stronger results over him being a brand ambassador. 

Google Trends:

Google Trends did not have any results for "Tommy x Nadal." To be honest I'm not sure why this was the case. I then searched "Nadal" instead. What is interesting about the data is that because of the huge campaign with Tommy Hilfiger his name did spike during September, however, it was less than expected.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, it appears as though Tommy Hilfiger has been more successful with their social presence and with overall marketing than in the past. That does not mean though that they should slow their pace or keep the status quo. They were very successful at creating a conversation around the campaign using the hashtag #TommyFall15 across all social channels. Although they were effective at using social media they could be better at it as a whole. It felt like they only did what was needed of them; almost like they had a checklist of basic social media musts. 

Although their Twitter presence was strong for both campaigns, they could have done more to interact with their consumer base. Besides just interacting with top bloggers, they could have gone beyond inviting smaller scale fashion bloggers and instead have them wear their TH clothing to the runway show and on their blogs. This would show their American target market that although their brand is premium, it is still accessible. It is evident though that their marketing focus is on the world market, instead of their original American client. We see this with their choice in Brand Ambassador, a Spanish tennis player.

For their next campaign, Tommy Hilfiger should set out goals pertaining to their target shopper. They should engage with them more and listen to the Groundswell. Right now their focus on their European and Asian client is working well for them, but for how long? Their brand revolves around all-American style, yet they are losing their American consumer. Looking forward they need to strengthen their American marketing techniques and connection to their native client. Or if their international shopper is their target market, then they need to consider rebranding. 

What do you think?

Incorporating Groundswell In Your Business

Ban.do... pronounced "BAND-OH," is an online design house specializing in gifts, hair, tech, and accessories based out of Los Angeles. They are a relatively new company that have garnered an immense loyal following and top performing sales results. What is there secret to success? The answer: social media. And more specifically by incorporating the Groundswell in their company.

                            

In Chapter 11: How Connecting With The Groundswell Transforms Your Company, authors Li and Bernoff discuss how vital it is to learn from listening to the Groundswell. For instance, the Groundswell can create a stronger following and a chance at better company and customer relationships. They talk about how you can transform a company by keeping the customer at the center of your organization. It takes a mental shift, but when you do, you become so engaged with your customers that you will walk in step with their needs and wants. 

The authors also discussed three elements that help to transform an organization. They are: 

1. Take small steps that have big impact-meaning don't try to take on the entire customer relationship all at one time, but instead gain more support by showing a series of successes that have impact. 
2. Have vision and a plan-the authors suggest coming up with a three-year outlook of where you want to take the organization. 
3. Build leaders into the plan-learn to let go and embrace emerging media and give the consumer a voice in the brand.

Ban.do has done this very well. With an Instagram following of over 261k followers, the brand has mastered the meaning of having a social presence. They are able to engage with customers (as well as potential customers) through this visual platform by using a variety of colorful photos of both employees and consumers using their products- accompanied by various hashtags.

They also create useful blog content that gives their customers an experience greater than just shopping cute gifts and decor. They satisfy their customer's creative fix; as well as they recently added free incentives, like fun downloads. With their deliberate branding they have created a sense of community among their followers.

On their corporate website is a page titled, "Hashtag Glossary," which allows for users to interact with the brand by using the hashtags on their photos and have the opportunity to be featured on the Ban.do Instagram account. For instance, in the photo below user @Itsamaximaxiworld was featured for using the hashtag #bandotodolist, which purpose is to demonstrate doing something fun. This hashtag also helps to promote the company's hottest selling item- the 2015 Agenda book. 

In Chapter 12: The Groundswell Inside Your Company, Li and Bernoff discuss how important not only listening to your customers is, but also how important it is to listen to your employees. Innovation does not only come from listening to your customers, but also to those from inside the company. That, and internal Groundswell can make employees feel empowered, connected, and more committed on a day-to-day basis.

The authors also discuss the five objectives that help a company benefit from internal Groundswell. Those are:

1.  Listening- can often turn into employees problem solving.
2.  Talking- companies can now post policy changes and address issues more easily.
3.  Energizing- Internal Groundswell can help give employees a platform to amplify their voice across the company. This in turn can help to spread positivity to others. 
4.  Supporting- promoting employees from within and supporting them by listening can help to increase good job performance and satisfaction.
5.  Embracing- this helps to lift employees to their highest potential and be a way to surface great talent within the company. 

Although I have no idea if they have an internal employee platform, I do know that Ban.do loves their employees!!! They often spotlight their employees on their Instagram and Snapchat, as well as use them in their blog and store photos. This shows how they value how their employees contribute to the brand identity. 

