That’s pretty great for customers. But it’s also a huge opportunity for your brand. The average social media user spends 2 hours and 23 minutes a day on social platforms — that accounts for over a third of every minute spent on the internet. Because you now have the chance to engage with your audience in a more meaningful, direct way, you can turn literally every one of those minutes into a potential moment of conversion. 

Chapters:

1. Why does social shopping matter for brands
2. How brands in different industries win with social shopping
3. Access the full benefits of social shopping

Why does social shopping matter for brands

Social shopping addresses a shopper pain point by making it easier for people to connect with what they want to buy. Where social commerce focuses more on selling, social shopping focuses on research and purchases, and improving the whole shopping experience.

Our Shopper Experience Index, an annual report into consumer behavior, tells us that there’s no more debate about the importance of social media and shoppable content. Here’s why:

• Social media is the new search engine. Across the board, 58% of people are discovering products on social platforms. And before hitting the ‘buy’ button, 50% of shoppers are digging deeper, using social media to research their finds
• Young adults are leading the charge. Nearly three quarters (73%) of 18 to 24-year-olds find their next purchase through social media. It’s their mall, their catalog, and their wishlist, all rolled into one
• Buying is the new liking. With 50% of consumers making purchases directly through social media in the past year, the “double tap” has taken on a whole new meaning
• Voice of the customer is key. 78% of consumers feel more confident in a purchase when they view shopper content — that includes creator-, influencer-, and user-generated content

In short, social shopping allows you to meet your customers where they are and where they increasingly prefer to find, research, and buy products. 

How brands in different industries win with social shopping

At Bazaarvoice, we have the pleasure of working with brands across every industry under the sun. We’ve helped beauty, CPG, and hardware companies tap into the magic of social shopping and user-generated content (UGC), lift conversion rates, and increase average order value.

We learned a lot from helping our customers. Here, we distill the most important lessons and fascinating case studies to help you.

Health & beauty

The health and beauty industry thrives on visual appeal. Social media platforms are the perfect stage for brands that fall into these categories. They can showcase their products in action, with vibrant images and videos that do more than sell — they tell a story. 

UGC plays a starring role here. Rich visual content from customers offers authentic glimpses into real-life results and applications (e.g. is the eyeshadow patchy? Does this foundation look good on a complexion like mine? Is this shampoo the key to becoming the star of the live-action Tangled remake?). 

This authenticity is key in an industry where trust and transparency are as important as the products themselves. And if people like what they see, shoppable posts make it easy to click and buy on the spot, turning inspiration into action in mere seconds.

The Body Shop

The Body Shop, a decades-long player in the beauty industry, wanted to enhance its online customer experience. In the words of Indar Chanicka, the brand’s Vice President of E-Commerce, “we set out to fully utilize our social content to drive engagement and use it as a tool to educate customers through their purchasing decisions. We want customers to (…) see the actual products and their benefits through the experiences of real customers.”

To accomplish this goal, The Body Shop integrated social media UGC directly onto product pages. The results? A 28% conversion rate on product pages and a 13% increase in average order value. 

Iconic London

Iconic London is a shining example of how brands can bridge the gap between social media inspiration and e-commerce action. First, they recognized the disjointed experience between social platforms and their website. Then, they set out to create a seamless journey that maintained the authenticity and engagement of social media while guiding customers smoothly to the checkout page. 

Iconic London implemented Like2Buy, a tool that turns your Instagram pictures and videos into informative, directional, or shoppable posts. This approach allows customers to transition from social media to the website without feeling disconnected. 

By coupling UGC, Instagram, and Like2Buy, Iconic London was able to increase conversion rates by 126% and lift average order value by 11% in just 12 months. 

Apparel & accessories

Trying on clothes is a pretty important part of the shopping experience. How else will you know if that pair of jeans fits just right? In the context of e-commerce, apparel and accessories brands have found a savvy way to bring the fitting room to their audience, right through their screens. 

Social media brings fashion shows to every feed. Each scroll is an opportunity to show off the latest and greatest trends, pieces, and styles in action. 

Once again, UGC proves to be a valuable ally. Just like with beauty products, it offers a front-row seat to real-life product demos. Authentic, diverse, and oh-so compelling, this type of content turns everyday customers into the stars of your show, modeling the clothes in their own unique styles and settings. 

Isabella Oliver and Baukjen

Isabella Oliver and Baukjen acknowledge the value of showing their clothes on different bodies. The brand embraces visual UGC to enrich the virtual try-on experience and make online shopping feel as personal and engaging as visiting a store.

Their strategy is simple yet impactful: a monthly hashtag contest encourages customers to share their #BaukjenStyle, turning the competition into a curated display of real-world fashion. 

Bazaarvoice Galleries then takes these snippets and places them on product pages to create a digital window display that’s both beautiful and relatable. The feedback speaks for itself, with customers expressing newfound confidence in their purchases, inspired by seeing the clothes on bodies just like theirs. This confidence translates into tangible results: a 120% increase in conversion rates and a 10% lift in average order value.

We love Isabella Oliver and Baukjen’s approach because it proves that, in the online fashion world, the best way to know if those jeans fit just right is by seeing them in action.

Home improvement

In the home improvement sphere, the phenomenon of social shopping introduces a dynamic where the aspirational is instantly attainable. Instead of just sources of décor ideas, platforms like Instagram and Pinterest become marketplaces where inspiration seamlessly leads to transactions. 

And with a little help from UGC, facilitating this transition becomes easier. Shoppers don’t have to hesitate before buying because they don’t know whether that chaise longue would look good in their homes. You already have a library of relatable content showing them it will.

Dreams

Dreams took their success to new heights with UGC. The brand spotlights their bed frames, sofa beds, and furniture through the lens of real customers’ homes. The #mydreamsbed social media campaign (sensing a #theme here?) showcases customer-inspired bedrooms but also serves as a testament to the power of community in shaping brand perception. 

With high-quality, scroll-stopping images populating their homepage, Dreams has created an engaging first impression that draws customers deeper into their product range. Their strategic use of UGC has led to a 200% increase in conversion rate and a 62% rise in average order value. 

But perhaps more interesting is how the influx of customer photos has informed Dreams’ own creative direction. Octavia Benham, Dreams’ Head of E-commerce, explains how UGC inspires the team and helps them craft their own content. ”Previously, our own product images didn’t look very lived in, but we changed that based on the UGC content we were getting,” she says.

Consumer electronics

Let’s face it: the more expensive the purchase, the more we rely on other people’s opinions and the longer we consider handing over our money. Such is often the case for consumer electronics, where the price tags tend to be heftier and purchases less frequent.

Given social media’s role as the hottest rising star in consumer research and purchase, there’s an opportunity for brands in this industry to share social proof and nudge people towards purchasing in one fell swoop.

Midland Radio

Midland Radio, a leader in two-way communication devices, recognized the untapped potential of showcasing UGC to enhance their digital presence and boost customer engagement. The brand successfully curated UGC from Instagram, Facebook, and other social channels to enrich their site’s content and make it more relatable.

The results speak volumes: a 143% increase in conversion rate and a 27% increase in average order value. But Midland Radio’s approach didn’t stop with collecting and displaying UGC. With tools like Reveal, Showroom, and Like2Buy, they also enhanced their Instagram strategy, making it easier for followers to transition from browsing to buying. 

Food & beverage

Being able to taste a product on social might be a little ways down the road. Thankfully, humans have other senses that food and beverage brands can appeal to. When done right, visuals can almost convey flavors, aromas, and textures (drink if you’ve never “eaten” with your eyes!) 

