3 Fashion Brands Styling Up Their Influencer Marketing Strategies
The fashion industry is immensely saturated, with thousands of brands competing for consumers’ attention. To stand out in the seemingly endless sea of clothes, brands need to leverage fashion influencers. These creators have dedicated audiences, who follow them specifically to stay ahead of the latest trends, discover new must-have items, and find style inspiration.
Leading fashion brands like Abercrombie & Fitch, Princess Polly, and Revolve are leveraging influencer marketing to gain immediate access to their target audience, build brand trust, and drive viral sales for their business.
In Part 2 of our blog series, we’re breaking down how these brands leverage creators to drive growth for their businesses. If you missed Part 1, click here to learn influencer marketing best practices for fashion brands. Otherwise, let’s get started.
Abercrombie & Fitch
Over the last few years, Abercrombie & Fitch has overhauled their entire brand strategy, focusing on more inclusivity and diversity not only in its sizing and products, but also its ad campaigns. Much of its revamped marketing strategy focuses on influencer marketing — and it’s paying off. This past year, Abercrombie’s stock grew by over 285% year-over-year and the brand reported “decade-high” first quarter net sales and increased its outlook for 2024.
So, how exactly is Abercrombie working with influencers?
- