This blog post will discuss Burberry’s use of the newest social media tool within their online marketing strategy within the brand new men’s fragrance Mr. Burberry campaign (Figure 1). I will discuss how the use of Snapchat has added value to the brand, through the support of academic resources and my additional theoretical perspective on this innovative marketing strategy. Although the company uses other methods of digital marketing, I will only be looking at its Snapchat marketing initiative.
Source: Burberry
Burberry has once again outdone the digital marketing world and has partnered with Snapchat to promote the launch of their new men’s fragrance ‘Mr. Burberry’. Burberry also used Snapchat during the London Fashion Week for the SS16 catwalk show, which meant that viewers were a part of the intimate story they were telling. Snapchat users tend to attract the younger generation and can be a great platform for companies to create a more personal bond with their customers (Luxury Daily, 2015).
Although many luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton and Valentino are also using Snapchat to preview their catwalks, Burberry has gone above and beyond and is the first luxury brand to run a sponsored Snapchat Discover channel. Burberry is the first non-media partner for Snapchat’s Discover page (Marketing Magazine, 2016).
Snapchat Discover
The Snapchat Discover area explores Snaps from different editorial perspectives that include channels from top publishers that are refreshed every day; publishers include cosmopolitian, Daily Mail and BuzzFeed. It was created last January and has increased the daily video views by 5 billion from May 2015 to January 2016 (Snapchat Reports, 2016) (as seen below)
Snapchat Discover and Mr. Burberry Campaign
Burberry revealed the Mr. Burberry campaign first on Snapchat on the 4th April at 4pm (as shown below).
Snapchat Discover Story: Burberry
The reason for using this time frame was to engage with customers both in the UK and the US (Forbes, 2016). The theme ‘A dirty weekend in London with Burberry’ was the main focus of the page that had clips of the raunchy video, shot by Oscar-winning director Steve McQueen. The page also featured style and fragrance content, along with grooming and tailoring tips. Although this might sound like a normal thing to do, Burberry also used Snapchat to encourage fans to continue unlocking the content for the next two months by scanning Burberry Snapcodes. These are available at selected retailers and enable visitor’s in-store to scan a barcode using their mobile device to unlock content.
In addition, from 25 April, there will be scent-dispensing posters in Knightsbridge, London, which will spray the fragrance directly onto the user’s wrist when inserted underneath the sensor (Marketing Week, 2016). The Mr. Burberry bottles can also be personalized with up to 3 letters of monogramming available in stores and on Burberry.co.uk. It is fitting that Burberry has decided to use fragrances as their big Snapchat breakthrough as it’s an opportunity for young customers to buy into the brand; buying a fragrance that is of high luxury and is still affordable.
Snapchat’s young people
Christopher Bailey, CEO of Burberry, said that his aim was to reach out to the millennial’s and by using Snapchat that is exactly what he is doing. 71% of Snapchat users are under 34 years old (Snapchat, 2016), which shows that the young audience is worth investing in. The use of Snapchat can be seen as having inferior production values and not fitting with luxury marketing, but in my opinion, Burberry has proven that you can retain production values while talking to a new audience.
The offering content of how to style a trench coat and how to look on a first date shows that many more milleniall’s will be growing up with Burberry defining them as a person. This shows just how courageous Burberry are for taking on such a big challenge.
My Opinion
Burberry’s partnership with Snapchat is a major leap forward for both Snapchat and Burberry as it proves that you can communicate with the younger consumers without undermining your brand. It is evident that Burberry has seen Snapchat as a ground for millennial’s rather than naïve young kids, which is what other retailers can see it as. With its vast expansion within the digital world, it is only right that Burberry is the first to take over Snapchat like this, but this said, other luxury retailers should not assume that they could do it as well. Burberry has a tradition for working with young British artists and has a lot of content and imagination to offer. If other luxury brands want to take Burberry’s lead, they must ensure they have enough content and other editorials to offer than just products.
References:
Flynn, K. (2016). Snapchat Discover One Year Later: How 23 Media Companies Are Building Stories For Evan Spiegel. Available: http://www.ibtimes.com/snapchat-discover-one-year-later-how-23-media-companies-are-building-stories-evan-2281851. Last accessed 15th Apr 2016.
Jones, S. (2016). Snapchat enables intimate storytelling during fashion month. Available: http://www.luxurydaily.com/snapchat-enables-intimate-storytelling-during-fashion-month/. Last accessed 15th Apr 2016.
Roderick, L. (2016). Burberry uses first ever Snapcode to let in-store customers unlock online Snapchat content. Available: https://www.marketingweek.com/2016/04/04/burberry-uses-first-ever-snapcode-to-let-in-store-customers-unlock-online-snapchat-content/. Last accessed 15th Apr 2016.
Snapchat. (2016). Snapchat is the best way to reach 13 to 34 year-olds.. Available: https://www.snapchat.com/ads. Last accessed 15th Apr 2016.
Wu, S. (2016). Burberry Partners with Snapchat on Mr. Burberry Launch. Available: http://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahwu/2016/04/04/burberry-partners-with-snapchat-on-mr-burberry-launch/#7350f6154a1c. Last accessed 15th Apr 2016.
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