Social media is the perfect place for storytelling. Food and beverage brands can get creative with their shoppable posts by sharing recipes that feature their products or partnering with food influencers and UGC creators who show the goods in action (yes, this does include eating said goods. There’s a reason mukbangs are still a popular type of content — some people just enjoy seeing other people eat. It is what it is).

T2 Tea

T2 chose to stir up their social shopping strategy with UGC and shoppable posts. They partnered with Bazaarvoice to amplify brand presence and cultivate a digital environment that mirrors the communal and sensory nature of enjoying a steaming cup of tea. 

“Our aim is to create a community of tea lovers,” said Sally Lennox, Head of Digital at T2. “UGC is a way for us to embrace our customers by hearing their unique perspectives and displaying that word-of-mouth content on our digital screens. It provides such powerful social proof when customers can see that others are loving our products.”

T2 celebrates its fans by capturing and posting social media UGC on its home and product pages with Bazaarvoice Galleries. The brand also implemented Like2Buy and shoppable posts on Instagram so browsers can immediately access the products that catch their eye.

Consumer packaged goods

The landscape of consumer packaged goods (CPG) is a competitive one, with direct-to-consumer (DTC) companies increasingly taking over a share of the market. Building trust and signaling safety is thus becoming more and more essential. 

Many CPG brands are turning to social media to push educational content highlighting how real people use their products to make their lives better/easier/more fabulous. And if there’s a direct path to purchase right there in the posts? That’s the cherry on top.

MAM

Understanding the concerns and desires of parents who want the best for their little ones, MAM UK harnessed the power of social proof. So the brand leveraged real-life experiences and endorsements from satisfied parents to reassure potential customers. 

To amplify their UGC strategy, MAM implemented social commerce solutions, effectively completing their full-funnel marketing approach. Bazaarvoice Galleries allowed MAM to curate and display authentic social photos and videos from advocates, creating beautiful product galleries on their website. 

The strategy made their products more relatable, which translated into engagement and profit — more precisely, a 258% increase in time on site, a 108% increase in conversions, and a 58% increase in average order value. 

Access the full benefits of social shopping

Social shopping isn’t a fad — it’s the new normal. And if you have the right tools and the right partners, there’s no reason why you won’t be able to adapt and thrive. 

Dive into the world of social shopping with the ultimate guide to social media conversion for more actionable tips on how to create captivating shopping experiences that impact your bottom line.

FEATURED RESOURCE

How to define and measure social commerce ROI and value

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One of the biggest apparel-related changes to come from the pandemic era? What people wear. 38% of people agree the pandemic changed the way they dress in social settings, and 35% agree it’s changed the way they dress for work. 

And while some folks have reduced their spending during recent economic hardships, 28% of respondents said they’re still shopping just as much as normal. 

But what are people buying, and where are they buying from? And where are they getting their inspiration and influence? And what actions to apparel brands need to take to win over future shoppers?

Apparel industry research: Key trends and takeaways

Our survey consisted of 24,000 shoppers from USA, UK, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and Spain, segmented by age group:

• 18-24
• 25-34
• 35-44
• 45-54
• 55-64
• 65+

A small percentage (14%) opted not to give their age bracket. Now, let’s see what they had to say and the key takeaways for you to grow your apparel brand.

1. A majority of consumers will reduce at least some spending during hardships

In our current economy, many Americans are cutting back. According to Fidelity Investments, this year is “the year of living sensibly” amid consumer financial hardships, with over 40% of folks saying inflation is a top financial concern for them. 

72% of consumers said they reduce their spending to some extent during periods of budgetary or financial pressure and 51% stated that they cut back on certain things but not others. This selective approach suggests consumers prioritize their expenses based on their perceived importance or necessity. Just 21% of respondents reported reducing their spending across all categories.

When it comes to the apparel industry specifically, the data shows us a noteworthy trend: only 6% of consumers said that they don’t reduce their spending on clothing at all during budget cuts, suggesting a majority of consumers will adjust their apparel spending in some way during times of financial hardship.

Out of the respondents who reduce their apparel spending, 49% say they reduce it “a bit,” while 46% say they reduce it “a lot.” 

2. More people still buy apparel in-store than online 

Despite the convenience and accessibility of online shopping, 58% of consumers stated that they tend to shop for apparel in-store rather than online. 

However, the research process plays a crucial role in consumers’ purchasing decisions. Approximately 61% of respondents engage in online or social research before making a purchase (whether they end up buying through an e-commerce platform or in-store). 

When you break the data down by age-specific demographics, the numbers are slightly different. Among consumers 55 and older, just 43% said that they engage in online or social research (for 18-to-34 year olds, that number jumps to 76%).

The takeaway for retailers? With research being important to many folks, it’s important to make sure your product pages are comprehensive and up-to-date. 

Shopping on social is gaining traction

The majority of online shoppers tend to mainly shop on either retailer websites (65%) or brand websites (58%). 21% of consumers said they also shop on social media for apparel. For folks who shop on social media, they primarily buy from Instagram (23%), Facebook (22%), and TikTok (13%). 

Digging deeper into the social shopping trend, the reasons behind these apparel purchases vary. 30% cite their liking for how the clothes looked in the social media posts, while 24% appreciate the ease of the online shopping experience.

For example, Like2Buy allows brands and influencers to curate a list of products and promotions for their followers. When a person or brand wants to share those products, they can simply share their Like2Buy link (or keep it in their bio), so shoppers can find exactly what they’re looking for and be taken directly to the product. Talk about a seamless, convenient experience!

Other factors that influenced buying decisions included recommendations from friends or family members (17%), effective ad targeting (13%), and influencer promotions (12%).

3. Over half of consumers trust UGC content over brand-generated content

User-generated content (UGC) — social images, product reviews, and videos created by an individual rather than a brand — is slightly dominating the apparel industry, with over half (54%) of consumers trusting UGC over brand-generated content. 46% of shoppers say they trust brand-generated content most.

Overall, 65% of consumers said it’s important to look at UGC before making an online clothing purchase. Looking at age-specific data, 85% of 18-to-34 year olds said it’s important to look at UGC content versus 46% of those aged 55+.

For in-store purchases, the numbers take a dip: 73% of 18-to-34 year olds and 33% of people 55 and over say they look at UGC before buying. 

Where do shoppers find this content? Respondents said they primarily come across UGC on:

• Retail websites (35%)
• Brand websites (34%)
• Browser search results (27%)
• In-store displays (22%)
• A friend or family member’s social feed (20%) 

UGC isn’t just a nice-to-have to please shoppers. From our own network data, we see apparel brands who utilize UGC achieve a significant positive impact on their revenue.

4. Millennials and Gen Z are inspired and influenced by online trends (Baby boomers? Not so much)

Age demographics clearly have an impact on apparel industry trends because when we look at what inspires and influences shoppers, there’s clear disparities between age groups.

For example, among 18-to-34 year olds, 53% stated they find inspiration in products they come across on social media. In contrast, only 8% of individuals aged 55 and older reported being influenced by products they see on social media. We see a similar pattern for influencer blogs — 21% of 18-to-34 years olds get inspiration from influencer blogs compared to only 2% of the 55+ age group.

Interestingly, it’s window shopping that still holds sway with older consumers. 47% of people over 55 indicated they find inspiration in products they discover while window shopping. (Only 29% of individuals aged 18-to-34 rely on this traditional method for inspiration.)

The influence of friends and family remains strong across all age groups, with approximately 33% of respondents finding inspiration from, and being influenced by, their close connections. This underscores the importance of personal recommendations and the power of word-of-mouth in shaping consumer behavior.

For those who find their inspiration on social media, the primary sources are everyday social media users (55%), a brand’s social media (48%), social media influencers (47%), and celebrities (28%).

