Social Media

Two summers ago I interned with Michelle Adams who was in the process of designing her online interior decorating magazine, Lonny. She had been an editor at Domino, and after Condé Nast closed the publication she took notice of how upset readers were and decided to do something about it. Now in its seventh issue, Lonny attracts thousands of online readers and boasts wonderful cover stories featuring Deborah Lloyd and Celerie Kemble.
Michelle prettttty much single-handedly started Lonny. She had a ton of support from her former coworkers at Domino as well as a great photographer, but other than that she just took an idea and ran with it. She’s really young, 28 years old, and like most people these days is an active Facebook and blog user. She successfully spread the word about her textiles company, Rubie Green, through her personal blog and Facebook profile, and knew that this would be the most efficient way to advertise Lonny. She created a Facebook page for Lonny and constantly updates its “wall” with new interior decorating tips and ideas. Lonny’s page currently has over 20,000 people who “Like” it, and I am sure that number will continue to grow. Michelle also constantly posts updates about Lonny and the interior decorating world on her own wall. Essentially, through Facebook, she has created not only a Lonny fan club but also a personality for Lonny that makes it a more personable company. By putting her own face behind Lonny as well as making the Lonny page reflect her personality, Lonny becomes something or “someone” that people genuinely care about and feel like they know personally. Essentially, Lonny has a Facebook profile just like anyone else, and this allows readers to develop a relationship with Lonny and to truly experience the company’s aesthetic and purpose.
Having a page for Lonny has also given Michelle a lot of feedback on readers’ opinions. Readers can comment on Lonny’s wall posts, enabling Michelle and her team to understand what their target market expects and wants from them. Because Lonny is an online magazine, it is really convenient for people to see an announcement about Lonny on Facebook or Twitter and then immediately just click the link for the main website. When you go to the website (http://www.lonnymag.com/), the homepage has a link to its Facebook and Twitter accounts, as well as a link to its website that contains Lonny’s blog. Blog posts and Facebook posts allow fans to constantly receive little tid-bits about interior decorating between issues. This is especially beneficial since the issue is only distributed quarterly, and it is important to maintain customer interest. Fact is that a huge percentage of people check their Facebook accounts on a daily basis…so why would you not utilize this powerful tool?? Word about companies spreads like wildfire via Facebook where you are constantly notified by what other people “Like” or comment.
According to the Groundswell chapters, a company needs to dive into a social network and embrace it while also making sure to utilize it correctly. Michelle has done an excellent job of taking full advantage of Facebook by investing in the Lonny Facebook account as if it is the magazine itself. She has not cut corners or done it half-way, and that is important in the world of social networking. A company’s Facebook page becomes the face of the company, and that is NOT something to underestimate. A company can either make or break their image by how they present themselves on Facebook. Michelle has followed this mindset exactly: the Lonny Facebook page is personable, inviting, informative, and helpful. She took a step back, looked at herself as a consumer, and recognized how much information she gathers from social networking. Through networking, she has connected with many other people striving to establish their own companies. This networking has led to people blogging about her accomplishments, and her returning the favor by highlighting others’ work. Marketing oneself in this manner can lead to unbelievable press and acknowledgment. Social media has become a primary concern of company leaders, as opposed to a side project to dabble in. We really are in a time when social networking is no longer a choice but a necessity in order to appeal to this generation of customers.

Inanimate Objects

Before going into my analysis of objects, I would like to start by stating who the two people were who gave me the object suggestions. I thought I might get some creative answers from asking my boyfriend and his best friend, both artists. My boyfriend first suggested “deer head mount” which I replied was not quite inanimate enough since it had once been living and I did not know if I could utilize it. To this he replied: “It’s good because it is inanimate now and wasn’t earlier, it’s a paradox.” My boyfriend then suggested skinny jeans for a “totally inanimate” object. His friend replied to my question with a question: “What are you doing currently?”…I said that I was needing his help with my project and once again requested the name of an object. He stated that his question had a point, so I complied and briefly explained the assignment. He replied: “Then think about the desk and letters you type, the 90% of your brain you don’t use. A book or DVD unused…the toilet. Dental floss. The objects that only have life when activated. The future is inanimate.”
I thought all of this insight was interesting to say the least, even though I did not quite know where to begin. So let’s see where this all leads….

First Object: SKINNY JEANS
Skinny jeans are slimming (on some people), trendy, look good with big shirts, have developed into “jeggings,” are youthful, comfortable, dressy, can be black, blue, grey, red etc., originally “hipster”, accentuate the leg shape, look good with flats or heels, dying out to be replaced by a different silhouette, “artsy”, Urban Outfitters, Olsen twins, bought my first pair in high school and was teased for them (since then, all of those people who teased me now wear them), Gwyneth Paltrow, celebrities, fashion magazines, skin tight, stretchy, high-waisted, good to tuck into boots in the winter, Audrey Hepburn, Vampire Weekend, indie musicians, “cool.”

