E-marketing is an essential activity for fashion companies these days. Internet advertising is increasingly rapidly, so much so that it could soon overtake direct mail, and even TV advertising (Chaffey, 2008). There are six elements, deemed the ‘promotional mix’, in marketing:
- Advertising (pay per click advertising/ banner ads)
- Selling (avatars and chat)
- Sales Promotion (Incentives and rewards)
- Direct Mail (Opt in email newsletters)
- Word of Mouth (Viral, email a friend and links)
- PR (Social Media, blogs and feeds)
(Solomon et al., 2008)
This blog will be focusing on how current fashion retailers are conducting Word-of-Mouth marketing online. Word-of-mouth is a powerful and influential form of communication, because of the perceived objectivity and credibility associated with the parties involved (Cruz & Fill, 2008). Viral marketing has emerged as the electronic form of Word-of-Mouth and involves the principle of passing on, or referring, news, information or entertainment to another person (Cruz & Fill, 2008).
The advantages of viral marketing are the ability to spread the word about new products fast and to generate a buzz (Ferguson, 2008), coupled with low costs, and the ability to reach a large number of people, relatively quickly (Cruz & Fill, 2008). There are three popular ways that viral marketing is being conducted at present....
1. Reviews
Many fashion retailers are encouraging their customers to write reviews about items they have purchased on their website. For example:
By: Bacon roll
During November
Location: Cambridgeshire
Gender: Female
Great Item
Good value for money, they wash and wear well and would recommend to a friend.
Share this review:
During October
Location: telford
Gender: Female
My Style: Feminine
lovely items
these tops come in a pack of 3 i had the leopard skin, blue, & white.
the cut of the top is a lovely square neck type you can use these as causal or dressy i use them to go under my black trousers suit they are a good fit too and not short in the length
Share this review:
During October
Location: coventry
Gender: Female
My Style: Feminine
animal print looks lovely
Really nice tops, fit well, animal print looks lovely, white and navy are good too
Share this review:
These reviews are seemingly reflecting the honest opinions of consumers. Some people seem to like telling others how they wear the items, emphasising their own personal style, whereas others offer helpful comments about the cut of the top and how it washes etc. People like to talk about their involvement with products and services because of the prestige & status acquired through ownership, or the need to share purchase experiences in order to help others (Cruz & Fill, 2008). Yet this gives consumers free reign with their opinions, and so if people have something negative to say about the product then they can, which could have potentially devastating effects for the sales of that item. Cruz and Fill (2008) found that companies recognised that they had a relative lack of control over the message and its distribution. Therefore companies seem to be taking that risk, and so must perceive the advantages of customer reviews as outweighing the disadvantages.
2. Recommend to a Friend
Fashion retailers are now enabling consumers to send items they view on their website to a friend, via an email. For example:
Lahana Jacket
£145.00 | Charcoal |
Wool/linen blend jacket with signature AllSaints branded horn buttons and crochet collar and front panel. The
This option is a good way in which consumers can show their friends that they are thinking of them, and so recreates aspects of the shopping experience on a virtual level. This will, in turn, promote the brand. Over 40% of consumers are more likely to forward branded content (Ferguson, 2008). This comment applies to All Saints, as it is a fashionable brand but highly priced for the market it aims at (18- 30 year olds), and so is likely to be a ‘wish list’ item for special occasions.
3. Fun Videos
Viral marketing can also be fun. Fashion retailers are using videos to promote their brand image, rather than individual items. For example:
This video is funny, but also quite weird! It is not advertising individual French Connection clothes items, but more the brand image as a whole, which is shown to be fun. The impression given about French Connection consumers, is that they are women who always look good, but may not have much sense! These types of videos can be shared and sent to friends, which promotes brand awareness for French Connection, even if these people are not buying from the store. Interestingly however, the comments underneath this particular video highlight that it has not been well-received, and French Connection may have to rethink their image campaign, as people appear to think they are trying too hard.
Final word on the street...
Word-of-mouth is clearly an interesting and increasingly popular way of conducting e-marketing activities, but on its own cannot be the most important tool. Rather, word-of-mouth acts as an effective added-extra for the consumer. Reviews by real people about items can tip the sale, as peer-to-peer exchange is seen as trustworthy. However, this could just as easily work in reverse and put people off buying the item if others have been at all critical. This is highlighted by one of the comments underneath the French Connection video, which says: “Your clothes are beautiful, stop putting me off buying them”.
Other forms of advertising and marketing will have already sparked off the interest in the product beforehand. Viral marketing may therefore be an effective way to secure a sale and widen consumers’ experiences with the brand. This is summed up by Cruz & Fill (2008), who found that viral marketing was seen to be most effective when integrated with other marketing communication tools, best when reinforcing messages or providing the campaign with an element of shock value.
Excellent. That video from French Connection is truely weird. It certainly does not reflect the brand image that I thought they were trying to portray with their current collection. Good use of references, examples and your own ideas. A great piece.
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