What do you think about Ban.do as as company? What do you think of their digital presence? 

Social Media Monitoring Part One: Team Hilfiger

Tommy Hilfiger is one of the world’s leading lifestyle brands that was founded in 1985 by designer Tommy Hilfiger. It internationally recognized for celebrating the essence of classic American cool style, featuring preppy with a twist designs.

According to the “Company Overview” section of their website, “Tommy Hilfiger, which was acquired by PVH Corp. in 2010, is a global apparel and retail company with more than 17,000 associates worldwide. With the support of strong global consumer recognition, Tommy Hilfiger has built an extensive distribution network in over 90 countries and more than 1,400 retail stores throughout North America, Europe, Latin America, and the Asia Pacific region.”

Tommy Hilfiger is viewed as a top brand, but is still considered accessible. The target demographic for the brand is 24-45 year old consumer with an annual household income of over $50,000. The average unit retail price for the Tommy Hilfiger brand is around $120. The brand is split into two parts- specialty and outlet stores. The specialty stores are larger stores in upscale locations. These stores are intended to enhance the brand’s value, while also providing the company with higher revenue and earnings.  The outlet stores on the other hand are made up of specially designed merchandise offered at lower price levels. (Source)

To mark the brand’s 30^th anniversary, Tommy Hilfiger turned to American football as inspiration for the fall 2015 collection. Even the fall 2015 runway was turned into a football field, complete with goal posts, scoreboards, and yard lines. The fall ad campaign took the theme a step further and featured models like Victoria’s Secret model Behati Prinsloo, who was surrounded by football players wearing their uniforms. Photographed in Monterey Park, California, Tommy Hilfiger’s fall Campaign (2015) “Team Hilfiger” revolved around the brand’s signature all-American sportswear and classic look.

"OUR NEW COLLECTION, THE GOOD SPORT, PLAYS WITH THE ESTABLISHED CODES OF AMERICAN SPORTSWEAR AND TRADITION, LUXURIOUSLY REIMAGINING THEM WITH A MODERN ATHLETIC TWIST"

The campaign broke worldwide on August 3^rd with a multimedia program that included print, traditional display, and social media. Although the brand has had success in the past with print advertisement- like an advertisement spread in the glossy pages of Vogue- it has now placed some of the marketing energy on digital media. In addition to posting to their own social channels, exclusive clips from behind-the-scenes were released by top-model Behati Prinsloo (the star of the campaign) on her personal social media accounts to promote the fall 2015 campaign.

The Tommy Hilfiger social channels are highly consistent in aesthetic, tone, and content, but are only slightly altered to fit the voice of each individual platform. Of all the social media channels used by Tommy Hilfiger (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube) the most active and followed are Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Facebook: The Tommy Hilfiger Facebook page has a strong following of 9,994,894 people who like the page. The page is mainly made up of images of popular clothing items and an attached short caption. Consumers and fans alike are able to interact with the company on this platform. They also add photos of the most recent campaign to their current photo albums. The fall 2015 “Team Hilfiger” campaign was only highlighted a few times on this platform, which mainly consisted of photos being added to a photo album called “Fall 2015.”

Twitter: 1.13 million followers/5,950 tweets. This platform is mainly made up of photos from each of the most recent campaigns. They also tweet about celebrities sporting Tommy clothing, as well as Retweet shout outs and recognitions from other publications.  On this platform there were only 8 specific tweets for “Team Hilfiger” posted.

Instagram: On this platform they have 1.4 million followers. They tend to post one photo each day of the week. Their photos are of current campaigns, models or bloggers wearing their clothing, and photos of their product in aesthetically pleasing locations (such as by the ocean). There were a total of 5 photos for “Team Hilfiger” post upon the start of the campaign.

A common theme across the three most popular social platforms shows that for the fall 2015 ad campaign “Team Hilfiger” the brand posted very few relative posts relating to the campaign. The possible reason for this is because the campaign itself was short lived. Just a few days into the campaign the company shifted gear to a new campaign featuring Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal, which focused on Men’s underwear. “Team Hilfiger” lasted as long as what would be the editorial timeframe of the September issue. Perhaps this is because the campaign was mainly a follow up to the fall 2015 runway.

"Team Hilfiger" trends via Meltwater Icerocket 

Looking at the trends associated with the Fall 2015, the campaign had a relatively neutral reach. According to Meltwater Icerocket the term "Team Hilfiger" was mentioned a variety of times and had several spikes and drops in frequency, but did neither have a steady increase or decrease.

"Team Hilfiger" via Social Mention

"Team Hilfiger" via Google Trends

Google Trends, however, demonstrated that the term had a pretty steady trend. It should also be mentioned that the term was being searched and discussed prior to the official start of the campaign. 