Second Object: DENTAL FLOSS
Removes plaque and food from teeth, keeps your breath fresh, is superrrr skinny almost invisible, is translucent or white, comes rolled like yarn, easily tears against the metal contraption on the container, makes your teeth feel “individualized” and clean, makes your gums bleed, is a necessity for healthy teeth and dental hygiene, one container seems to last an eternity, hated to floss when I was younger, is essentially string, looks like fishing line…

Ways to combine the two objects:
• Sew pieces of denim together using dental floss to make skinny jeans
• Create a dental floss container-holder out of stretchy denim
• Create floss out of denim threads
• Hang skinny jeans on a floss line to dry
• Replace a button on jeans using dental floss
• Put floss in a pocket of the jeans
• Hold too-big-jeans up with floss as a belt or suspenders
• Cut up jeans and use floss to sew pieces together to make a purse or pouch
• Use dental floss to loop through the button hole to create an extension on too-small jeans that you can now button through the floss-hole
• Create embroidery designs on the skinny jeans with the floss
• Create a hanging device with floss to display skinny jeans in a store to give the appearance of floating
• If working at a retail store, tie up folded skinny jeans (with the size tag showing) with floss so that people don’t mess up the stack every time they look through them
• Use floss to tie up the bottom of boot cut or bell-bottom jeans to create the appearance of skinny jeans



Products/Services:
• Some of these have to do with altering your jeans on the spot. This could be especially useful for stylists for magazines who need to use readily available resources to adjust clothing to fit models. Maybe some kind of kit could be created including a floss material for this exact purpose.
• Since floss is a skinny material, and skinny jeans are a fashionable trend, maybe incorporating the two in a marketing strategy could encourage flossing. For example, a “skinny jean” floss with the floss cartridge made of denim. This could be especially helpful in encouraging young girls (13-18) to floss their teeth.
• The idea of creating a button-hole extension to give a little room for too-small jeans came from my roommate who uses a pony tail holder for the same reason. Maybe some kind of product could be created for the purpose of expanding jeans (I mean who doesn’t need to loosen up after a big meal at Santa Rita Mexican restaurant??). People would much rather buy this kind of compromising device then a. spend $50+ dollars on a new pair of jeans and b. admit that their skinny pair of jeans are going to have to be replaced by their “fat jeans” in the back of the closet.
• Create a skinny jean called the “flossy jean” to reflect how skinny they actually are…this might already exist?Create a specific pocket in skinny jeans to hold floss to constantly remind people while they are out and about to floss after meals
• Create a floss container in the shape of skinny jeans.
• Create a floss advertisement or a skinny jeans advertisement showing Audrey Hepburn (or a complimentary actress) dancing around (like in the attached image) where she is sporting black skinny jeans and looking so flossy with her waif-ish figure.

Creative Director and Customer Insights

When people ask me what I want to do with my life, my answers tend to be pretty scatterbrained. I know what my interests are: traveling, fashion, styling, culture, acting….but I’m not sure where I fit into the mix. I have dreams of being an editor or an actress or a Vogue stylist but who knows where I’ll end up.
The other week in the Wall Street Journal Magazine I read an article about a woman named Angela Ahrendts who is now the CEO of Burberry. Her story is pretty amazing….she started working at different jobs including merchandising executive at Liz Claiborne and earned her way to the top. She, along with Burberry’s Chief Creative Officer, Christopher Bailey, have completely transformed the iconic brand. Long known for its recognizable plaid pattern, Burberry needed a makeover after years of counterfeiting and a not-so-classy clientele. Ahrendts and Bailey completely transformed the fashion house into an esteemed luxury brand now comprised of less than 10% plaid. Their story is a successful one (bringing in about 2.2 billion in sales), and reflects the importance of customer insights. It definitely took some customer research to decide to expand the product line (duffle bags, cosmetics etc.), and to eliminate the most recognized part of their company (the plaid). Essentially they completely redeveloped and revamped the their image.

When I read the article on Ahrendts it inspired me to pursue a career similar to hers (in my dreams would it be this successful). I like problem solving and think that I would love the challenge of taking on a company and completely remarketing it. If a company needs to be transformed that usually means it is in some kind of financial or PR trouble. To adapt a company to survive the marketplace, customer insight is imperative. You have to know what people dislike, what they’re looking for, what their perception of your brand is, what their perception of other brands is. This is especially important in the fashion industry. Trying to understand price and value concepts of clothing can be tricky. You must also know the customer you cater to, whether it’s a luxury-oriented consumer or a budget-oriented consumer. In the instance of Burberry, they identified their current customer market and desired to change their target market to a more sophisticated, proper persona. A motivator in this transition was the company’s awareness of the reputation that their customers have on other people in the marketplace. If C-list celebrities are wearing your brand then A-list celebrities won’t want to be caught in your clothing. The executives at Burberry also realized (most likely through customer insights) an older persona as their primary customer and wished to make the brand appear more youthful and cutting-edge. As a result they used Emma Watson (from Harry Potter) in their amazing advertisements.