5. Sustainability and second-hand shopping has slightly declined

Sustainability and eco-friendliness often play a role in today’s consumer purchasing decisions. When respondents were asked how important sustainability and eco-friendliness are when purchasing clothes, 57% said they’re “important” or “very important.” In the same apparel industry trends research we ran in 2021, 69% of shoppers had the same sentiment. 

40% of respondents said they don’t pay attention to whether a brand is sustainable or fast-fashion. Rather, they make clothing purchases based on personal needs and preferences. 27% stated they buy clothing from both sustainable and fast-fashion brands, and 18% expressed a specific preference for purchasing sustainable clothing.

However, sustainability and second-hand shopping are other categories with significant differences between age groups. In looking at the data, it’s clear younger consumers prioritize sustainability and second-hand shopping more than older ones.

Age groups differ on sustainability and second-hand

• 66% of 55+ individuals said they “never” shop second-hand on platforms — only 26% of 18-to-34 year olds said the same
• 43% of individuals aged 18-34 reported shopping second-hand “very often” or “often” compared to just 11% of folks aged 55 and older

Additionally, 50% of the 18-to-34 age group reported they’ve purposely purchased clothing made from sustainable materials compared to 26% of those aged 55+. And 57% of 18-to-34 year olds said they would pay more for clothing made from sustainable materials versus 35% of the 55+ age group.

When asked about the reasons behind their second-hand purchases, several key motivations emerged. Saving money ranked as the top reason, with 59% of respondents identifying it as their primary driver. Other factors included the desire for more environmentally sound choices (38%), the fact that high-quality clothes are more affordable this way (38%), reducing the demand for fast fashion (29%), promoting sustainable fashion (29%), seeking more unique items (27%), and recognizing that second-hand items often last longer (23%).

To encourage consumers to purchase more sustainable clothing, brands can adopt various strategies. Our respondents suggested that brands:

1. Offer discount vouchers (52%)
2. Provide gift cards (32%)
3. Offer extra loyalty points (32%)
4. Give more details about how and where the products are made (29%)
5. Provide clear labeling with appropriate ecolabels (24%)
6. Make donations to a good cause when sustainable clothing is sold (22%)
7. Disclose the supply chain and environmental impact data (17%)

While some of these responses are monetary or reward-based, several aren’t — showing it’s not just about the cost. 

Another industry trend among environmentally conscious apparel consumers is clothing rentals. Before 2020, only 13% of folks said they’d used a clothing rental service. Now, that number is up to 62%. By age groups, 61% of 18-to-34 year olds said they’ve used a clothing rental service, while 42% of 55+ individuals said they have. 

6. Shoppers still want athleisure and casual clothes more than other categories

The data from this year shows us that athleisure and casual clothes are still just as popular as they have been over the last few years. 

When shoppers were asked what categories of apparel they spent the most on in the past 12 months, 59% said casual wear, and 37% said casual footwear. 

Casual wear also dominates the social e-commerce landscape, accounting for 60% of purchases. Sportswear follows closely behind at 41%.

The comfy-clothing trend applies to second-hand shoppers, too: Among the folks who purchase second-hand items, 62% said they primarily purchase casual wear. Other popular categories include children’s clothes (29%), party attire (29%), special occasion clothes (27%), luxury wear (25%), office wear (23%), and maternity clothes (13%). 

For the people who subscribe to clothing rental services, comfort is a priority — 36% say they rent casual wear. They also rent special occasion clothes (37%), party wear (34%), luxury clothing (34%), children’s clothing (28%), office wear (28%), and maternity wear (21%). 

7. Consumers prefer personalization when shopping for apparel

When asked if they prefer a personalized experience from brands and retailers (e.g., recommendations, using your name, or offers tied to your interests), 41% of shoppers said yes, while 36% said no. Breaking down the responses by age groups, more than half (57%) of 18-to-34 year olds prefer personalized experiences from brands and retailers, whereas only 24% of individuals aged 55 and above shared the same sentiment.

Keep this in mind as you serve your Gen Z and millennial customers since personalization matters to them. 

We also asked shoppers about their preferences for customization services like monograms or custom tailoring. 50% of people said they would not pay more for these types of services. Of the shoppers who would pay more, it would most likely be for clothing customized to their exact body measurements (27%), custom styling (19%), custom tailoring (18%), fully customizable fabrics (13%), and custom wording or monograms (9%). 

8. Nearly a quarter of shoppers are interested in smart clothing

Smart clothing refers to garments equipped with technology to monitor the wearer’s physical condition or location. These kinds of clothes are gaining traction, especially among more active shoppers and outdoor enthusiasts. When we asked consumers if they’d purchase smart clothing, 24% expressed an interest, while 53% indicated they wouldn’t — 24% said they weren’t sure. 

Among those who did express interest, 37% were aged 18-34, while 11% were 55 and older. 

In terms of specific features, respondents identified a few types of smart clothing that would pique their interest. If you’re looking to get started on the smart clothing industry trend for your apparel brand, the top preferences include clothing that:

1. Auto-adjusts temperature (54%)
2. Tracks physical strain to aid in recovery (42%)
3. Monitors stress levels (41%)
4. Tracks heart rate (40%)
5. Monitors UV exposure (39%)
6. Has its location tracked (27%) 

Future apparel industry trends

Three-plus years since the onset of the pandemic, shoppers are still gravitating toward comfortable clothing. Clothing standards for both work and social settings have shifted — casual clothing is much more acceptable now, even in some corporate settings. Today’s consumers are looking for versatile pieces that can seamlessly transition from professional to casual environments.

But looking forward, we’re also seeing social media evolve from being simply a place of inspiration and influence to a place where people can directly purchase clothing items. Remember, over 20% of consumers said they use social media as one of their main channels for clothes shopping.

And UGC can help boost your social sales: 47% of 18-to-34 year olds said that it’s very important to look at user-generated content before they buy clothing online. UGC is authentic and relatable to your followers, and it allows you to curate your content so it resonates with them. Apparel brand EziBuy saw a 325% increase in revenue per visitor with UGC and clothing giant GANT utilized UGC to reduce return rates by 5%.

To learn more about the e-commerce trends we’re seeing beyond just the apparel industry, watch our on-demand masterclass from award-winning CMO Zarina Stanford: Commerce trends and predictions: The winning formula.

Bazaarvoice is the leading UGC platform, and we help companies transform their online brand and marketing strategies with user-generated content. Request a demo today to learn how. 

But influencer marketing is much more than that show suggests. Influencer content has replaced the billboards and two-page magazine spreads of the past as the central marketing tactic for many brands. Fashion influencer marketing can make or break a brand in the social media age we live in.

Here we’ll take a look at the innovative influencer tactics that fashion brands of all sizes are using today to grow their customer base, foster trust, and sell their products.

Chapters:

1. What is fashion influencer marketing?
2. Why fashion influencer marketing matters
3. How to create your fashion influencer marketing strategy
4. How 16 brands run fashion influencer marketing campaigns
5. Find your influencers

What is fashion influencer marketing?

Influencer marketing is a type of marketing that promotes a brand or product using endorsements and product placements in exchange for payment. Usually, influencer marketing takes place on social media platforms. It’s how unknown brands become huge and compete with — or even eclipse — established giants like Nike and Victoria’s Secret.

It’s especially prevalent for the beauty and apparel industries. We recently surveyed over 14,000 global consumers to find out how they’re shopping on social. For every industry (apart from food and beverage), consumers are shopping more on social media than in-store. But for beauty and apparel, the homes of fashion influencers, social media is overwhelmingly the favorite.

