Key Weapon for Battle – INFLUENCERS

The clue is in the name: essentially, they are individuals who have the ability to influence the opinions or buying decisions of your target audience, largely thanks to their social media following Simpson (2015).

According Trammell & Keshelashvili (2005), influencers influence by impression management tactics and self-presentation. In addition, this idea holds central from everything that happens after that. They use their personal attributes to engage with consumers which increases their followings due to the interest created. Each influencer has a different type of appeal whether it be inspirational, analyst, activists etc. Many industries have seen the positive impact that they can have on their brand. The fashion industry, is a sector that have really capitalised on the use of influencer marketing.

 

Boohoo Influencer Example – Jordyn Woods

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRRyt4dgbRc

Boohoo decided to do a collaboration with Jordyn Woods to promote bomber jackets, dusters and party looks in barely-there nude silks and gem stones. Emphasis on the availability of the range in  UK sizes from 8-24 portrays why Jordyn may have been targeted by Boohoo. Jordyn describes herself as a naturally super curvy girl and feels her body will never be size 0. Consumers (curvy girls in this case) have evaluations of themselves, which contribute to their self-image Grubb & Hupp (1968). Therefore, the representation of this influencer will attract many other customers who can relate to this image particularly those considered to be “plus size”.  The use of someone that connects with the brand also means she can connect others with the brand. According to Barletta (2004), one of women’s highest values is a feeling of closeness and connection with another person, therefore capturing this increases the opportunity of success for the campaign.

Read about how attitudes can influence intentions to buy: Click here…

Boohoo could not have got it more right in this battle because this represents a segment of the market that used to be left out! Embracing who you are is so important.

In addition, as Kylie Jenner’s best friend, this will lead to an increase in social ties Steffes & Burgee (2009). As the exposure will span past the following that Jordyn has and will include Kylie Jenner’s strong brand and her social ties therefore the multiplier effect. Interested in social ties? Click here to read about social ties and online word of mouth

Read this to find out more on the Boohoo and Jordyn collaboration

 

H&M Influencer Example – Camille Charrière

Although, Camille’s overall social media following is not as much in comparison to other influencers, her style is unique and the Parisian style is very much in trend. Mid-tier bloggers also might offer a more targeted, engaged audience Phelan (2016). Therefore, she can influence those interested in the particular style to want to purchase it from H&M. H&M also make mention of her in their blogs to reinstate the relation and her connection with the brand. This understanding of the target market means that H&M can capture their ideal buyers with the help of Camille as according the Popcorn & Marigold (2000), the first rule of marketing is to understand your market.

Below shows an example of H&M promoting their work with Camille on their twitter page. This expands the avenues of social media use for the page and therefore increases the potential to reach more people. Further this is also good for search engine optimisation.

 

New Look Influencer Example – Beckii Cruel

New Look wanted to reach a young female audience to promote their winter clothing line. They decided to use Beckii Cruel, a top fashion influencer to run a competition where she wore a New Look winter scarf in four different ways and encouraged her audience to take a piece of clothing and wear it in their way . This is strategic because it is more likely to influence overt consumer behaviour so that sales are made rather than just change the way they think Peter, Olson &Grunert (1999). Audience members uploaded to a branded New Look destination and shared their photo with friends for votes to enter the competition.

The results were 180, 000 impressions, 70,000 engagements. Bloggers today are considered as independent experts by the general public Trammell & Keshelashvili (2005). This explains the success of New Look as the opinion of Beckii is highly rated by potential consumers. The benefit of using a “mid-tier” influencer is they have more emotional attachment to your brand, among audiences who are largely likely to convert Mangiaforte (2016). Sometimes, more A-list celebrities are unable to really connect with consumers as much. Moreover, consumers have become more alert and relate less to celebrities as it seems they have their own world. Influencers seem to bridge this gap therefore people are able to associate more with them.

 

ASOS –Influencer Example –Tanya Burr

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFJ5j9MhHdo

Asos are aware that Tanya Burr’s strongest point of contact in other words influence is YouTube. Therefore, she maximises her use of this influence by promoting the Asos brand and the things that she wears on that channel as a source to reach the target market. Although, influencer marketing is not all about the level of followers but Tanya Burr has proved that she has the power to intiate consumers to interact. This can be seen when she posts a question about snapchat and instagram. Further Grönroos (2004) explains that receiving interactions should be apart of the core framework in marketing strategies. 43,569 votes on Twitter highlights the command she has on her followers and the ability to get them to engage with her .