Overall the “Team Hilfiger” campaign was highly regarded and received positive feedback across online publications (here, here, and here), print magazines, and throughout the blogger community. Many top fashion bloggers snapped photos of themselves wearing the newest collection and used the hashtag #tommyfall2015.

Although this campaign was positively received, that has not been the case for the brand as whole recently. As a whole the brand Tommy Hilfiger has reported declines in revenue over the past few quarters. It was reported that in the first quarter this year Hilfiger’s revenue declined by 11.1 percent. Moving to the second quarter though (during the fall 2015 campaign period) the company saw significant improvement in the sales trends. (Source).

In conclusion, the trends lead me to believe that something worked well with this campaign that did not with the past few ones. Looking through the social media tracking trends, however, it can be said that the campaign may have increased sales, but did not have as much to do via social media presence compared to its editorial advertisement. 

The Devil Wears Prada: Twitter Edition

Many people know of the movie The Devil Wears Prada, but is the fashion industry really like that? The movie itself is undeniably based on Anna Wintour, Editor-in-Chief of American Vogue. However, what about the rest of fashion?

Of course you cannot judge every person who works in fashion to act like Miranda Priestly, but one Twitter account shows us that there are people who do act like that in real life. The account "Conde Elevator," made up of just 36 tweets, made quite the stir in 2011 when it posted juicy tidbits heard from the Conde Nast elevator. (For those who do not know- Conde Nast was the building that hosted the corporate offices of Vogue, Elle, Lucky, and all the top magazines prior to 2015). After growing a following of 70,000 followers in just a matter of weeks, the account halted after threats made from the corporate level. Fortunately though several unforgettable tweets were forever immortalized and are still available on the @CondeElevator Twitter account.

 What is the problem with "Conde Elevator" account? Nothing, so long as you are not a major fashion magazine. (For everyone else it is quite the funny read). For those fashion magazines housed at Conde Nast during the time (aka 2011), this was very bad press. It confirmed that the some of the stereotypes portrayed in Devil Wears Prada were in fact founded in some truth. 

Although this situation is different than if a specific company or in this case magazine (cough, cough- Vogue) was criticized, it still presents the issue of how much power and influence consumers, or even disgruntled employees have using social media. News of the account spread like wildfire and the tweets garnered a lot of attention. (Look--> here, here, and here). When this happened though Conde Nast made no comment or public statement. Instead they tried desperately to shush the chatter from suing the author of the account. 

Do you think Conde Nast needed to address the account publically or was it better to handle it quietly? Although I'm not sure how it would have turned out differently had they publically addressed it, I am sure that no matter the outcome that brands have little control over how their audience perceives them. 

Teatox- How Millennials are Being Targeted for Weight Loss Products

I recently stumbled across a very interesting phenomenon revolving around tea. What's so special about tea you ask? Well for starters, I happen to love tea. I claim to be something of a tea connoisseur. I cozy up to all kinds of teas- black tea, green tea, oolong, white tea, red tea- you name it. Each kind of tea has its own healing properties and special taste. Nowadays though tea has become the hottest new dieting fad. How are brands marketing their newest weight loss tea? The answer: Instagram.

Companies are reaching out to popular Instagram users to pose with their products and comment positive reviews.  Of the many I looked at, most Instagram sponsored users emphasized that they didn't change anything about their eating habits or exercise. This ensures that their thousands, to even millions of followers are enticed to try the tea program. 

Most programs are purchased as 14 or 28 day sets. Their marketing stressed that the programs were extremely easy to follow since the consumer did not have to change their already existing routines. All one has to do is drink the tea 30 minutes before each meal. The hope is that the tea will suppress hunger and "burn fat."

Perhaps most influential of all the Instagram publicity is still celebrity "testimonial." For instance, Kylie Jenner posted about her teatox diet. 

Companies like Byron Body Tea are even using Instagram photos for the their testimonial pages on their website. Which is quite dishonest if you ask me because the users used for the testimonials have all been paid/sponsored- meaning they couldn't say anything negative about the tea, even if they believed it to be so. Perhaps more credible would be a blog post or YouTube review (see below).

As someone who values healthy eating and lifestyle choices, I don't find this new teatox craze to be effective. Although some of the teas may work to suppress hunger, they are not a sustainable ways to attain and maintain weight loss. Also the markup for the tea is exponential and similar tea products could easily be bought at the grocery store for a quarter of the price. 