This is how influencers like Christian Garcia have dominated the fashion market through social media, where he has 600,000+ followers on Instagram. His followers use his account as a place to keep up with fashion and beauty brands, and he’s even able to boast appearances from celebrities like Megan Trainor and Bhad Bhabie. A young rap artist, for those unfamiliar. 

Why fashion influencer marketing matters

In fashion, influencer marketing is particularly vital to brand awareness, conversions, and greater profits. It makes up 86% of the total earned media value of the top 30 fashion brands. 

Today, influencers who were once in a paid-post relationship with their brand have now become product collaborators.

This past year, Forbes states digital marketing strategists determined that “micro” accounts — or small influencer accounts — were just as profitable for fashion as macro accounts. That’s because the smaller accounts connect more deeply on a personal level with their followers. This means their interactions will be more impactful since the influencers are seen more as popular peers.

The numbers speak for themselves. In 2021, the market size of global influencer marketing was valued at a jaw-dropping $13.8 billion (more than double what it was in 2019). And according to Globe Newswire, it could reach $9.2 billion by 2026.

This fast growth is spurred by millennials’ and Gen Z’s heavy reliance on fashion influencers. Half of social media users between the ages of 16 and 34 report following fashion influencers, which is more than any other industry.

Fast fashion brand Boohoo has seen excellent results by investing in influencer marketing. The company pays celebrities to promote its products through Instagram to an audience of 16- to 24-year-old fans. As a result, its profits doubled.

Benefits of using influencers

Influencer marketing benefits brands in a number of ways.

• Builds trust with your audience especially Gen Z and millennials.
• Grows revenue because customers are more willing to buy from people they trust.
• Increases brand awareness and engagement. Influencers are doing the heavy lifting in terms of creating content and cultivating a community.
• Helps you glean customer insights, like customer sentiment.
• Flattens the sales funnel. Customers are discovering brands and buying products as a direct result of influencers.
• Helps you reach new demographics. Micro- and nano-influencers can introduce your brand to niche audiences.
• Helps luxury brands become more approachable with authentic content created and shared by someone your audience already knows and likes.
• Generates a new need for products. Fans and followers are interested in what influencers like, so they may consider a product that they never previously wanted.
• Enables you to quickly connect with customers when trends change, like the post-pandemic loose-fit jeans below.

How to create your fashion influencer marketing strategy

Before beginning your search for a fashion influencer, you’ll need to come up with a strategy.

Determine your campaign objectives

You’ll need to decide exactly what you want your campaign results to look like. This could mean driving brand awareness, discovering/appealing to a new audience, driving engagement, or gleaning customer insights. You will also want these to be measurable. One of the benefits of marketing through social media is that the measurements will always be at your fingertips.

Choose the channel

Where is your target audience hanging out? You’ll want to choose an influencer who has a large, engaged audience on that channel. This may involve doing some research to determine what medium your audience uses. You will need to gather demographic information about your audience, such as age, gender, race, location, and more, to help you know what social media channel they are using.

Decide how you want influencers to promote your brand

Post pictures, videos, reels, and live events on social channels. Highlight the brand by tagging it or using branded hashtags, wearing the brand in a video or at a class, mentioning it on a podcast, or repurposing influencer content on owned channels like your website and emails. Each of these methods can have different benefits. For example, posting pictures and videos can hit a wider audience over a longer period of time, while live events can be very personal and create a strong connection with your audience.

How 16 brands run stellar fashion influencer marketing campaigns

16 brands might seem excessive. Admittedly there’s many examples to follow. But one or two isn’t enough. You need to take in enough visuals to paint the overall picture of what other brands are doing. You need to see options so you can narrow down the type of influencer you want in your strategy. Because the right influencers are integral to successful fashion brands.

Here’s our favourite examples of fashion influencer marketing tactics to try for your own brand.

Feature influencer content in email marketing

Social media is the obvious choice, but many fashion brands now feature influencer content in their email marketing campaign. Do it like DWS and include fun design elements or text overlays.

Don’t forget to credit the influencer with their social handles.

Dedicate a landing page to influencer picks

Publish influencer content on a dedicated page of your website. Like Loft, you can include influencer picks and preferences and a link in your main navigation.

Using images of influencers on a “style assist” page can inspire your audience with new style ideas and purchasing suggestions.

This will help you fill in content and make your brand seem more authentic. Plus, online customers will feel like they are receiving real stylist help even though they aren’t meeting someone in real life.

Advertise on influencer-led podcasts

Advertising on influencer-led podcasts helps brands reach a younger audience that dislikes traditional ads. Conair has been advertised on Off the Vine, led by former Bachelorette and Bachelor contestant Kaitlyn Bristowe.

The podcast has 195k followers on Instagram, and Bristowe herself has 2M followers, so having her read the ad carries the potential to reach and influence a massive audience.

Make it easy for influencers to sign up

Once you’ve identified a fashion influencer marketing strategy, you need to find influencers that align closely with your brand and values. One easy way to do this is to include a straightforward signup box for ambassadors to join the influencer program. For example, Conair includes a link to its signup box in the footer of its website.

Glow Recipe does something similar with its Glow Pro Program. It’s a partnership between the brand and professional makeup artists and estheticians. Glow Pro gives these professionals product discounts and early access to new products, in addition to featuring their work on the brand’s social channels.

Discover everyday influencers

You should encourage everyday users to drive brand engagement through user-generated content (UGC). When your fans want to find you or share their UGC, make it very simple to do so by posting your branded hashtags in your bio, as Conair does.

Branded hashtags carry an added bonus: your influencers will all send your followers to the same location.

Partner with celebrity influencers

Conair also partners with famous influencers to create co-branded products and campaigns like this Wild Primrose one with influencer @sazan and the @scunci and @walmart brands.

The brand went on to partner with singer/songwriter @ashleysuppa, whose band @plushrocks has 29.6k followers on Instagram.

Partnering with micro-influencers like this can help brands connect with new, niche audiences.

Create compilation videos on TikTok

Once you’ve collected some compelling UGC, you can compound the influence of a handful of users by creating a compilation video on TikTok. For example, Conair combines different user-generated videos and review posts into one ad.

To extend your reach even more and have fun with a slightly different tone, create an alter ego TikTok account like @conairman that comments on the regular brand posts.

Repurpose trending styles from Instagram

There’s arguably no better platform for fashion influencer marketing than IG. If you feature influencers on your home page, link their image to your product page where shoppers can purchase what the influencer was wearing, as Nothing New does.

This approach also encourages new social shares when you suggest a branded hashtag.

The Marks and Spencer brand also created a strong Instagram presence by posting trending styles on its main website, then tagging the influencers who originally styled and posted the image.

Invite influencers to write guest blogs

Besides visual content, influencers can also assist your brand in writing guest posts for your blog. For example, Primary (a children’s apparel brand) posted a blog written by guest contributor Amelia about the ways families can celebrate Earth Day.

This type of guest post works well because the influencer has an engaged, niche audience of 7.7K followers on her Instagram, @mtnmamatales, that is interested in her content and will flock to Primary’s website. She also offers engagement via her Outdoor Family Chat Facebook group, camping books, camping courses, as well as her own blog, Tales of a Mountain Mama.

Tag an expert

Below, Sephora has taged Sephora Collection National Artist @helenkphillips. In the same post, it features (and tags) different branded products like @fentybeauty Eaze Drop Blurring Skin Tint.

Tagging experts and complementary brands helps to increase your own brand awareness and authority.

Create co-branded products with a celebrity

Partnering with celebrities that fit your brand’s values and target audience is always a strong strategy. They may endorse your brand and wear your products publicly, where they’ll be noticed and mentioned in the media.