Below is a small preview of some of the projects Tanya Burr has done with Asos. Evidently, Asos are achieving results hence the continuation of the videos. Tanya Burr is considered as an online expert in fashion and other topics and has built the trust of her followers Cheng, Bansal & Koudas (2013).  More on analysing experts and interests on twitter Click here …

Ultimately, online fashion brands that want to improve web presence and brand recognition in the market need to implement social media into their strategy (Bowen and Ozuem, 2016). Read about how fashion brands can use instagram to boost brand engagement and online presence with a speicifc section on how Asos use the Instagram account ‘ASSEENONME’  to inspire its followers. Click here..

Primark Influencer Example – Zoella

Primark have hit the jackpot with an influencer such as Zoella for 2017. She is one of the most influential influencers of our time. In addition, she has built a very strong brand for herself. The platform she has built enables her to sell a variety of things. Therefore, Primark’s investment in her as an influencer is highly likely to pull off and gain some ROI. She is regarded as an A-list blogger and they reveal more information about themselves than other bloggers and actively engage in impression management Leary (1995) . 

Cons of using Influencers 

Selecting the correct influence can be quite a hard task as there are millions to choose from and not everyone will align with the business. An influence may just accept to participate in promoting a brand because they see it as a salary therefore, it is the job of the business to select influencers who also connect with the brand and therefore, not just able to reach a large audience but can present the brand so others can also engage with it. Further, have positive self-congruity with the brand Sirgy (1982).
Moreover, it still remains questionable how much influence an influencer will actually have on the projects that they take on. As influencers do not guarantee viral content. And the argument remains that they cannot guarantee action. Influencer marketing introduces a whole new layer of difficulty in conversion attribution as in a lot of cases tracking the actual results can be difficult Brown & Hayes (2008).

Some of the influencers are believed to have a short-span in terms of how influenctial they are. An example is Zoella, who sometimes acts much younger than her age for partciular campigns. Therefore, the question arises how long it will take before her age catches up on her. L’Ore’al recently reported that brands use infleuncer wrongly by not including a strong relationship between the brand infleuncer. This highlights how easy to get carried away with selecting a influencer on a short term basis and not building a relationship or finding one that really relates to the brand they are promoting.

 

References

Barletta, M. (2004) Marketing to women. Dearborn: Dearborn Trade Pub

Bowen, G. and Ozuem, W. (2016). Competitive social media marketing strategies. 1st ed. Hershey, PA: Business Science Reference.

Brown, D. & Hayes, N. (2008) Influencer marketing: Routledge

Cheng, A., Bansal, N. & Koudas, N. (2013) Peckalytics: Analyzing experts and interests on twitter. In Proceedings of the 2013 ACM SIGMOD International Conference on Management of Data pp. 973-976

Grönroos, C., (2004) The relationship marketing process: communication, interaction, dialogue, value. Journal of business & industrial marketing, Vol.19,No.2, pp.99-113

Leary, M.R. (1995) Self-presentation: Impression management and interpersonal behaviour: Brown & Benchmark Publishers

Mangiaforte, L.B. (2016) ROI and the Power of the Mid-Tier Social Influencer at Scale [Online] http://blog.obvious.ly/news/2016/7/8/roi-and-the-power-of-the-mid-tier-social-influencer-at-scale [Accessed 20^th March 2017]

Peter, J.P., Olson, J.C. & Grunert, K.G. (1999) Consumer behaviour and marketing strategy .London: McGraw-Hill

Phelan (2016) .The power of mid-tier blogger, [Online] <http://www.racked.com/2016/5/23/11703698/mid-tier-bloggers-whatvwore> [Accessed 18 April 2017]

Simpson.J. (2015) What are influencers and how do you find them [Online] https://econsultancy.com/blog/66560-what-are-influencers-and-how-do-you-find-them/ [Accessed 24^th March 2017]

Sirgy, M. J. (1982) Self-Concept in Consumer Behaviour: A Critical Review. Journal of Consumer Research, Vol.9, No.3, pp.287-300

Steffes, E.M. & Burgee, L.E.(2009) Social ties and online word of mouth.Internet research, Vo.19,No,1, pp.42-59

Telegraph (2017) How to use influencers in your next marketing, 11 January 2017campaign [Online] http://www.telegraph.co.uk/connect/better-business/how-to-use-influencers-in-your-marketing-campaign/[accessed [Accessed 16th March 2017]

Trammell, K.D. & Keshelashvili, A. (2005) Examining the new influencers: A self-presentation study of A-list blogs. Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, Vol.82.No.4, pp.968-982

 

La Redoute explore with the weather

How great would it be to have your own personal shopper assistant without being in a store?

