by Gabriela Yorgova
Have you ever felt that fashion retailers are trying to trick you into making a purchase? The fashion industry has recently been using an excessive amount of digital media content to promote and spread information – and lure in customers. Marketers are using clever and creative ways to reach out to their audience – and achieve their brands’ targets.
But is this honest competition – or something else? We can call it a ‘mind game’, to be fair. If you really enjoy your favourite hand cream and don’t want to purchase a different one, you might find that you could still end up buying the other product, after it advertised by an influencer.
Consumers exposed to numerous marketing strategies
Ads are everywhere – in print, online, and on TV – and we can spot them while enjoying our favourite show, or flipping through our weekly magazines. Marketing strategies favour the company and their products when it comes to reaching out to potential buyers and turning them into loyal customers.
There are concerns about deceptive advertising and pricing, invasion of privacy and ethical issues. Ujwal Sharma, a digital marketer from India, said: “Marketing strategies can be both deceiving and leading, or a helpful way to find the best services or products, depending on how they are executed.
“Unfortunately, there have been instances where marketers have used deceptive tactics to sell products, which has tarnished the reputation of the industry.”
During his six-year experience in the industry, he has met with different people and worked with people from various backgrounds. He believes that the main purpose of marketing is to create an emotional connection with consumers.
“As consumers become increasingly savvy and discerning, marketers must constantly adapt and innovate to stay ahead of the curve,” he explains.
“This requires a commitment to ongoing learning and professional development, as well as a willingness to experiment and take risks.”
It all starts with research
A personalised marketing approach is what specialists consider a vital part of a successful campaign. Katya Churbanova, who has more than ten years’ experience in tech and sports PR in Russia, said: “From my experience, curating the same content for different audiences is a strategy that should stay in the past. The more fragmented the audience gets, the more a personalised approach is required.”
Another marketer that shares this view is Imogen Pickton, an account manager at Veritas, an American data management company. “This [content that resonates with the audience] makes them feel seen and valued, ensuring that when they need what you offer you’re at the forefront of their mind,” she said.
Trend forecasts are also key indicators that benefit marketing campaigns, or rebranding if the company has decided to take that route. What is gaining more and more popularity in the fashion industry every day is sizeism and breaking myths about clothing sizes.
According to Ollie Whitfield, a podcaster and lead for the VanillaSoft and Autoklose marketing team: “The best marketing does not feel like marketing. It feels like the company has done something which just makes perfect sense and you can’t help but go through the motion with them.”
Inspirational and informative content is being posted on various media channels by brands and consumers. Reviews, and different forms of feedback – video, audio and text format – are always beneficial to a company’s marketing team to gain more data and build or improve their strategy.
Whitfield has noticed a focus on personal branding all over social media. “Posting selfies, inspirational stories. Commenting on other people’s posts congratulating them for things. It’s become a huge obsession in B2B.”
Brand marketing in fashion
The power of social media and technology is cleverly used by companies to promote certain lifestyles, aesthetic, sizes. One of the trend waves is about sizes in fashion – from clothing to bodies. Everyone is different, which is being embraced more and more.
Another matter that concerns both the planet, our home, and our understanding is sustainability in fashion. It is an industry that motivates consumers to buy more and in bulk. However, they are also bombarded by the media with information about the effects of fast fashion in many forms – independent data sources as well as branded content.
The founder and CEO of Uzi World Digital, Sharma is one of many marketers that are focused on being as informed as possible on social topics and sustainability matters.
“More and more consumers are looking for brands that are environmentally friendly, socially conscious, and ethical in their practices. One example of a brand that is following this trend is Patagonia, the outdoor clothing and gear company,” he said.
“Patagonia has been a pioneer in sustainable fashion and has made a commitment to use only organic, recycled, or regenerative materials in their products.”
Fattily ever after
When it comes to sizeism in fashion, marketers consider not only trends but also building their loyal customer base. People who have access to the Internet are likely to check out a brand before committing to it.
Stephanie Yeboah, an author of the book Fattily Ever After: A Black Fat Girl’s Guide to Living Life Unapologetically told Stylist.com: “My default reaction has become to start checking a brand’s website; if an invitation is extended to me, I will scour the brand’s website to see whether its clothing extends to larger sizing.
“If it doesn’t – which is mostly the case – then I enquire with the brand as to when it plans to create a plus-size category. Sadly, I’m more often than not met with answers that fall flat.”
We are exposed to information every day and the best filters for it could be only us. If you consider yourself being influenced by online content, that was probably the purpose of it.
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