Celebrities may even help you create a new co-branded product, like Nike’s co-branded sneaker with LeBron James and Kylian Mbappé. The brand posted and tagged the celebrities on social media with videos of kids playing sports while wearing the shoes.

Additionally, Tiffany & Co. partnered with K-pop star Roseanne Park, letting her redesign some of its fashion lines to create and model her own #TiffanyHardWear line.

Tiffany & Co. tagged other influencers and creators on Instagram to showcase the HardWear designs, such as this post where it tagged the jewelry designer Elsa Peretti.

The post even includes a link to the designer’s official shop, and both include a branded hashtag to encourage more UGC.

Use TikTok transitions

TikTok’s transitions make it easy to showcase multiple items quickly, and it’s a tactic that’s perfectly suited for fashion influencers. For example, influencer Elizabeth Pehota posted this TikTok to showcase Elie Tahari tops.

Create TikTok challenges

Brands can also take advantage of popular TikTok challenges to discover new audiences and seem more approachable. Videos related to the #chanelchallenge have earned over 5.8 billion views. In it, creators like @ingyinkhine55 choose seemingly random and/or secondhand pieces of clothing to put together an outfit.

The end of the video shows snapshots of a photoshoot where the creator models the outfit like a Chanel model. Similar challenges exist for other luxury fashion brands like Dior and Gucci.

Assemble an all-star cast for outfits

Lesser-known brands can gain great exposure from influencers who pair pieces from multiple brands, like this post from @janetgunngratefulgardenia.

In the post, she tags each item’s brand like @elietahari and includes popular hashtags like #ootdinspiration (meaning “outfit of the day” inspiration), which inspire fashion aficionados and help them discover brands.

Curate a best-seller box

Collaborate with other brands to create a best-seller collection. To celebrate Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, Glow Recipe partnered with eight other AAPI-founded beauty brands to create a curated best-seller box and shared its unboxing on social media.

The strategy created an opportunity for each brand’s audience to discover other brands. It was also an effective way to show solidarity with other founders and the AAPI community — for each box purchased, Glow Recipe donates $10 to organizations that support the AAPI community.

Pursue media mentions with influencer content

You probably already know that influencers mention brands on TikTok and Instagram. But they can also give brands some extra social proof by mentioning them in articles they write for magazines like Insider.

In the above example, writer and aesthetician Emma Freece recommends 10 different beauty products, including brands like Glow Recipe, which is featured in the main image. Freece also posts how-to videos, hauls, reviews, and unboxing videos on TikTok, where she has 78.3K followers.

Answer common questions

Influencers can offer authentic and trustworthy responses to common customer questions about a product or style. For example, Sephora launched #SephoraSquad in 2019 through the paid ambassador marketing platform Fohr. One of the Squad members, @rochellemoncheri, posts Stories, Highlights, and Reels on IG, answering common questions like “How do I avoid flakey foundation?”

The above post earned over 3k likes. This is a natural way for influencers and brand ambassadors to provide value for current and prospective customers while also creating engaging content for the brand.

Focus on shared values

Besides generating how-to content and tips, successful influencer programs like Vuori’s spread a brand’s purpose through a focus on shared values like sustainability and community. Its partner athletes and fitness enthusiasts share what they like about Vuori.

Additionally, the brand features community leaders who share their values of creating positive change, like ICU nurse @adleyparriott.

Due to authentic marketing tactics like this, Vuori is competing with big names like Nike and lululemon.

Inspire everyday users

Thanks to the oversaturated ad space, everyday users crave authenticity. One way to appeal to them is by inspiring them with inclusive messaging, as Savage x Fenty has done.

The brand’s body-positive messaging clearly resonates with and inspires everyday users. In fact, its TikTok haul videos have earned 334.1M views.

The brand is closing in on becoming the market leader in women’s lingerie, thanks in large part to inspiring UGC as well as paid partnerships like the one above.

Lean on famous influencers for rebrands

If your brand needs an overhaul due to changing trends or media backlash, lean into fashion influencers to recast your brand in a positive light and take your marketing in a new direction.

Victoria’s Secret missed the boat on body positivity, and multiple TikTok videos portrayed the brand negatively. To recover, VS partnered with influencers like Megan Rapinoe, Eileen Gu, and Paloma Elsesser to rebrand itself as more body positive and inclusive.

Now users are posting UGC on Instagram, modeling products in more inclusive shapes and sizes.

The rebrand seems to be working. Now VS is focused on comfort with a new Love Cloud Collection.

Embrace augmented reality

Augmented reality (AR) isn’t just for serious gamers — now it’s infiltrating the fashion world. American Eagle partnered with @dressx to celebrate Earth month with digital jeans. In the campaign, everyday users were encouraged to purchase digital jeans and use an AR app to try them on — including a water superpower. Then the users received their photos via email so they could share them on social media.

This technique engages tech fans and sustainability-minded users while helping them create interesting social media content.

Find your fashion marketing influencers

Finding your influencers is essential to reaching your brand’s market. So you need to know how to reach out to them. These influencers can engage current fans and expose your brand to new audiences. Now that you know the benefits of fashion influencer marketing, reach out to everyday users who are already posting UGC. Or partner with an agency or platform that handles this.

If you don’t want to spend time searching or don’t know which influencer directory is the best one, start with ours. BV’s Sampling program puts your products into the hands of an influencer with an engaged audience. In exchange, you receive authentic UGC for use across multiple channels. What are you waiting for?

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Masterclass: 3 ways to revamp your influencer strategy — and get more out of it

Watch here

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Almost 40% of respondents said they’re still shopping just as much as before the pandemic, and 17% are shopping even more. But what are they buying? And how are they buying? Let’s take a look at this year’s apparel trends.

A noticeable shift towards sustainability  

Sustainability is a growing trend and apparel is no different. Last year, consumers purchased more sustainable products than in 2019, and they plan to let sustainability drive future purchase decisions. Our survey revealed that 69% of shoppers felt “eco-friendly” and “sustainability” are very important or somewhat important when buying apparel, and 35% intentionally purchase clothing made from sustainable or recyclable fabric.

Younger shoppers are for sure more aware of sustainable fashion and willing to invest in it. 50% of Gen Z and millennial consumers will pay more for sustainable clothing, while Gen X and baby boomers won’t. European consumers are also more likely to pay more for sustainable clothing than U.S. shoppers. 

And over half of respondents (56%) stated that they always or sometimes recycle their clothes after use.

To encourage more purchases, shoppers think sustainable fashion brands should offer more discounts, gift cards, or gifts, and provide more information about the items, such as how to wash them and where they’re made. 

Secondhand clothing helps shoppers save money (and the planet)

Going hand-in-hand with sustainability, the resale, secondhand, and vintage clothing sectors saw an uptick over the past year, with 47% of consumers doing so to save money and 15% for environmental reasons.

While only 14% of respondents had purchased secondhand clothing from websites like thredUP, Poshmark etc. during the pandemic, 60% said that they are very/somewhat likely to buy secondhand clothes in the future. 

Of the respondents who had purchased secondhand clothing, they mostly purchased casual wear (76%), luxury clothes (37%), and party wear (26%). Close to half of the respondents stated that they had purchased secondhand clothes to save money and 15% purchased as they feel it saves resources and does the environment a favor.

Outside of purchasing, a new trend we’ve noticed is some consumers have started to sell their apparel items too. Nearly 1 in 4 respondents said they’d resold their clothes to a large or moderate extent in the past year.

And while secondhand clothing might become more of a ‘norm,’ we also found that clothing rental subscriptions are losing momentum. Of the consumers who were using services like Rent the Runway, Le Tote etc, 76% said that they discontinued their subscriptions during the pandemic and only 13% said they’re likely to rent clothes again. 