When I interned at Ralph Lauren I was given a similar task to brainstorm how to give the brand a younger image. In order to do this I interviewed friends to gain insight on their view of the company. Turns out that most people do perceive Ralph Lauren as a clothing line tailored to an older market. In the celebrity dressing department this was especially important information to gather because the director (my boss) wanted young, sexy, popular celebrities to choose Ralph Lauren for their premiere gowns etc., but it was always a challenge to work with the clothes because of their outdated feel.

I hope to create a cohesive paper from all of this brainstorming about the responsibilities of a creative director, specifically within the fashion industry, and how much they rely on customer insights. I am excited to learn the methods of research they use to gain information on customers and target markets (maybe style scouts, fashion blogs, etc.). I hope that this paper will introduce me to even more job opportunities within this bracket, and prepare me for interviews coming up in the next year!

Link to the WSJ article on Angela Ahrendts that I would highly recommend glancing at:
http://magazine.wsj.com/features/the-big-interview/earning-her-strips/2/

The Genius of Customer Experience

I am not a shopper. I really dislike trying on clothes and tend to get quickly impatient when walking around a mall going from store to store…….however, I do love the occasional warm, whimsical feeling I get when walking into a store that has character, some kind of certain aesthetic that makes shopping seem more like an adventure than a task to find this and that. It’s amazing how much little details about a store’s layout, music, decorations, etc. can make me excited to shop….make me want to experience the life of a certain persona.
Take J. Crew for example, there’s just a good vibe or something, right? It’s welcoming, calm, peaceful, classy. I could go on about the J. Crew men’s store in New York for hours. The wood walls, woodsy scent in the air, hardware items alongside men’s work shirts, Fleet Foxes playing in the background. It has this whole persona, so to speak, of the classic working man who knows how to dress impeccably and get the closest shave while still liking the outdoors. Being in the store alone makes me want to meet that guy, or become the girl for that guy….it’s like being in a movie or walking amongst a stage set.
Two summers ago I had the wonderful opportunity of working in the public relations department of Ralph Lauren in New York. And I will tell you that even in the offices of corporate Ralph Lauren the experience is of highest importance. You know what I’m talking about: the polo riding, cigar smoking, bourbon-drinking gentleman who would never be seen in athletic shorts and dirty t-shirt. Mr. Lauren is pretty much the founding genius of this retail aesthetic idea: the whole concept of shopping as an experience rather than a simple purchase. His corporate offices are exactly like the retail stores: mahogany walls, oil paintings, black and white portraits of himself, plush couches and coffee table books. He knows that in order for his designers and marketers to maintain the Ralph Lauren persona, they need to be surrounded by it while working. In corporate meetings Mr. Lauren constantly emphasizes the importance of creating a customer experience. Working retail at Ralph Lauren is no joke. You have to greet customers a certain way, conduct yourself in a certain way. The music playing is something soft and classic. The stores are actually designed to feel like your home, your own closet.
Following in Ralph Lauren’s footsteps, his son David Lauren started the store Rugby. Rugby is marketed towards college students; the feel is definitely preppy, sophisticated, and yet hip. The music is indie/preppy (Vampire Weekend), the walls are adorned with old sport team photos, college paraphernalia etc. He also carries Tom’s shoes and FEED bags geared towards the generation’s desire to help globally. Walking into this store almost feels like a college party. The kids who work retail are hip New York students, the music is loud, the clothes are scattered everywhere, people are bustling all over the place. Part of my job as an intern was to give feedback on how to help the customer experience at Rugby. David constantly wants to ensure that when kids walk into the Rugby store that they feel as if they become part of a cool scene that makes them want to buy clothes in order to live out what they feel in the store.
Creating this customer experience in a retail store really is a science. It is marketing in a physical form. There are entire studies devoted to creating this sensory experience in stores. This form of customer experience includes multiple aspects of Bernd Schmitt’s Strategic Experimential Modules. It is definitely something that appeals to the senses, and it also causes you to feel a certain way, it can even remind you of meaningful memories. Being in a store like Ralph Lauren makes you want to act as well…it inspires you to become someone else or to practice certain hobbies. And maybe most important to Mr. Lauren himself is the ability to make people relate…to connect people to a certain idea and culture….to build community… and to constantly inspire people to dream.