La Redoute have the answer to this through their live weather billboard with weather sensors for their campaigns.  The sensors attached to the digital signage detect different weather changes and once the weather changes, the models outfit changes accordingly to suit the temperature. This unique concept means that consumers can gain ideas on what to buy for that particular season. Of course, some countries would have a massive variation for times it changes, as places like the UK are known for going through different season in the same week.

Outcome (ROI statistics)

• La Redoute weather-triggered OOH signage campaign resulted in a 34% traffic uplift to their website despite the campaign being deployed via an offline channel.  
• The campaign generated a 17% sales increase during the time it was running.

https://youtu.be/rA4GF5a3xHE

 Brand Awareness                                                                                                                                                                    The objective of a successful brand awareness strategy is to gain trust and credibility with customers and end users. This digital signage meets this objective Percy and Rossiter (1992). The logo is in a good place and is easily identifiable.  

Information Relayed                                                                                                                                                         Message is clear as it conveys that La Redoute have clothes for all type of seasons. It is also a great way to show potential customers a range of some of the collection of outfits to buy.

Target Audience                                                                                                                                                               Women walking in the street of Paris that may want something for the current season. Women are the world’s most powerful consumers Popcorn & Marigold (2000).

Level of Engagement                                                                                                                                   It is quite engaging as the image, will change relevant to the weather however does not include any call to action. It is apparent that this digital campaign provided relevant content which increased customer engagement. According to Dennis, Brakus, Gupta & Alamanos (2014) the magnitude of the reach of digital signage is what rivals other channels. Therefore, retailers such La Redoute reach a larger audience with their marketing message with the use video. Further the outdoor campaign cannot be switched off and forms part of the consumer’s environment, it has a 24 hours a day, seven days a week, creating sustained awareness Jurca (2010).  The images are an effective tool used by La Redoute particularly, as these include motion Messaris (1997).

Pros                                                                                                                                                                            It offers the possibility to change creatives in real time, with unlimited number of visuals. To advertisers, this means being able to offer powerful content and messages, that are adapted to the time of day, the type of audience, a special event, spontaneous promotions. Weather has been shown to fundamentally influence the consumer’s mind frame – in both what products they purchase and the amount they are willing to spend. By capitalising on changes in the weather through weather-activated promotions, marketers can greatly improve campaign results. In addition, women are good target market because when they are pleased with products and services; they talk about them to others Popcorn & Marigold (2000).

Cons                                                                                                                                                                   There is not much message on the billboard so it is hard for potential customers to see the major benefit for buying their choice of clothing from Laredoute. This is because they may get a great idea of and to buy; this same clothes will be available in other retail stores being the competitive industry.. According to Ravnik & Solina (2013), using social media simultaneously with digital signage can maximise the amount of engagement to customers. Therefore, exploring this avenue could have been included as part of this campaign.  Further some campaigns also use it in conjunction with current smartphone apps, pushing promotions, offers or essential marketing messages straight into the hands of new or returning customers.

In addition, most advertising space are rented in 2 week cycles, and whilst it can be a low-cost and effective way to increase brand awareness, once the time duration is over, the advert is no longer displayed. Whereas with social media, the content is well-written, relevant, and suitably optimised for search engines there is no time limit set for how long that it is visible for the customer Treem & Leonardi (2013).

Read this article about how digital signage enables customer engagement:

Super Dry deploys its first dynamic digital Out Of Home ad campaign

This uncovers the innovation of Super Dry with the launch of their disruptive digital out-of-home advertising campaign. This is known as a smart mirror, which is located in Berlin at Super Dry’s flagship store in Berlin. The smart mirror is 82-inch and enables customers to digitally try out clothing from super dry’s new winter collection. Customers use hand gestures to browse through the collection on the mirror, and they can select their favourite pieces with an “air punch”. A good way of imagining this is, if you have ever played a Nintendo Wii; it is similar actions but without the console.

Should we go to Berlin to try this or better still should it come to us?

Recently I read a University of Brighton Blog post, which described augmented reality for make-up shopping. I asked the question “Could the same be next for clothes shopping?” I guess my answer is here!

Click here to find out about Augmented Reality for Makeup shopping

Everything happens in real time so there is an integrated body tracking technology, which allows them to try on the garments digitally as they browse. The screen will imitate all movements of the customer, which therefore allows people to get a feel for the garment.