Social media continues to inspire fashion choices 

According to an Influenster survey in June 2020, 82% of UK and 72% of North American consumers said they used social media significantly more during the pandemic. 25% of consumers shopped more to keep themselves entertained or because they were using social media more and in turn discovered new products. 

With social media usage way up, 62% said that’s where they’re finding clothing inspiration, a practice more common with Gen Z, millennial, and Gen X shoppers than with boomers.

Of the shoppers seeking inspiration from social media and influencers, 56% embrace micro-influencers, or those with 1,000 to 100,00 followers, and 42% rely on content creators with less than 1,000 followers. This tells us that a more niche following provides higher authenticity. 

Brand websites are the go-to for online shopping 

Not just a trend in apparel, the increase in screen time usage hasn’t only applied to social media though — online shopping has been the go-to option, with 40% of consumers said they’re shopping solely online.

Most Gen Z online shoppers (76%) prefer shopping directly from fashion e-commerce sites, brand stores, and thrift shops. By comparison, baby boomer and Gen X consumers prefer shopping directly from retailer sites, department stores, and brand sites. 

The pandemic changed clothing styles 

In our survey, we saw 63% of respondents “strongly agreed” or “agreed” that the pandemic changed how they dressed for social gatherings, 27% of whom plan to keep their pandemic dress codes when the pandemic ends.

Gen Z consumers especially plan to keep dressing how they’ve been over the past year, as 51% said they found a new style they love. 

Athleisure and comfy clothing soar in popularity 

It’s no surprise that as homes became the office, gym, and general hangout space, more consumers opted for more casual clothing during the pandemic. ‘Comfort,’ ‘price,’ and ‘promotions’ were the top apparel trend drivers over the past year. 

Consumers started defining their “work from home” style as “casual and everyday clothing,” “in-home wear/pajamas,” and “in athleisure all day.” Nearly 60% of consumers spent the most on casual basics and 44% on athleisure, such as sweatshirts and leggings. 

Even after the pandemic, 45% of survey respondents expect their work attire to be business casual and 31% said it will be casual basics, such as jeans and T-shirts. 

Post-pandemic apparel trends

Post-pandemic shoppers will still gravitate to casual and comfortable clothing, and sustainability will factor into purchase decisions. And whilst people are still apparel shopping, they’re more often buying online and turning to social media for inspiration.

Speaking of after the pandemic, now that it’s “over,” we’re looking forward to seeing anticipated shifts in apparel trends as more people are spending time outdoors, socializing, and getting to travel once again. It’s going to be interesting to see what apparel trends emerge in coming years, so make sure you stay tuned for updates.

Now you know the apparel trends, check out our e-book on 5 consumer trends brands and retailers should lean into next year for more industry trends.

How did this classic brand do it and what can other brands learn from their success?

In order to attract the emerging millennial audience, Levi Strauss & Co. completely transformed their marketing strategy and brand identity starting in 2009. They implemented a set of core marketing goals over the next few years that would ultimately lead to their current success.

Interestingly enough, these three strategies are not exclusive to the clothing industry. Other brands can use these same techniques to attract this sought-after consumer group.

Embrace digital

In 2009, Levi’s launched their first social media marketing campaign on Facebook and Twitter. Since then, Levi’s has been successful on social media because they do more than sell clothing—they participate in conversations central to their audience. This works because millennials crave experiences, and Levi’s consistently offers this with content about music, lifestyle, or art which has value to this demographic.

Through this, Levi’s engaged millennials and provides original experiences, enticing this audience to engage with the brand. For example, Levi’s held a series of concerts across the across the US on the country’s oldest railway route, stopping off in a series of small towns every few days.

A brand has to be about more than its product — every interaction customers have with you needs to reinforce who you are and what you can do for the customer. Smart brands are making these interactions more frequent, interesting and shareable. Allowing this to lead their social media strategy, Levi’s has received over 20 million Facebook fans, nearly 400 thousand Twitter followers, and more than 130 thousand followers on Instagram.

Engage your target audience

Levi’s customer engagement has been central to their success. They understand their target audience, but more than that they have also made a conscious decision to listen and learn from them. Levi’s is always aware of millennials favorite social channels, their interests, and — most importantly — the most popular clothing styles.

For example, many Levi’s customers share an interest in cycling and over the past 12 months the brand has launched a dedicated line of clothing designed specifically for bicycle enthusiasts. Beyond that, they have also held marketing events and popular bike shops around the world.

Smart brands have the ability to gain better insight and understanding from their shoppers by engaging with them and listening to what they have to say.  Ratings, reviews, questions, and consumer insight data are all great sources of information about shopper interests. Brands which utilize this information can better connect and build relationships with consumers, all of which helps to fulfill their needs.

Consistent messaging across channels

If you look at Levi’s social media, web properties, or traditional media you will see a consistent theme—young people wear Levi’s. Since 2009 Levi’s strategy has involved being consistent across all their marketing and product positioning, providing imagery of young people wearing their product. Their former CMO Rebecca Van Dyck summed up their messaging well saying, “Consistency is innovative,” she said. “And it’s more than a campaign, a season. It’s about creating a singular message that can live over time.”

One problem many brands struggle with is keeping their messaging consistent across channels. When messaging is not consistent, the experience can feel disjointed from one social platform to another Levi’s excels at creating a unified visual design across all its channels. From color palette, logo and typography, everything flows seamlessly from one social platform to another.

In addition to this, they are also consistent with their social sharing. They’ve created a fairly rigid schedule, and follow it to avoid fluctuations in social media sharing after they found this may be confusing to followers and could potentially hurt a brand.

Millennials hate marketing – when it’s not relevant to them

Millennials are savvy to marketing. Brands that want to attract millennial shoppers need to focus on building relationships with younger consumers and not selling to them. Customer reviews, social media, and consumer insight data are all sources of information that brands can use to build stronger relationships with shoppers. This should be the key take-away for brands looking to make a connection with this audience.

Specifically ones that are interesting in attracting younger consumers. Converse, Carhartt, Jansport, Woolrich, Red Wing Shoes, and LL Bean are all brands that have experienced a resurgence among millennials with coordinated marketing efforts.

Is your brand struggling to retain the millennial audience? What strategies have you used and do you think Levi’s success could be applied to your social media efforts?

Learn what consumers want with our emerging apparel trends research.

For most clothing brands, 2020 will be one of the worst years in recent history. It’s predicted that the apparel industry will continue to see a sharp decline in sales throughout the rest of the year, with a forecasted loss of more than $100 billion compared to 2019. 

Ouch.

That said, some retail brands are rolling with the pandemic punches better than others. Their secret? Staying in tune with their customers’ shifting needs, evolving as necessary, and getting really comfortable online. 

To find out more, we sat down with 2 of our enterprise Client Success Directors. Here are 5 trends their most successful clients have embraced to keep customers engaged during the pandemic, recession, and economic recovery.

Embrace e-commerce and exceed expectations

Thanks to store closures and concerns about public health, more and more consumers are shopping online. In March 2020, we saw a sharp rise in online purchases, with retail page views and order counts increasing 25% and 21%, respectively, over the same period in 2019.

Those numbers have continued to increase, hitting their highest peaks in May, when page views increased 90% over the previous year and order counts rose 83%.

The rise in e-commerce is forcing many brands to fast-track online initiatives that have been on the to-do list for years. For some, this means releasing mobile apps and reinventing their online checkout. 

But others are taking it even further, creating digital experiences that replicate what it’s like to shop in-store, said Nicole Barragan, Bazaarvoice enterprise client success director. 

Think of these experiences as virtual try-ons. The goal is to empower online customers to learn as much as possible about an item. Beyond sizing and descriptions, brands are helping customers understand what a product feels like, how it sits on the body, and even what noise it makes when you walk across the room, said Barragan.