I will say though, I almost bought into the Byron Body Tea program last week. A fashion blogger friend of mine posted about it and I took her word for it. (The photo is above- the one with the sushi and tiny man in the tea cup). After doing research however, I found it to not be worth the investment. It goes to show you how tricky companies can be with their marketing. I think that Instagram as a platform tends to comes across as the most relatable and authentic out of all the channels. I'm thinking this had to do with how impressionable I was looking at my friend's photo. 

The Art of Listening: Why Victoria's Secret Is Losing Customer Base to Aerie

     Recently there has been a lot of chatter on the Web about positive body image. This is not a new topic, however, only lately has it had a serious impact on consumer brands. For instance, Victoria's Secret is currently losing its market share in the lingerie industry, as well as losing its customer base due to not listening to consumer feedback on their marketing campaigns and for not offering plus size underwear. 

     According to Groundswell, "Your brand is whatever your customers say it is." In Chapter 5, the authors discuss the need for a company to seriously listen to what it's consumers are saying. Companies pay large amounts of money to do market research and learn general insights of their consumer's buying behaviors. However, in today's digital age a company can find invaluable feedback from its consumers through social media engagement or simply doing a Google blog search. 

Victoria's Secret "Body Campaign" was heavily criticized for not including diverse body types

      In the case of Victoria's Secret, they are losing their customer base to Aerie because they continue to do nothing with the feedback they've received on social media platforms and within the blogosphere for a change in their advertisement of unattainable beauty standards. Consumers now do not feel the Victoria's Secret brand represents their own body and values of acceptance for all body types.  

Aerie's #aeriaREAL campaign emphasizes loving one's body as it is

      The reading discussed the Mini USA case study, where parent company BMW increased total sales for the year of 2006, when they sold no new models. Their success for that year was directly linked to their marketing to their own customers and listening to what they voiced. Had Victoria's Secret listened to their consumer base, they may have had higher sales this past year. In comparison, Aerie's sales are soaring after listening to what their consumers had to say about the need for untouched photos and body type representation. 

How Blogs and Social Media Are Used in The Fashion Industry

      When was the last time you opened a fashion magazine? Most people these days would answer that they haven’t. Of course that question relates to those interested in fashion in the first place, but regardless within our digital world print media is going extinct. Instead to take their place are blogs and social media.

      Jane Aldridge currently at age twenty-three has designed several custom shoe collections for stores like Shoe Mint and Urban Outfitters, has been featured in most major fashion magazines, and has been sponsored by Chanel. It is rumored that she can earn up to about $5,000 for a sponsored post. How has Jane accomplished all of this so far in her career in fashion? The answer: blogging. Jane began blogging in April of 2007, when she was just fifteen years old. Her blog called “Sea of Shoes” features Jane mixing and matching luxury clothing and shoes in a way that was very uncommon compared to the average teenager her age. Jane represents the new “face” in the fashion industry. 

A photo of Jane from the post "Pinstripes & New Shoes" posted September 1, 2015

      Blogging is where a person or group of people post entries (“posts”) typically in reverse chronological order on a website. The word “blog” comes from a truncation of the expression web log. Posts can be made up of a multitude of material. For instance a post could be made up of photos from another fashion website and then the blogger would synthesize the trends of that specific season or look.  Most popular in fashion blogging, however, is the outfit post. The outfit post is where the blogger posts photos of their everyday outfit and then explains which clothing and accessories were worn, as well as their reason behind styling those specific pieces, or what they did that day while wearing that outfit.

       Fashion blogs are blogs that cover the fashion industry, clothing, and personal style.  What makes fashion blogs different than other blogs? One distinct difference is that fashion blogs are laced with advertisement and consumer recommendations. Meaning that there is a larger opportunity to make money from this kind of blogging than with other genres of blogging. In fact now designers and clothing companies are seeking out bloggers to promote their clothing because they see a new audience to market to.

       It is no surprise that blogging has changed the fashion industry greatly in the past decade. Before the rise of blogging, when the Internet was just beginning to boom in the 1990s, clothing companies advertised their clothing primarily in magazines. They would advertise both overtly in a full-page advertisement or they would send samples of their clothes to the magazines to be featured in an editorial spread.

"Fairytale Story" post published on February 12, 2015 sponsored by the designer Chloe

       However, it appears as though digital media tools have disrupted the exclusivity of fashion promotion. Nowadays bloggers, like Aldridge, are a new financial stream for advertisers seeking to sell the latest fashion. The advertisers and PR companies will send bloggers samples so that they can wear and write about the pieces in their posts. Unlike magazines, which produce one issue per month, bloggers post new content daily and in return receive hundreds of thousands of views per month. This has become a brand new way for advertisers to have access to more viewers than ever before. Fashion blogging has become a brand new way to profit for advertisers.