Branding and the Strategic Use of Social Media - Some Illustrative Evidence from the Fashion Industry

The importance of social media is evident as millions of people use it to connect with others, share content and discuss different topics (Kaplan and Haenlein, 2010 and 2011). Although it is clear that social media is powerful and ubiquitous, many fashion brands have been reluctant or unable to develop strategies and allocate resources to effectively engage with social media (Atwal and Williams, 2009; Okonkwo, 2009 and 2010; Tungate, 2009). This attitude has changed in recent years; social media such as fashion blogs, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram and Pinterest have become an integral part of how fashion brands connect with their consumers, providing immense opportunities for innovative brand communication (Michault, 2009; Ross, 2010; Nguyen, 2011). Furthermore, it has been suggested that the digital and social media are changing the entire ‘fashion system’ as it was previously understood; the new media often includes the consumer in the creation, delivery, and dissemination of the brand message (Singh, 2008; Atwal and Williams, 2009; Okonkwo, 2009). Today, consumers can view collections live on the Internet, make buying decisions and subsequently give instant feedback on various social media outlets (Michault, 2009; Nguyen, 2011). These developments and consumer demands situate fashion brands at a crossroads. As suggested by fashion editor Suzy Menkes (2010), ‘brands have to decide which way to go: back to the comfort zone of craftsmanship and quality, as Gucci has done; fast forward into the world of live screening and e-commerce; or a delicate balance between the two?’ The aim of our paper is to critically review the literature that explicitly addresses the adoption, application and impact of social media by fashion retailers. In particular, our study seeks to explains what the new face of social media is, as well as it identifies its importance as a strategic marketing tool and proposes a number of alternative strategies for fashion luxury retailers. Implementing such strategies will allow retailers not only to survive, but also create competitive advantages and thrive in the new environment. In an exploratory ethos the study relies on four case studies of four fashion companies and by adopting semi-structured observations and content analysis of their social media activities it broadly seeks to assess the effectiveness of their digital strategy by outlining some of their peculiar features.