“Our clients are realizing that if they provide this information online, it will inspire more buyer confidence,” she said. “Shoppers will buy more, return less, and have an overall better experience.”

To help shoppers learn about products, many Bazaarvoice clients are shifting their review strategy to accommodate more staff feedback, said Kelsey Fitzgerald, Bazaarvoice Senior Enterprise Client Success Director.

Instead of chatting about a product with an in-store customer, sales associates can write descriptive reviews that help online customers understand how the product fits and hangs. Seeing the clothes and items on a real person can also help strengthen trust with shoppers. 

“As long as they’re badged appropriately, staff reviews are a powerful piece of content,” said Fitzgerald. 

Empower in-store staff to serve online customers

Brands are also engaging their in-store employees to help with customer care efforts. Some are turning their teams into mini call centers to help manage questions about products, store sanitation efforts, and covid-related shipping delays. Others are asking staff to help with social media, review management, and online order pickups.

By responding quickly to reviews or slipping a handwritten note into a shipment, your in-store team can help strengthen the connection between your brand and online customers.

“The consumer has been stripped of ways to connect with their favorite brands,” said Barragan. “Anything you can do to make a connection is going to help inspire confidence.”

In addition to boosting customer engagement efforts, giving your in-store staff a mission helps save jobs and relieves you from the task of hiring and training new staff once the economy picks back up. 

Get strategic about sales

Now is the time to get strategic about sales, our experts said. Some Bazaarvoice clients are embracing them full-force, moving inventory and delighting customers with offers of up to 75% off. In return, they’re seeing more new visitors to their sites and an increase in new reviews.

This can be good for business in a myriad of ways. 

“With increased traffic and increased review volume, more people are being exposed to reviews, which we know helps drive conversions,” said Barragan. 

If you can offer a sale, she said, do it. 

Take a stand

It’s no surprise that the  pandemic has changed how we shop. Consumers have become more watchful of their spending and are doing more research before they make a purchase, according to McKinsey.

For brands that can’t beat their competitors on price, having a clear value proposition is another way of creating relationships with customers. According to the EY Future Consumer Index, 67% of consumers say they’re more likely to purchase from brands that can communicate a strong sense of purpose on issues like the environment or community health as part of their overall brand. 

“Customers are being more choosy,” said Barragan. “They want to support the brands they resonate with.”

Even if your target customers aren’t ready to buy today, supporting the issues they care about is a good way of building future goodwill.

Respond to customers’ changing needs

In recent years, there’s been a rise against fast fashion. As consumers learned more about the environmental impact of clothing production and the labor conditions in some factories, they said they were willing to invest in more expensive and timeless pieces. 

And then COVID-19 hit.

Now more than 60% of consumers say they’re spending less on fashion items, according to McKinsey. Approximately half expect that trend to continue after the pandemic and recession ends. 

To get their attention, Barragan and Fitzgerald suggest taking a more fast-fashion approach to your marketing and inventory management. If a product category is selling right now, they say, go all in. Give your customers plenty of options and update your product mix regularly. 

For most brands, that means introducing more athleisure and loungewear offerings. Athletic shoes are also seeing a spike in sales, said Barragan and Fitzgerald. And what remote worker doesn’t want to upgrade their Zoom shirt?

“Brands need to give people what they’re looking for right now,” said Fitzgerald. “People want to shop. They’re not going to parties or gearing up for a big holiday season, but people still want to get their fix and not have to spend a ton of money.”

The better you can tailor your offering to their needs, the more likely you are to succeed — now and when the current crisis passes.

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Is your apparel brand ready for 2021? We can help. Connect with us here.

In turn, more and more, businesses are engaging consumers by eschewing business plans that prize growth above all in favor of objectives that factor in “the greater good.”

What is cause marketing?

Cause marketing is a marketing strategy by for-profit business that seek to increase revenue, and simultaneously improve society. People talk a lot about corporate social responsibility (CSR) these days. Cause marketing is CSR in action.

Whether utilizing a marketing campaign to spur action for a social movement or establishing a partnership with a non-profit organization, brands are making it easier for consumers to give back and do good through cause marketing. And boost sales at the same time.

But just because a brand decides to take the cause marketing route doesn’t mean automatic success. For every cause marketing venture done correctly, there’s others that don’t make their intended impact.

Strategy in action: Patagonia

An extremely well known and successful example of cause marketing is Patagonia. The company’s value proposition has always been to make lasting products so its customers could live in a more environmentally responsible way, and it has banked on them spending a little more to do so.

Patagonia took a chance to promote its position by taking out a full-page ad that detailed the environmental costs of one of the company’s top-selling sweaters and asked customers to reconsider their purchases. Patagonia’s Responsible Economy campaign followed a couple years later to continue the company’s stance on responsibility and back up its belief that over-production and consumption gives way to global environmental crises.

The brand drives that message home with its Worn Wear program, a series of events where repair techs and brand ambassadors teach consumers the skills to fix their “tired, well-loved clothing” (Patagonia or otherwise), and consumers can share their stories on the Worn Wear blog and Instagram channels.

CEO Rose Marcario states the company’s cause marketing objective simply: “Keep your gear in action longer and take some pressure off our planet.”

It’s a work-in-progress that asks a lot of the company and its customers. Patagonia is changing its business model to include second-hand-clothing sales at its Portland, Oregon store, garment recycling, and a 45-employee product repair facility in Reno, Nevada. And customers do their part by pledging to only buy what they need, and to hand down or recycle their garments when they’ve been well worn.

Numbers do the talking

These efforts set Patagonia apart from other outdoor brands in the minds of consumers and have earned it a top spot as one of the world’s most sustainable brands. A year after Patagonia began appealing to consumers to buy less, sales increased almost one-third, to $543 million. The following year, the company’s revenue increased another 6% to $575 million. In short, Patagonia’s cause marketing strategy has helped to sell somewhere in the range of $158 million worth of apparel.

Patagonia’s effort to prove that a company can generate strong sales and be a champion of social responsibility is an instructive tale for other brands. Great brands are created by consumers and passionate conversation, or word-of-mouth. Brands can’t talk about how great they are, they need consumers to talk about how great a brand makes them. And this has created real results for Patagonia. And this is why you need to start your cause marketing strategy.

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L’oreal’s digital-first content program

Learn more here

Think about all of the advertisements you encounter during the busy holiday season — so many are irrelevant to you and your shopping list. Or worse, you view a product once, and then you are plagued by retargeting ads for an item you aren’t interested in or have already purchased. Brands’ and retailers’ best chance to cut through this noise is to leverage first-party data to inform messaging and targeting for an effective campaign.

As Advertising Age noted, “First-party data, collected by a company directly from its own customers, not only provides more accurate ad targeting – it also offers fresh new insights not available from the overused alternatives on the market. First-party data that also gives marketers inside information into what consumers want – what their intentions are, what their future actions will likely be – is the secret to creating unified campaigns that reach shoppers with the right message, at each and every touch point on their pinball path to purchase.”

We saw this first hand last holiday season when we had the opportunity to run an advertising campaign with athletic retailer Finish Line. Finish Line was looking to increase sales of college football hoodies during the peak period of holiday shopping. Using our first-party data, we built custom audiences containing active shoppers currently in-market for athletic apparel, and then served display ads directly to those shoppers at the most critical point in their shopper journey – when they were ready to buy. When we compared our custom segments targeting college fans actively shopping for men’s athletic apparel to third-party, off-the-shelf segments for men’s athletic apparel, our results showed that when active shoppers viewed the Finish Line ad, they converted at a much higher rate. The return on ad spend was 3.6x higher and the view-through rate was 3.4x higher.

