In the past, I remember scrolling down the newspaper every Sunday and Tuesday with my father to look for special offers or ads to buy clothes, car parts or etc. It used to be difficult to sell or buy something because it simply required more time and effort. The newspaper only provides the person with the text that describes what is for sale, but the reality is not always the same as the description. So it was tricky to find something and believe it would be a clean good purchase. The newspaper did have visuals as well, but it was not as clear or as close to what we have now with digital visuals. When we saw a huge sale on such a fashion brand like Nike on the newspaper, we could not instantly buy what we saw or liked right away. We had to visit the store physically and ask the person who works there if the sale on the newspaper is still going on.

Old News Paper Vs. Instagram instant purchase ad

The world of digitalization is now taking over the way people shop and search for their next desirable purchase. The fashion industry seems like it never had real influence on people before the hit of digitalization, specifically visuals on social media platforms like Insta. No one was ever able to send a visual message and make it reach to quarter of the worlds total population within seconds. Now it is possible to reach over 500 million people with the use of Internet and its active users on social media platforms.

Let’s get down to why Instagram is now crucial to have as part of marketing strategy for fashion brands:

According to Instagram, 60% of Instagrammers say that they discover new products on the platform and more than 75% of these active users take action by the inspiring post. The fabulous thing about Instagram is that it enables brands to utilize pictures to steer the messages they want to cross to their audience. Pictures are worth million words that is the beauty behind visual art in the tech world. Every person would relate to a visual post from his or her own perception.  The word Telegraph refers to “a picture that sends out direct message to certain audience” according to Google. Fashion and Instagram are interconnected in terms of their economic growth.Instagram has over 800 million active users and the rate of its rapid growth has tripled since 2013 (Whitney, 2020).

(Whitney, 2020)

Looking at Instagram users profile, we find that after the booming active users on fashion businesses, it has become mutual benefit for Instagram, customers and the business that pays to promote it self on the platform. All parties are benefiting from Instagram because it enables buyers from shopping without the need of mobilization. Simply the customer just hits few clicks on their insta platform and bam their order is received by the courier, and finalized  for shipment. Online shopping is more environmentally friendly since it does not require customers to go around many places to find their suitable purchase like the old days where my dad had to go around for a whole day just to find the right part for his car.

Now anyone can simply buy whatever people like from instagram by simply going online in his or her smart phone. It is easy to follow each step whether you are buying or selling on instagram because it simply does not require a person to do any physical force. I remember in early 2000s, it took me sometime a whole day to get the ad posted. I had to prepare the content, then I had to call newspaper agency to ask if they had enough space to put my ad. After calling multiple agencies to find the most suitable price and space, I then had to go to their physical office and pay an amount of 50-500 euros depending on the size of the ad and where it should be placed front page or randomly. It is the same on Instagram, but without dealing with the hassle of calling and going to the physical store to get it done. Instagram made a smooth transition in the way people buy or sell stuff. Posting an ad on Instagram can be free of charge if you already got an account with many followers. If you have a new business account with not so many followers then you need to pay some ad costs to reach a certain target audience within certain geographic location.  Instagram advertising is a method of paying to post sponsored content on the platform to reach larger or more target audience (Whitney, 2020).
(Digital, 2017)Many brands like G-Star Raw hire influencers to post videos and pictures about the brands they like to represent. For example In February 2014, artist and music producer Pharrell Williams announced a collaboration with G-Star called ‘’RAW for the Oceans”. The whole collection is made from recycled plastic that is found in the ocean. Pharrel Instagram page was filled with posts about G-Star Raw and what they are doing together. They brought a sensitive topic about saving environment and people. They both tried to bring in purchasing responsibly by promoting a social responsible brand. The famous artist Pharrel Williams who was able to impact people from different backgrounds and sides of the world delivered a great message about G-Star Raw fashion brand.

Citations

Whitney, M. (2020). The Complete Guide to Advertising on Instagram. [online] Wordstream.com. Available at: https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2017/11/20/instagram-advertising [Accessed 12 Feb. 2020].

Digital, M. (2017). 7 steps to the perfect post on Instagram – MiHi Digital. [online] MiHi Digital. Available at: http://www.mihidigital.co.uk/blog/7-steps-perfect-post-instagram/ [Accessed 12 Feb. 2020].