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January 9, 2009
Fashion Future
The news from retailers is dire. Sales at Gap, Abercrombie, Neiman Marcus are plunging. Upscale brands are gathering dust on the shelves. It is now chic to buy only what you need, not what you used to crave. So what is the world’s most important modeling agency, Ford Models, to do? I had breakfast with its innovative CEO, John Caplan, to find out.
He believes that authenticity is in and insatiable consumption is out. Mainstream brands need to partner with fashion rather than be frightened of it. Beauty, authenticity and relevance have emerged to be important. Caplan says, “Our culture where money was the benchmark of prestige has been replaced and now authentic style is more important than how much something cost.” I was happy to hear Caplan say that the new look is for full-figure models and that razor thin models are out.
He believes that fashion and mainstream brands have had a disconnect. Fashion is living in a bubble, concerned that association with mainstream brands will reduce its cachet. Mainstream brands are not smart about who or what is cool (maybe that is why ads regularly feature music from 25 years ago). Caplan and Ford have begun to bridge this gap.
A few companies, such as BMW and HP are making a strong connection to the fashion business. HP’s (disclosure: a client) marketing chief, Satjiv Chahil, conceived of a Vivienne Tam designed laptop that is a fashion accessory and provides complete business functionality. From a runway show at Fashion Week to a presentation to fashion writers at Tam’s store in Downtown Manhattan, the new product allowed HP to go beyond tech reporters to reach consumers through lifestyle media.
To date, Ford has matched its 4,000 models with clients primarily on the basis of looks. “In the future, it will also be the talent’s genuine love of brand. Has the model used the product? Is there a real-life story? Is there a cause to support as part of the campaign?” Caplan said.
He has launched version 1.0 of www.fordmodels.tv and syndicates how-to content across YouTube www.youtube/fordmodels and found that brands crave the association with Ford talent and young people rely on getting information from those “in the know.” Caplan is planning to unveil a new web site for Ford Models which will create a channel for each model, for blogs, for posting of video and photos, essentially a niche version of Facebook that will allow the global community to understand more about the 4,000 models and the brands that they use, love and want. “I want our talent share their experiences, to ignite dialogue with the public.” With the huge success of Perez Hilton and other bloggers following celebrities, this sounds like a smart idea.
So how do PR practitioners work with Ford? Bring in a product to the agency prior to introduction. Allow the models to try it, then discuss it via Facebook and blog about it. Consider hosting events with the hundreds of thousands of kids that are members of the Ford Models community. Create a discussion prior to launch, so our clients can learn from the community. Involve a cause that is logical. Work with mainstream media upon launch. Leave the controlled communications and the old paradigm of top-down marketing to the ad agency, with the stilted 30 second commercials. Ours is the genuine approach, the use of the product in real venues, warts and all, engaging with audiences directly through social media as well as traditional media. I would appreciate your views as always.
Posted by Edelman at January 9, 2009 4:54 PM |
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Comments
In my recent four year stint in studying the finer aspects of advertising, listening to well educated professors preach about aesthetically effective billboard layouts, proper ad script formats, and how a clever banner ad can truly effect consumers' perception of a brand, it was refreshing to read about how simply talking at consumers does little to influence a brand's connection with their target audience. All this to say, thank you for the bit of real-world education....no student loans required.
I've been told the danger in social media applications is the instantaneous, and often untamed, consumer response. It doesn't seem logical, however, to silence the very people who are purchasing these products. With the state of the economy, consumers are obviously more skeptical about the few purchases they’re actually able to make. The popularity of social networking sites like facebook, myspace and friendster have introduced a new generation of “social shoppers”. Newer web ventures such as Kaboodle and ThisNext allow consumers to not only discover new products launched by their favorite brands, but connect with like-minded consumers to discuss and rate these products. Although advertisers have the ability to sponsor premium ad space and web links, they have very few tools to engage in open dialogue with their consumers. What do you think are logical reasons why brands have done little to utilize these trends in their product's pre-launch phase? In your opinion, what are the limitations of social networking sites in terms of consumer connections with brands? Is there truly danger in utilizing uncontrolled venues?
They say that good advertising can make a product fail faster, but I guess the true value for organizations in the communications mix is the notion that effective PR could ensure a bad product never gets launched in the first place.
Posted by: Joshua Knotts at January 14, 2009 2:30 AM