Like every industry, successful fashion marketing has come a long way from the days of keyword stuffed content. Today’s fashion writers need to know how to navigate the line between authenticity and promotion to create engaging, useful content that will speak to both the trends du jour, while also positioning the brand as a trusted source of style advice for years to come.
For any brand looking to hire fashion writers–be it a fresh, scrappy start-up or an internationally recognized label–they’ll want to find writers who help them add substance and shine to an increasingly integrated marketing approach. Read on to learn about what’s new with fashion writing as well as some key fashion writing tips for original, quality content that never goes out of style.
Fashion Content Marketing News: What’s Trending in 2017
When it comes to fashion marketing, two key phrases sum up the focus for successful marketers: accessibility and authenticity. In a 2017 survey of fashion marketers conducted by the Couture Agency, 90% of all respondents reported that fashion “content marketing is critical to the success of their organization.” A deeper dive into this data reveals that 83% of those surveyed identified social media tools as part of a successful content marketing strategy, and 70% shared that their social media was now “shoppable.”
In laymen terms, this means that fashion brands are looking to leverage social media tools as a means of shortening the sales funnel and encouraging customers to make purchases directly from promotional platforms. Instagram’s new “click to buy” functionality remains a strong example of how seamless integration between social media and commerce can lead to big boosts in sales.
So, who are the fashion content marketing leaders in this brave new world? Glossier, a beauty company that Fast Company reports grew 600% over a year, has learned to lean in to social media, far beyond keeping up with a regular posting schedule. CEO Emily Weiss not only uses Instagram as a powerful tool for customers to evangelize their products, but also as a place where Weiss and her team crowd source ideas for their latest products in the vibrant comment section.
Fashion retailer Asos, who leads the charge in timely, user-generated content thanks to their popular #AsSeenOnMe campaign, is a great example of how evergreen content created by professional fashion writers can play nicely with trendy, customer-created content. As noted by UK marketing company Woo Content, Asos regularly features evergreen how-to guides and videos that drive traffic to their site. Woo touts one key example, a how-to video for bleaching denim, as “a timeless DIY technique that will continue to attract strong numbers of keyword searches each and every year, pulling in a constant stream of traffic that may be tempted to navigate towards other articles and valuable e-commerce pages.”
It seems clear that the best approach for today’s fashion content marketing isn’t a robust social media platform or well-written longer form content, but rather, a well-thought-out approach that includes both of these tools (along with a healthy dose of mobile optimization and, of course, gorgeous photos of all that pretty product).
Is “Evergreen Content” Still Evergreen?
In a word: absolutely. Evergreen content, which refers to content that remains relevant for years at a time, is still very much on trend. As the Asos example makes clear, customers still crave useful, shareable content that can help them make purchasing decisions and create amazing looks that last beyond the current season.
Professional fashion writers know how to create evergreen content that reflects well on the brand without being overly promotional. They know how to present content that rises beyond the buy buy buy mantra to create something more sophisticated. Brands rely on this content to drive interest and sales while simultaneously positioning them as trusted leaders and dispenser of reliable style advice.
When Customer Data Met Quality Content Writing: a Love Story
For some final fashion writing insights, we can look to the sheer amount of customer data that today’s companies have access to. Quality fashion writers should be able to take customer data and insights from a brand and translate that into copy that fuels campaigns. By creating content that speaks to individual concerns rather than those of a faceless crowd, companies can take advantage of customers’ interests and shopping habits in real time.
For an awesome example of how customer data insights and unique, well-crafted copy can create a winning strategy, let’s look at Alex and Ani. The sustainably-made jewelry empire has seen tremendous success, and CEO Carolyn Rafaelian was recently featured on the cover of Forbes as one of the richest self-made women in the nation. But her company’s success doesn’t come from the quality of their products alone. The company recently saw a whopping 73% increase in their monthly email revenue from using customer data to personalize their marketing emails as opposed to sending out a generic emails to all subscribers.
While fancy tracking tools and data analytics are certainly doing some heavy lifting here, Alex and Ani, as well as the countless other fashion retailers who use email marketing, would be nowhere without well-written, engaging content that customers actually want to read.
Similarly, fashion writers have a key role to play in creating blogs that showcase street style, or product descriptions that bring the images of new styles to life. Fashion is a visual industry, but it’s quality fashion writing that can help customers enter a narrative in which they feel empowered to make purchases and create a personal style that really reflects their values and identity.
About the author
A natural storyteller, Caitlin C has written professionally for over a decade, including over 1,000 orders here at WriterAccess. She has worked as a freelance writer and editor, and has experience as a classroom teacher at the middle, high school, and University level. Caitlin excels at creating strong, compelling B2B copy; she genuinely loves translating dry bullet points into organic, engaging prose.
