“When I first moved to
New York and I was totally broke, sometimes I would buy Vogue instead of
dinner.”
Although it has been a pretty long time since I first heard this quote
coming out of a fashion icon like Sarah Jessica Parker in her unique role as Carrie Bradshaw, these words cannot get
out of my mind.
What does fashion mean
for women? How can a worthless type of accessory or cloth seem invaluable and
able to make the world better? Lots of profound comments have been written
around this subject. However, let’s face it! Fashion world is transforming
people’s lives and as Thomas Fuller said “good clothes open doors”.
Is there anyone who
hasn’t noticed the rise of fashion industry in social media? Whether it is for
a popular brand or an upcoming designer a digital presence is required.
I can not help but wonder, how did
social media changed the fashion world?
According to MacalaWrighlt Lee,
- People get cozy in communities and create niche communities
- People embrace mobile apps
- The rise of style bloggers
- Impact of style generated content.
Yes, people want to
feel connected! Social media is the latest trend since skinny jeans or knitted
miniskirts. The pr evolution in convergent media makes you feel addictive to
fashion, in a way that you no longer need a 'Voque' magazine, as ‘Carrie’ did.
Through mobile Apps
such as Snapette, Luster, Pose, Fashion GPS or
the MADE Fashion Week, you gain immediate access to all upcoming trends,
making yourself part of a luxury on line community.
Fashion
bloggers prove that No ‘Devil wears Prada’, when they are leading the social media revolution and represent the
new generation of influencers. They populate the front rows, post and tweet,
bring magazines in a need to figure out a way to cover the shows more uniquely
and have the freedom to build their own careers, like Yuli Ziv or CrosbyNorics.
Last but not least, the
user generated content make a user feel that his interactions with the company are personal and one of a kind. Burberry’s
site “Art of Trench” encourages users to upload images of themselves wearing
Burberry’s signature item.
Macy’s "Backstage pass" program enables users to snap QR codes and get expert advice from the brand’s
celebrity partners.
The fashion industry
and pr have distinct similarities according to Norics. Both have struggled for
professional recognition, they have been criticized and overlooked for being
superficial or unnecessary and have attracted a large female majority. Moreover
they have bonded in a spectacular way, giving rise to new professions and
opportunity to get involved in fashion and uptrend matters in a revolutionary
digital way.
5 comments:
Love this topic, Ellie! You're absolutely right when you point out the way convergent media and fashion have become more and more intertwined.
I have followed street-style bloggers like Tommy Ton (http://jakandjil.com/), The Sartorialist (http://www.thesartorialist.com/), and Garance Dore (http://www.garancedore.fr/en/) since their early days and it has been interesting to see their increasing popularity and fame. Tommy Ton, for example, is now sought out as a professional fashion photographer for online publications like Style.com and GQ.com. He is also designing a line of handbags for Club Monaco.
The fashion world has obviously realized the influence these bloggers can have as they photograph and show designers' clothing in a real-life environment, outside of the staged runway setting. I think we will likely see more campaigns like Burberry's, showing real people wearing clothing in their own way.
I actually came across this article in the Economist recently. It tells of an online "social shopping" game that has been developed recently http://www.economist.com/node/21548929. The game enables people to virtually test out purchases before they decide to really purchase.
Fashion, like other art forms is a medium that needs a community, a public, an audience in order to validate itself. It makes sense that social media would be a good fit.
Bravo Ellie! :)
Pleasant to read and full of info too. Difficult combination to be achieved, but u made it.
Same thing with Burberry happens on site of the Juicy Couture too.
I'd love to see you write something about the Polyvore community too, found on www.polyvore.com.
Thank you so much for your comments!
It is an undeniable fact that social media can be used in a creative way in fashion pr. Lazzes thank you very for the links you mentioned, I am starting to become addicted to Schuman's blog! What has been troubling the last few days, is how can fashion brands located in a country with a defected economic status such as Greece, benefit from social media. For instance is a creation of a blog or commentary posts for a fashion store, able to promote its sales or secure its dymanic existence?
Commenting a little late I know (assignments!), in some ways you could say that fashion and social media were made for each other!
Seeing fashion and design as part of the wider creative industries and/or manufacturing sector, it's impact is immense! If not a little unappreciated. In the post-war era, fashion such as with Dior's 'New Look' were not insignificant parts of economic growth. Also fashion, being such a visual medium has always attracted the interest of photography and film. During the war-era, Hollywood films set the fashion tone, as the major fashion houses had to close. Social media is a natural progression, in transmitting innovation, change and reaching an audience.
For those fashion designers, perhaps struggling to find coverage, an interesting piece from the Social Media Club, on how arts organisations are cleverly using social media
http://socialmediaclub.org/blogs/from-the-clubhouse/creative-approaches-arts-organizations-using-social-media
Might be of interest!
I also love this article. I believe that the success of digital media and fashion can be attributed to its visual images. It allows people to share images /styles quickly but as most people don’t have the skill or means to copy the products (While we can burn our own CD’s most of us can’t make a dress) we still require to purchase what we require. Digital media provides a quick and convenient way of doing this (providing you get the sizing right, returning products is rubbish).
This older article gives a good overview of the types of products available
http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/nov/18/best-fashion-apps
My favourite has to be the Bra fitter app http://itunes.apple.com/us/app/bra-fitter/id336858624?mt=8 which allows you to publish your details on face book as the writer states Why! Or as we say more locally ‘Eh Naw’ or more politely, categorically no. It made me laugh though.
Fashion can be frivolous but we all need to be wearing something and that something makes a statement about you like it or not. I believe fashion is a commodity which can be purchased while style is an inherent quality that comes from within. Luckily If you don’t have style there a millions of people willing to help online. That’s why it is so successful, digital media provided a perfect expansion in line with the exciting business. I will be interested to see how magazines and other publication integrate this technology. I think it offers this area of journalism positive opportunities of which they have only scratched the surface.
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