London Fashion Week gets social

Last week, the eyes of the fashion world focused on London as the capital hosted Fashion Week. Fashion Week has always generated news, showcasing the garments that, no matter how ridiculous they look now, we’ll undoubtedly be sporting in six months time. The events themselves however have always presented something of an enigma to me; blurred impressions of undernourished women being ushered in and out of expensive venues. Just like the brands showcased, the events have always been exclusive.

This year however, London Fashion Week got social.

It wasn’t just the rubber skirts and dresses at Burberry Prorsum making the headlines. The all-British brand launched a number of new social media initiatives, confirming its long-held reputation as a trailblazer in the social space. 

From start to finish, the Burberry catwalk was one big assault on social, commencing with The“Burberry Beauty Booth". This promoted backstage interaction with models who were able to share catwalk-ready images in real-time by tweeting with the #BeautyBooth hashtag.

Once fans had seen the models pouting backstage, they then had the opportunity to watch the show itself, live-streamed within Burberry's Twitter feed for the first time. Additional access was provided through two Instagram accounts: @Burberry and the more detailed @Burberry_Live.

As if that wasn’t enough, hard-core Burberry obsessives could prolong the excitement yet further by tweeting with the hashtag #madefor the day after the show. This qualified them to receive an image of their own Burberry nameplate- a new personalisation option for Burberry products launched at LFW.

But this year, Burberry had a rival for the social crown. 

British retailer Topshop and Internet giant Google teamed up to create ‘The Future of the Fashion Show’, a series of interactive experiences designed to bring the show to life.

Fashion’s latest darling Cara Delevingne (bushy eyebrows, dated Harry Styles and falls out of houses at five in the morning. You know the one I mean), was one of three models commissioned to wear miniature HD video cameras to give fans the full 'model cam' experience. The specially adapted Topshop YouTube channel hosted the live-streamed coverage generated from these and from around the show.

After the show a 'Be The Buyer' app let users create mood boards out of individual pieces from the collection. International buyers and Topshop's in-house buying team also gave out video advice and industry tips to aspiring fashionistas.

Burberry and Topshop’s efforts to create and project content may seem slightly excessive when listed, but for once, I find myself congratulating the big brands.

The fashion industry, high-end fashion in particular, has a bad reputation for being bitchy and exclusive. Even if I had the time/ money/ press-pass to attend a LFW event, the prospect of sitting in the same room as Anna Wintour would be enough to drive me from the city.

Burberry and Topshop’s social media efforts are helping to dissolve this impression in a way that benefits the whole industry. They democratise fashion; remembering brand fans that are not rich or famous and recognising their desire and right for inclusion.

Models, like the athletes at the 2012 Olympics are using social media to project their personalities. A fearsome strut and stony-faced pout are not the most endearing qualities, but once you’ve seen them messing around backstage maybe even… grabbing a slice of pizza (gasp), they seem a lot more human consequently elevating them from clothes horses to positive brand ambassadors.

By Polly Robinson

Lessons learnt from Mr Selfridge

Since the New Year, my Sunday evenings have been brightened by the arrival Mr Selfridge.  For the uninitiated, this is the latest offering from ITV, a heady mix of fashion, flirtation and drama, all set against the eye-achingly beautiful backdrop of the freshly opened Selfridge’s store. The programme fills the hole left by Downton Abby but, with its partial focus on Selfridge’s battle to drive people to his store, it is also teaching me something.

Harry Selfridge is a PR and marketing mastermind and every week his activities highlight fundamental rules of our profession to be forgotten at our peril.

1. Get to know the press- Selfridge understands the power of the press to influence the public’s reception of his new store. One of the first things he does upon arrival in London is befriend the editor of the London Evening Standard. Unfortunately for us in 21^st century PR world, things are not so simple (taking Sarah Sands out for an evening of show tunes and light gambling seem somewhat improbable), but basic theory is the same. Be good to the press; take the time to get to know what client-relevant journalists want because they have the last say in what gets published.

2. Be a news hound- Today’s news is tomorrow’s fish paper so if you’re going to contribute to a current conversation, you have to do it fast. When Mr Selfridge hears news of Louis Bleriot’s inaugural cross-channel flight, he is quick to connect the Selfridges brand with the discussion. Upon the plane’s arrival and in front of the congregated media, Selfridge commandeers the plane for exhibition in store and by the next day has a full range of red, white and blue scarves made up for sale alongside it. Selfridge’s speed and decisiveness is key to his success here. His approach is similar to modern guerilla advertising campaigns (see below example), which succeed due to their quick-witted connection of brand and news.

 3. Choose a brand ambassador- Selfridge wants his store to be viewed as cutting edge, daring and sexy. In order to project this to the public he appoints beautiful and independent showgirl, Ellen Love, to be the ‘Spirit of Selfridges’.  The Selfridges, Ellen, agreement works in exactly the same way as modern celebrity endorsement; Heston Blumenthal and Waitrose for example. By associating a brand with an aspirational figure, which its target market wishes to emulate, the brand becomes more appealing.

4. … But take care in doing so- Although publicly an object of admiration, Ellen is privately a bit of a train-wreck, (with her alcoholism and drug addiction looking to become an increasing embarrassment for Selfridge in the coming weeks). The predicament is a familiar one: When an ambassador no longer represents brand values, the association turns from beneficial to blighting. Modern examples include Kate Moss, who was dropped by Burberry, Rimmel and Chanel following the exposure of her drug taking, and Lance Armstrong, ditched by Nike, Anheuser-Busch and Giro due to his use of performance enhancing drugs. The lesson is clear: Ambassadors can bring negative as well as positive press so take care when choosing them.  

5. Put on a show- Mr Selfridge understands the power of an event to make news and grasps any opportunity to generate exciting activity in-store.  When Anna Pavlova, arrives in London, people are desperate to see her and experience the glamour and grace she represents. Selfridge’s answer is to host a reception for Pavolva, where members of the public may come in-store and do just this. The stunt woks well as a PR campaign because the underlying message; that ‘every woman should have a Pavlova moment’, applies equally well to the event and the store famed for bringing high-end fashion to the masses.   

By Polly Robinson