Kathryn, Texan but New Yorker at Heart

How would I describe myself? Deciding on my persona and what aspects of my life are interesting or unique requires a little bit of inner searching. So let’s just start with the basics, my demographics….
I’m a 21 year old girl, Caucasian, from Houston Texas. I don’t really have an income of my own yet because my parents are supporting me through college and I’m hoping they won’t leave me to be completely self-sufficient the second I graduate….
Onto behavioral, I’m a senior marketing major in the business school but I often question why I chose this path. I mean I know it’s a great degree but I am actually really interested in careers pertaining to film acting and the fashion industry. However I wanted to graduate with a stable degree that would ensure a job allowing me to pursue other hobbies on the side. And I guess the reason I chose marketing within the business school is because it’s the most creative and definitely relative to the magazine world as well as many jobs in the fashion industry.
When it comes to school I care about my grades etc. but I don’t usually put in more than what is required. At this point in my life, as a senior, I am ready for the next chapter of my life of having a career etc. (although I know I’ll be missing student life once I’m out).
I am from Texas, and I love home as well as Austin, but I am dying to move to New York City where I’ve lived the past two summers while interning. I feel that New York is the best place to pursue a job within fashion and acting….and I just absolutely love the energy (yikes…I said energy) and the feeling of endless opportunity awaiting around every street corner. Cheesy I know, but I just loveee it. I would also really like to move to Spain for a year after school so that I can become fluent in Spanish (the language I took in high school and a bit in college) as well as so that I can travel before I settle down in a job.
I want to have a job that I love, I want to be able to support myself and not have to rely on anyone else. I can’t sit at a desk all day, I want to be running around meeting with people. I want to have a job that I feel like is having a positive impact on others, and that is “in the know” of what’s going on in the world. I love traveling and it would be wonderful if my job entailed it.
More interests/personality…..Along with traveling, I am really interested in other cultures and want to learn about them and experience them as much as possible. I really enjoy reading and am currently in a Dostoevsky course at UT which might be my favorite course to date. As far as fashion goes, I don’t want to sound like a ditzy girl who “loves fashion and clothes,” but more so that I really do believe in the industry and its artistic nature as well as the incredible impact it has on people of any background.
I am a people person and enjoy hanging out with my friends and am always up for exploring a new restaurant or new indie film. I really enjoy wearing fashionable clothing but do NOT like to shop. I am on a student budget so I love finding great buys as well as activities around Austin that do not require spending.
Well, I feel as though I have rambled sufficiently about myself. But you know what they say, that people love talking about themselves more than anything else.
I think that a marketer could look at rambling like this and definitely develop a persona. From this information one could come up with specific questions to ask that align with the research goal.

Design Philosophy

This first blog post got me thinking about the way design truly impacts all aspects of our life. As consumers we look for the most efficient as well as the most aesthetically pleasing options. Being consumers ourselves gives us the advantage as business students of knowing how consumers operate and what they are looking for in products. Our challenge is to create the unknown and to think outside of the constraining box of the norm. Designers must constantly be thinking ahead whether it is in marketing, products, interiors, or fashion.
I really enjoyed reading and learning about the designers that Jeff Mulhausen discussed. Specifically, I was interested in Charles and Ray Eames because I had seen their work at the Museum of Modern Art over the summer while I lived in New York City. In order to better understand their design philosophy, I researched them further and was very intrigued by their “banana leaf parable” explaining how a banana leaf is the most basic eating dish in India and how this demonstrates man’s ability to transform an unsophisticated object into a functioning entity. I love this mantra and believe it to be incredibly relevant to our role as marketing majors to see products in a new light and creatively present our useful discoveries to consumers.
The past two summers I have constantly been surrounded by design philosophy while interning at Teen Vogue and assisting in the launch of Lonny, an online interior decorating magazine. Design philosophy is utilized not only in the marketing of the magazines themselves, but also in the layouts and presentations of the clothing and furniture within the magazines. In the magazine industry is it imperative to know your target market so that you are constantly creating and innovating to please your consumers and to maintain their interest.
Recognizing the market for a new interior decorating magazine after Domino folded, as well as noting the future in online magazines, Michelle Adams, a former Domino editor, created Lonny as a consumer-friendly online publication. Like the music industry, the magazine and print world in general is drastically changing. Sadly, less and less people are moving away from print and exclusively to reading online publications. Many magazines are going under and therefore the market for online magazines, newspapers, etc. is greatly increasing. Since Michelle launched Lonny, she has gained a ton of support from many well-known and respected interior decorators as well as former Domino editors. She is an incredible person and a great role model who recognized an opportunity and pursued it with enthusiasm and motivation.