Do luxury brands need social media?
The rich are unlikely to follow your company on Twitter. According to a study by Unity Marketing, 6% of affluent users use social tools to look for coupons or go shopping, while 7% were interested in using social networks to research purchases or seek out special offers.
The study goes on to say that while at least half of affluent users view company social-media accounts, just a quarter will follow them.
So why do companies such as Cartier, Dolce & Gabbana and Lexus bother with social media?
A few possibilities:
- Feeding the brand’s aspirational quality. If you’ve got thousands of people who can’t afford your product raving about how great you are, it increases your brand’s value as a status symbol for the handful who can afford it.
- Hook them early. Just because some of your Facebook fans can’t afford you right now doesn’t mean they’ll be window shoppers forever. If you build connections with young fans now, you’ll be in a position to recoup that good will if they become more successful. Think of it as an investment in the next generation of millionaires.
- Your competitors are already there. If you’ve got a competitor with a robust social-media presence, you owe it yourself to fight back. Stand on the sidelines and you risk seeming antiquated or stuffy. Brands might have trouble courting the wealthy using social media right now, but that may change as social media becomes more ubiquitous. Depending on your marketplace, it may make sense to keep up with a rival’s efforts just so you’re not left flat-footed in the future.
What do you think? Do luxury brands benefit from having a presence in the social-media space? Why do you think the affluent are so unlikely to connect with brands using social media? Is there anything brands can do to change this?
Image credit, Pakhnyushcha, via Shutterstock
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Tags: branding, luxury, shopping, social media
Categories: Editor's Take, Research
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Posted by Rayna on March 9th, 2010 at 6:25 pm
I was expecting to find many comments on this subject as it is one that many luxury brands grapple with. Luxury has often been about not being ubiquitous and protecting the aspirational value of the offering. That said, there is a place for social in the marketing and messaging mix for luxury brands. It all goes back to what their strategy is. Identifying your business objectives and audience, then formulating the tactics, metrics and KPIs to implement. Are the brands looking to increase leads, drive publicity, build community, improve customer relations, etc. And then determine the right person/voice to commit to engaging with customers via social. I find at the very least, for most luxury brands, social can be effective (and measureable) for learning/listening to customer needs, storytelling, providing services, communicating PR initiatives and even building lifestyle communities. Tactics will definitely vary by brand, category, and business objectives, but planned and executed correctly, can enhance their overall marketing mix.
Posted by Samantha Rufo on March 9th, 2010 at 6:33 pm
Is it really about social media or more likely about the brand itself? Luxury brand's such as Johnnie Walker, Whistler BC, and Vail Resorts have done a great job of connecting with a more affluent consumer base using Facebook, Twitter and other forms of social media. What do these brands have in common other than looking for people that can afford high ticket items? They are also progressive brands that have found ways to connect with consumers on topics they find interesting in the social space.
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Posted by jstanchak on March 9th, 2010 at 6:45 pm
Samantha — really interesting point. Maybe the take away is that the Unity Marketing survey only covered affluent customers — but not all consumers of luxury goods are what we think of as affluent. Some just have good taste and splurge wisely. Maybe that's where the opportunity lies?
Posted by Adrian Chan on March 9th, 2010 at 9:59 pm
Personally and professionally I think luxe brands ought to tread carefully with social media. Their brand equity is all they have, design and manufacturing etc notwithstanding. And if your brand equity requires that you be hard to reach, aspirational, unattainable, and just plain expensive, there's no harm in keeping out of media in order to be that more precious when found.
And I think luxe brand managers pretty much know this.
Posted by Leah Woolford on March 9th, 2010 at 4:06 pm
Social Media is a communication channel for luxe brands if they can find their audience in those channels. Not all luxe brands make sense in the social mediasphere for actual sales and marketing, but it does make sense for building aspirational appeal.
Posted by luuk verburgh on March 10th, 2010 at 6:56 am
Something to do with age too. Most people are in some way not interested to their "thing" and daily things on a laptop. Lux brands are bought by people who are not probably heavy users of social media. Their opinion is that "social" and sitting behind your pc doesn't fit.
Investing in social network is still necessary for the (maybe) small part of customers who are interested in their goods or younger people who will be the future clients.
Posted by Do luxury brands need social media? () on March 10th, 2010 at 9:17 am
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Posted by Ramadan Radwan on March 12th, 2010 at 1:40 am
good and useful information, thanks a lot.
Posted by @mandomando on March 14th, 2010 at 11:24 am
Hi,
Luxury brands can find future consumers and aspirational public in socialmedia, besides several luxe networks like ASW, Decayenne, etc. (more http://bit.ly/bLOyxY) where they can interact with real consumers.
Well done for those tips!
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Posted by Left Coast Exotics on April 3rd, 2010 at 3:54 pm
Interesting numbers by Unity Marketing. I think the "hook them early" is the key since many social networks are dominated by younger users. Also the power kids have over their parents to make purchases is a huge factor and luxury marketers I'm sure know this quite well. How many parents can refuse repetitive and very insistent pleas from their darling children?
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Posted by louis vuitton on April 26th, 2010 at 6:21 am
These brands have in common than that of other people, can afford high-priced merchandise? They also found the theme of how to connect with consumers, they find interesting in the space of social progress the brand.
Posted by Do luxury brands need social media? | THINKBIGBEBIG ENTREPRENEURS on May 10th, 2010 at 2:27 am
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