Outcome (ROI statistics)

• The campaign generated over 10% sales increase during the time it was running
• 16% increase on visit to website

Brand Awareness

The customer is already in store at this point so they are definitely aware of the brand; it is more a question of whether they buy the product.  Video is believed to increased the receptiveness of a brand Tsuji, Bennett & Leigh (2009). Superdry’s marketing is consistent with their brand image as they convey an inclusive approach standing on the basis of a British design with a Japan spirit meanwhile, they welcome people form all over the world. This is can be seen in their twitter post below;

Information Relayed                                                                                                                                           This innovative initiative is very clear along with the offering for the customer. The mirror provides information such as colour options and design details for collection, while messaging encourages customers to share their smart mirror experience and favourite products on social media platforms. The data of those favourite products is then collected by Superdry to help develop future collections.

Level of Engagement                                                                                                                                       Pat Fahy, creative director, customer experience at Seymour Powell. “We’ve designed the smart mirror to stop shoppers in their tracks with an engaging, fun and highly interactive experience that brings them closer to the Superdry brand and products.” This is very true and extremely engaging it saves time in terms of going to changing rooms etc. and can act as a huge incentive for customers to make more purchases in store. Dobrow (2004) states that games that incorporate “advergaming” have a chance of 30% chance of recalled after a short time, and 15% after five months. The smart mirror acts as a great tool that help consumes, build a personal dashboard giving them a sense of control and command over the many facets of their busy lives Rashid, Peig & Pous(2015).

Pros                                                                                                                                                                      Craig Bunyan, senior designer at Seymourpowell, added: “Using a combination of Photogrammetry and 3D-scanning techniques, we were able to generate high quality digital models, complete with photorealistic textures. These models were then bound to digital ‘skeletons’ which allow them to be driven by depth sensors embedded in mirror installation. The workflow is very similar to modern Hollywood CGI character animation techniques.” The power of smart mirrors is the idea of a realistic simulation that engaging users while they are in their environments Zyda (2005). Digital signage also solves the problem of unpredictable waiting times and long queues in store. Simply connecting with internal queue management systems it offers a more efficient and professional treatment to the customer, optimising the waiting experience Bajkowski.(2016).

Find out about how smart mirrors are making their way in changing rooms : Click here …

Cons                                                                                                                                                                      The buzz it creates could cause a lot of focus on trying clothes and less on the actual purchases however, based on the results this currently does not remain the case. The key restrain for this technology are its technical drawbacks such as memory loss and faulty sensors. Finally, data issues always arise when it comes to these types of technology. In this case, the smart mirror is able to collect the identification of the users and also track their spending habits and trends which can impose on the customer’s privacy.

Find out how smart mirrors might be the future of in-store customer analytics

Miss the previous post on digital screens ? Click here 

 

 References

Bajkowski,J.(2016) Optimising digital payments for government,Informit., Vol. 36, No. 2, pp 22-23

Dennis, C., Brakus, J.J., Gupta, S. & Alamanos, E., 2014. The effect of digital signage on shoppers’ behaviour: The role of the evoked experience. Journal of Business research, Vol.67,No.11, pp.2250-2257

Dobrow, L. (2004) “How to Play Games and Influence People: Advergaming Emerges as New Ad Option,” Media Daily News, January 15, <http://www.aef.com/channel. asp?ChannelID=6&DocID=2492&location=In%20The%20News> (accessed on 10^th March 2017)

Jurca, M.A. (2010) THE FORMS OF UNCONVENTIONAL ADVERTISING-A THEORETICAL APPROACH. Management & Marketing Journal, Vol.8, No.2

Kiss, C. & Bichler, M. (2008) Identification of influencers—measuring influence in customer networks. Decision Support Systems, Vol.46, No.1, pp.233-253

Messaris, P. (1997) Visual persuasion: The role of images in advertising: Sage

Percy, L. & Rossiter, J.R. (1992) A model of brand awareness and brand attitude advertising strategies. Psychology & Marketing, Vol.9,No.4, pp.263-274

Popcorn, F. & Marigold, L. (2000) EVEolution: The eight truths of marketing to women. Hyperion

Rashid, Z., Peig, E., & Pous, R. (2015) Bringing online shopping experience to offline retail through augmented reality and RFID, IEEE, pp. 45-51

Ravnik, R. & Solina, F. (2013) Interactive and audience adaptive digital signage using real-time computer vision. International Journal of Advanced Robotic Systems, Vol.10,No.2, p.107

Treem, J.W. & Leonardi, P.M. (2013) Social media use in organizations: Exploring the affordances of visibility, editability, persistence, and association. Annals of the International Communication Association, 36(1), pp.143-189

Tsuji, Y., Bennett, G. & Leigh, J.H. (2009) Investigating factors affecting brand awareness of virtual advertising. Journal of Sport Management, Vol.23No.4, pp.511-544

Zyda, M.,(2005) From visual simulation to virtual reality to games. Computer,Vol38.No,9,pp.25-32