Social Media Driven Discounts and Promos in the Fashion Industry

It’s no laughing matter the importance given to social media by so many industries today. The fashion industry alone, has started spending millions of dollars in putting up their own digital marketing teams, in order to keep up with this quick-paced social phenomena. But regardless of the drastic changes it has already made, it seems as if there is always something new just around the corner.

User-Generated Content

A more common approach to social engagement would be via user-generated content. To better explain the meaning, it is when brands encourage followers or fans to submit their own content to be featured on the official brand page. Many fashion, particularly luxury brands, have been using this approach like: Coach, and Tiffany and Co.

On an article we featured last week, we discussed how American luxury brand Coach has been engaging their consumers through social media campaigns like 'Coach From Above'. Through this campaign, followers are asked to send in photos of themselves wearing Coach shoes and posted with the hashtag #CoachFromAbove for a chance to be featured on the Facebook album. Apart from this, the brand also has an online magazine on their Facebook page with themes like the Holiday Issue, the Heritage Issue, or the Travel Issue, where they feature photos of fans with their Coach products.

Luxury jeweler, Tiffany & Co. also employs the user-generated content approach by featuring true to life love stories on their Facebook page. Definitely tugging at your heart strings, the brand is able to engage their real consumers with real happy endings, to make the Tiffany & Co. experience all the more personal!

Social Discounts

Volga VerdiCalifornia-based American fashion brand, Volga Verdi took a new spin on fashion discounts by offering a special discount available only via social media networks. According to website Fashion Goes Digital, "to take part in Volga Verdi's Exchange program, shoppers begin by referring to a chart on the site, listing the size of the discount it offers for the number of friends or followers they have on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, tumblr, Kohtakte, or Lookbook. Twitter users, such as, get a discount of USD 7 if they have between 20 and 200 followers, or USD 15 if they have more." Once a person has been deemed eligible for the promo, they are asked to follow Volga Verdi on Twitter, and tweet a certain message. Afterwards, the participant must email the brand to inform them of their efforts, and after confirmation, Volga Verdi then issues discount vouchers.

But it isn't just Volga Verdi who has taken advantage of this new kind of strategy, British footwear brand Miista as well has taken a more social approach on discounts. In January last year, the brand launched a competition entitled, 'Cheaper with a Tweet'. According to reports, in an effort to boost sales for January, this experiment gave shoppers a chance to get discounts on shoes for every tweet they made about a particular style. The rules are also very reliant on the number of followers a person has, the larger the following, the larger the discount. Definitely a surefire way to get your message out there in a flash!

Business to Business Approach

Denim brand Dockers, under Levi Strauss & Co. took a different approach to social media engagement. In 2011, they launched a campaign entitled 'Wear the Pants', where people are asked to like their Facebook fan page, and submit a business proposal to Dockers for a potential entrepreneurial dream. The winner of the contest would be awarded a cash prize that would help them envision their dreams. The campaign reported as much as 4,500 entries, not to mention a large increase in fanbase. A representative of the brand commented, "our fans want to know more about our products once they've engaged with the brand, so we are incorporating more about [specific products] into the cadence of communication."

Fashion Show Tickets

Another surefire way to engage fashion fans is to hand out free tickets to Fashion Shows. American designer Rebecca Minkoff held an Instagram competition awhile back, allowing fans to post photos wearing their Rebecca Minkoff outfits. A way to engage the street style fashionistas, the winner was able to get free tickets to the Rebecca Minkoff SS 2013 show during New York Fashion Week.

As you can see, there are many innovative and creative ways to maximize social media. Definitely giving promotions, discounts, and prizes online would be a way to boost your presence, not simply in terms of brand awareness, but mostly in terms of engagement with your followers. Moreover, even something as simple as user-generated content will give you a more personal approach, which would slowly equate to more brand loyalty. Putting your fans in the limelight, and showing their importance to you can provide amazing results - regardless of whether you are a small time business, or a luxury company!