5 Simple Reasons Fashion Brands Should Be Using Instagram
One online platform is fast approaching that level of success which will soon have the millennials asking the question more commonly reserved for the likes of Google, mobile phones and the Sat-Nav – ‘what did people do before Instagram?’ And while this is high-praise indeed, it is also an important sign of the times, never more so than if you are a part of Instagram’s most lucrative market, the fashion industry.
1) A better way to advertise
Topping the list of reasons to get your brand online is the sheer value of Instagram ads. Although they were met with a reluctant sigh from some users when first announced, these little beauties are a fantastic way for fashion brands to attract attention.
Instagram ads appear on individual news feeds based on the user’s activity on parent company Facebook and other third party sites. This means that 9 times out of 10 the ad will be reaching the right clientele. Better yet, Instagram has recently opened its API to all advertisers which means great things for start-ups and smaller
fashion brands looking for exposure on the cheap.
2) The new edition
For both fashion and beauty brands, engagement is highest on Instagram compared to any other social media platform. This makes perfect sense seeing as both rely so heavily on the visual gaze to captivate their target markets. Think of it this way, where once the fashionista would flick through a glossy magazine, they now more frequently seeking this gratification online. However, good luck trying to replicate that luxury of flicking through a fashion mag filled with vivid colours, striking structures and intriguing layouts by trawling through 140-character updates on Twitter. Instagram is much better equipped to meet those needs.
However, good luck trying to replicate that luxury of flicking through a fashion mag filled with vivid colours, striking structures and intriguing layouts by trawling through 140-character updates on Twitter. Instagram is much better equipped to meet those needs.
3) Access all areas
Born of a generation which has its finger well and truly on the pulse, you cannot blame the youth of today for experiencing a bout of FOMO if ever they miss a trick. Fortunately, Instagram offers the perfect gateway into the fast-paced exclusivity of the fashion industry; it allows brands the opportunity to invite their followers behind the scenes and into the thick of the action they’re in, creating a strong connection between brand and consumer.
This strategy reaps its rewards each year at London Fashion Week. This year for example, digital marketing agency Greenlight witnessed 5,602 Instagram posts featuring #LFW2016 in the month leading up to London Fashion Week, while Twitter collated just 1,178 of these tags in the same period.
4) Model behaviour
Thanks in part to the new generation of fashion bloggers and their eagerness to pose in the right clothes, a strong following in the Instagram community can prove lucrative for your fashion brand. Not only will a snap of your product posted by the right blogger quickly fall into the hands of your target audience, but a repost from your account costs a lot less than a professional photoshoot. The more you repost, the stronger the connection between brand and buyer becomes and the more engaged your followers will be.
5) Captains of the captions
Due to the advertisement clauses preventing Instagram turning into something of an online marketplace, fashion giants like Zara and ASOS include the product code in their captions rather than a direct link as it still serves the purpose of providing users with a quick pathway to purchase. ASOS are also champions of the in-house blogger, as their fashion forward Instagram girls are regularly photographed in their favourite ASOS pieces, all of which are labelled in the captions. Not ones to miss out, the Topshop team also capitalised on the influence Instagram has over purchases when it announced at LFW that customers would be able to shop the looks donned by front row VIPs instore immediately after the shows.
By Aisling Lewis
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