Social media in the fashion industry

Since 2010, the increase of brand influencers is a new type of marketing. A brand influencer is an individual who uses their social media platform as leverage to promote brands with sponsored content. Brand influencers can include models, bloggers, or athletes. However, it is important to note that it is different than celebrity endorsement due to the niche popularity many influencers have, rather than widespread fame. This niche allows the brand to build trust between the followers and the influencer.[9] Companies also use brand influencers to narrow down their target audience. They take note of who uses social media the most and that allows them to morph their strategies. Generation Z is noted to be the largest group of individuals to use social media, with 75% of people surveyed using Instagram for three hours or more per day.[10] Knowing this information, companies can market direct-to-consumer with features that allow prospective customers to shop right from the brand influencers' pages.

Since 2011, the popularity and usage of smart technology has increased. This altered the way consumers 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).[11] These figures suggest that content posted is 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.

Instagram has over a billion followers and it allows brands to use it as a platform to reach out to find their niche audience.

With over 200 million active users, access to creative content is virtually unlimited. Many fashion-forward Instagram accounts with large followings are able to turn their passions into businesses, generating income using their status within the community. For instance, when we see a face on Instagram that models for a certain brand we then associate that person with that brand. So, as we continue to see that individual on our timeline we will always think about that brand. An example of this would be the contestants on the show, The Bachelor. After these women compete on the show, they start promoting fashion, hair, accessories and much more because of how popular the show is and how well-liked they were on the show. [12]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)[13] 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)[14] explains.

Facebook is another large platform for companies to advertise their products. While sharing a similar structure with Instagram, Facebook is largely used by an older demographic, with over 92% of its user base being 25 or older.[15] Facebook also features an online marketplace[16] similar to Craigslist, where users can sell and trade goods and services to other users in their area.

"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).[17] 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).

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.

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 modelled for 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).[18] 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 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."[19] 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.".[19]

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%."[20] The brand uses the re-tweeting capability on Twitter to capture the attention of their target market.

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Louis Vuitton adopted the use of social media sites later, but that has not stopped them from building an advantageous campaign. For instance, "LVMH has produced a 14 percent rise in comparable sales in the division covering sales of high-margin handbags and fashion."[21] 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."[22] Also, in the spring of 2019 they employed Emma Chamberlain, a 17-year-old lifestyle vlogger from California and brought her to Paris fashion week. During her time there, at the Fall 2019 Ready-to-wear fashion show, she took many pictures and videos[23] (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M0wpTx6kUPE) of her experiences and brought attention to the brand. She also collaborated with Karlie Kloss and did a video in which Karlie drove her around Paris to get to know the city with the sponsorship of the brand. Louis Vuitton has used different influencers over the past year of 2019 since they understand that this will get different generations that would usually not be looking at their brand to view their items. The use of advertisements and influencers has helped Louis Vuitton grow between the years of 2010 and 2019.[24]

Supreme logo

Supreme is an American brand established in New York City in the year of 1994 that makes apparel and skating items. At the time, Supreme's creator, James Jebbia, wanted "his clothing to reach the skateboarding community. He built a store where the clothing was on the exterior of the shop so that skaters could skate into the shop. Skaters around the city raved about the comfort they felt in the store, and word continued to spread."[25] This start helped propel the exclusivity and interest in their items. They have limited releases at certain times so many of the purchasers are waiting for the new articles of clothing. Supreme has worked with many influencers and young adults to promote their brand and items with a distinct obsessive culture. For instance, Kid Cudi, Chris Brown, Kanye West, are all photographed in Supreme clothes with the big red logo that distinguishes it from other brands.[26]

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 from the runway. A direct impact was seen by Topshop as customers were able to immediately purchase the looks from the runway, with the first dress on the catwalk selling out before the end of the show.[27]

• 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
• Consumers are able to give direct feedback in the form of likes, comments, views, and shares.
• Celebrity endorsements on social media increase sales dramatically.
• Targeted and measurable ads suitable for the industry.

• Too much information is being sent to consumers over the Internet, which can make it hard to break through the "clutter" of information overload
• Due to the further development of social media, luxury brands not only promote on social media but also offer e-commerce as a new distributional channel in the market. However, it has triggered the increase of possibility of channel conflict, and the enlargement of the negative impact of increased distribution control: The luxury brands do not intend to sell their product at a lower price than that in physical stores. Therefore, most of those luxury brands, for protecting their brand reputation, have prohibited high discount on social media for attracting consumers to shop online.[28]
• Regional conflicts of products prices on social media, in addition, have impacted the sales in physical stores. It has broken up the regional price structure of diversity in the market.[29] Specifically, if a brand sells a higher price in the Chinese physical store than that in Europe, Chinese consumers could buy the same products through the European website channels at a lower price. However, if the authority decides to close the online shopping, a key branch of business for the brands would be lost. In addition, the channel operation of social media brings a negative impact on the physical stores. Specifically, as significant numbers of brands have established their official accounts on social media, the brand loyalty of consumers will be impaired by the massive comparison of products from the various brand.

Some argue that social media does not always have a positive impact on retail and consumers as a whole. The reasoning behind this belief is for the perception of how we see ourselves versus others. For example, if an Instagram user is scrolling through their feed and sees multiple pictures of thin models with perfect hair and makeup as a way to advertise a brand, it may give that social media user a negative perception of themselves. This causes an attachment between the viewer of the post and social media, since they begin to accumulate their self-worth from social media rather than themselves.[30] However, these ads are not projected as a negative way for others to view themselves, but just as a way to showcase new trends. Brands such as Aerie by American Eagle have campaigns that show "untouched" models that are not photo shopped wearing Aerie's undergarments and clothing as a way to combat this criticism. Body positivity is a movement that is on the rise to help women and men feel more confident in their bodies and not to compare themselves to people that they see on social media sites. Consumers are now so fascinated by the concept of "likes" and want to look and dress like others. Social media is making this easier than ever, and retailers are taking full advantage of this. Many retailers have implemented social media as a way to advertise their products among "brand influencers", who are essentially social media users with a high following that can persuade their followers to buy a particular product. Retailers strategically pick who they want to advertise their products, which is mainly decided by making sure that their target markets align. Social media has not only changed how consumers shop, but also how retailers position themselves into the marketplace.