The sheer volume of digital advertising during the holiday season creates commotion in the marketplace, so making the most efficient use of your advertising budget is especially crucial to generating better performing holiday campaigns. In our latest e-book, Data-Driven Strategies to Reach and Influence Holiday Shoppers, we present our key insights to help inform your advertising strategy, allowing you to slice through the noise this holiday season and make meaningful connections with true in-market consumers.

This is part 2 of a 3 part series. Check out Part I and Part III. 

Consumer-Generated Content drives an uplift in conversion rates for luxury brands

With online fashion sales alone expected to reach £19bn in the next four years, luxury brands have a massive opportunity to invest in all digital technology offers in order to facilitate online customer acquisition and retention, long term loyalty, and success.

In the first part of this series, we looked at the reasons why it is critical for luxury brands to leverage consumer-generated content (CGC) today. Now, we’ll explore how CGC translates into increased sales.

As referenced in the infographic linked above, the study conducted by Bazaarvoice analysed a representative set of 23,000 reviews from 27 international retailers selling premium brands in the UK. The study found that integrating CGC into product pages lead to a 25-40% engagement increase and a 3-6% increase in conversion. This comes as no surprise considering 84% of consumers influenced by CGC are 12 times more likely to trust consumer recommendations.

Despite these results, some luxury brands are still struggling to understand the real ROI from CGC, and are hesitate to invest in CGC solutions because of it. However, the fact that many luxury brands are becoming more comfortable with giving up control in favor of partnering with e-retailers to leverage their shopping network and target different consumers, means a higher ROI on CGC for them. In fact, businesses of all sizes benefit when they are part of a shopping network. Being part of a network helps brands achieve a higher volume of coverage and increases review volume, leading to higher conversion rates.

Let’s take an example – How does a small company make a big impact? For endurance accessories brand Sealskinz, the key is relying on customer ratings and reviews. Consumer-generated content gets the word out about the company to everyone from potential Sealskinz retailers to consumers who would benefit from using the brand’s products. Since Sealskinz began using Bazaarvoice Conversations to collect and publish reviews on its website, the company has seen a dramatic increase in shopper-to-purchaser conversion. In December of 2014 alone, Sealskinz saw a 102.6% lift in conversion from visitors who engaged with reviews compared to those who didn’t engage with reviews.

As illustrated in Bazaarvoice Conversation Index Volume 8, the volume of content is important because in addition to improving conversion, it can impact a brand’s SEO and new product insights. The most obvious benefit of sharing CGC across a network is that each member’s content volume increases as more shoppers create content. This includes text content like reviews and Q&A, and rich media like consumer-created photos and videos. In Robert Metcalfe’s words, “the greater number of users with the service, the more valuable the service becomes to the community.”

Across a variety of product categories, Bazaarvoice identified a positive relationship between the number of reviews a product has and the number of orders placed on those products. Adding just one review to a product page results in a 10% lift in orders. We also see a median order increase of 25% on products that go from 0 to 30 reviews, and that number jumps to a 37% lift in orders when going from 0 to 100 reviews. Simply put, more volume means more shoppers seeing reviews and results in higher revenues. Trends show that between now and 2018, the growth for UK annual online sales of luxury goods is expected to reach +18%. There’s an even bigger opportunity if luxury brands leverage a higher volume of CGC to increase sales.

Learn more about how CGC solutions can help increase sales in our thought leadership piece – The Conversation Index Volume 8, and join us next week as we examine a third emerging trend in luxury retail.

This is part 1 of a 3 part series. Check out Part II and Part III. 

Why luxury brands should embrace Consumer-Generated Content (CGC)

It was only a few months ago that headlines were populated by the news of luxury brands, including Burberry and Tom Ford, announcing see-now-buy-immediately collections, meaning latest collections are made available in-store right after they are shown on the runway. Although initially perceived as a significant change, it should not come as a surprise – the most recent industry changes, brought by consumers’ access to new technologies and digital transformation, have naturally led fashion brands and retailers to become more customer-centric than ever before. Let’s take a closer look at how luxury brands are putting the customer at the heart of their business by embracing and leveraging consumer-generated content (CGC).

Across the industry we have seen how brands and retailers recognize the power of the consumer’s voice and that meeting today’s audiences’ needs can lead to positive business outcomes. Yet luxury brands born way before the explosion of social media, like Louis Vuitton or Chanel, are still very protective of their prestige and exclusivity, which remains their primary brand strategy. However, exclusivity is no longer what makes a brand appealing to consumers; today’s consumers are seeking peers’ validation before making a purchase. Deloitte’s Digital Democracy survey revealed that personal recommendations (81%), including those within social media circles (61%), play a major role in purchase decisions. As a result, luxury brands need to start opening up to a wider audience or they risk falling behind more digital and consumer savvy brands.

On top of having access to CGC (online reviews, questions and answers, star ratings, blogs, and brand-related photos and videos), consumers are also eager to share their own brand-related experiences, whether that is by leaving a review of their latest pair of shoes on a brand’s website or posting a picture of their new dress through social networks and apps. A recent McKinsey study confirms British luxury consumers appreciate the addition of customer reviews and recommendations, and Bazaarvoice research reveals 87% of consumers would recommend a premium brand product to a friend.

When it comes to fashion commerce, consumers’ choices are particularly influenced by visual content, and with 80 million photos a day shared on Instagram alone, it’s clear that brands need to embrace customer recommendations, and integrate visual CGC from social networks into product pages and other marketing assets. A Bazaarvoice study confirms the significance of displaying visual content on a brand’s website- 25 real shoppers looked at product images first, before any other product page content, without fail. British retailer John Lewis is well aware of the impact that CGC has on building stronger relationships with customers. John Lewis sees the value of consumers as brand ambassadors- with the #MyShoeStory hashtag campaign, the retailer curates Instagram pictures of customers modelling their new shoes that are then leveraged into a variety of media channels, to provide customers with inspiration and create further customer engagement.

CGC not only helps brands provide customers with relevant content, but it’s also a great source of insights for business development and product improvement. For instance, Ulla Popken, a German retail company specializing in plus-size fashion, faced a challenge that’s familiar to many companies with successful histories in traditional brick-and-mortar environments: how do you create the same type of close and personal relationships customers have enjoyed with their local store staff in the online world? By teaming up with Bazaarvoice, Ulla Popken has been able to have a true customer dialogue in the online world, where customers can express their ideas and opinions through product reviews, and the retailer can respond by altering products and processes to ensure that customers are getting exactly what they desire. Here is a recent example of Ulla Popken’s implementation of customer feedback, which resulted in a better product: a pair of trousers sold so well that it never occurred to the retailer that there might be a problem with the product, but reviews consistently mentioned that the trousers were too long. A change in specifications resolved the issue, opening the way for better future sales. Ulla Popken is seeing over 40% lift in conversion rates from online visitors who are interacting with reviews. This example clearly shows the value of CGC as a new source of valuable insights leading to product improvement and overall better business results.

The same study mentioned above shows that 92% of reviews on premium items are 4 stars and above, while reviews ranging from 3-4 stars offer the most suggestions for product improvements and future products.

Some luxury brands neglect to embrace customer feedback in favor of remaining “exclusive,” but the reality is that consumers are talking about them regardless of the brand’s engagement. Brands who turn their back to the voice of the customer will not protect their reputation, rather this prevents them from receiving invaluable insights and the chance to be seen as an open and digitally innovative player that is eager to build stronger customer relationships. Conversations are happening, and it’s time for premium fashion brands to make the most of customer feedback or risk losing consumer preference.

Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 of our look into the British luxury market.