Omni-channel choices for cosmetics buyers

https://twitter.com/avon_uk

For more than 125 years, Avon (now headquartered in the UK) has sold its beauty products door to door, via representatives who meet with customers, demonstrate makeup techniques, take orders and deliver products personally.

These days, however, time-pressured buyers are often buying online and watching social media tutorials rather than working with door-to-door salespeople.

So Avon now offers omni-channel choices. Buyers can still request a representative visit. They can also click to buy directly from the online Avon shop and receive purchases via courier.

To engage with buyers, Avon UK is active on Twitter (102k followers), Instagram (115k), Facebook (more than 20m followers), YouTube (24k subscribers) and its own Beauty Connects club blog (254k members).

Some Avon reps have their own social media accounts to show products and explain benefits. After all, in a world where makeup experts can attract hundreds of thousands of social media followers, Avon's reps can shine by offering special tips and personalised service for buyers.

Avon's products are competitively priced and attractively positioned. However, with improved profitability in mind, the global beauty brand is closing some markets to focus on higher-potential regions.

Burberry leverages the power of social media

https://www.instagram.com/burberry/

Social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter play a central marketing role for the UK fashion brand Burberry. Its marketing strategy actually relies on four distinct pillars: product, communication, distribution and digital. About communication, the company explains: 'We are evolving our communications to be led by product and made for social media'.

One study found that Burberry topped the list of 20 most valuable UK brands using social media in 2017. Fashion industry publication WWD says Burberry had the best-performing social media strategy during February's 2018 London Fashion Week. This is actually nothing new for the brand, which has long put special emphasis on social media and ecommerce: CampaignLive hailed Burberry's savvy social media strategy during London Fashion Week in 2014.

By cultivating tech-savvy consumers, Burberry has amassed an Instagram following of more than 11 million people. Its Twitter account is followed by 8.7 million people. More than 17 million people have clicked to like its Facebook page. In short, Burberry is leveraging the power of social media to reach and engage style-conscious brand fans who buy in stores or online or both.

This post updates the Burberry example in Chapter 8 of my Essential Guide to Marketing Planning.

Luxury brands move toward omnichannel marketing

Luxury brands were, in many cases, late in adopting ecommerce strategies because of concerns about top-notch customer service, price competition and other issues. Now leading luxe brands are moving into cross-platform marketing to accommodate changes in consumer behaviour and buying preferences.

Consider LVMH, the €37.6 billion French-based group marketing top-quality, upmarket brands like Louis Vuitton, Bulgari, Tag Heuer and more than 65 other brands (soon to include Christian Dior Couture).

LVMH had a previous ecommerce venture, eLuxury, but eight years ago, during the great recession, the company closed the retail function and transformed the site into a digital fashion magazine.

Now LVMH is launching a new ecommerce venture. This new business (both online and app version) is 24 Sèvres, named for the firm's Paris street address. The business will go live in mid-June.

'Increasingly consumers want pictures over words', says LVMH's chief digital officer, Ian Rogers, mentioning the rapid rise of Instagram and Snapchat. Therefore, he says, 'if you look at our site, we lean far further toward visually-led merchandising than the more editorial skew of our competitors'.

Instead of brand-specific sites and apps, this new online retail platform will feature multiple LVMH brands--and some non-LVMH brands as well, with a visually innovative customer experience. Rogers says: 'There is . . . currently a major focus on omnichannel and experience, and we are moving from a mass culture to a mass of niches'.

Omnichannel retailing wins

Consumers are increasingly browsing and buying via mobile. It's not enough to have a good retail location and good merchandise assortment. An attractive, easy-to-navigate mobile site is necessary to win shoppers in today's omnichannel environment.

Apps are vital for branded products and retailers in this situation, yet consumers don't necessarily use the brand's apps for comparison pricing, instead choosing Amazon or another retailer's app. Also, consumers may scan or input item information to store via mobile and buy (in-store or via app) in the future.

According to a recent study of UK retail sites, Argos had the highest average monthly share of mobile visits in 2015, with a 76% share. The full top 10 list is:

• Argos   ...    76% share
• Boots   ...    75% share
• Next   ...      72% share
• Tesco   ...    71% share
• Curry's   ..   70% share
• Amazon ..   64% share
• Asos   ...     62% share [tied with Marks & Spencer]
• M&S  ...     62% share [tied with Asos]
• John Lewis 60% share
• eBay   ...     59% share

Marketing predictions for 2016

Marketing experts have a number of predictions for the year ahead. Keep these developments in mind if you're creating or refining a marketing plan in 2016:

• Trust will be more important than ever. Brands must take care to keep earning it with every transaction, every marketing action. Customers still want transparency and authenticity, not just the right product at the right price.
• Omnichannel is no longer merely an option, it's a basic requirement as customers expect personalisation and relevant marketing communications and offerings across platforms, online and offline. Customers who buy online should be able to return products in a store without fuss.
• Real-time analysis of Big Data wins. Customers leave traces everywhere they digitally go. It's up to marketers to interpret wants and needs by tracking behaviour and offering ads, content and other information at the moment consumers need and want it.
• Virtual reality is a reality. Brands and entertainment marketers need to have communications and services for cutting-edge technology, especially for millennial consumers.
• 'Alternative' has gone mainstream. Goods and services that were once on the margins are increasingly popular. Customers want 'unique', and retailers want to differentiate themselves by offering something other than the usual.
  
• 'Buy it now' is the new social media reality. See it on Pinterest or Instagram, buy with a swipe or click. Is your brand ready to take advantage of this trend?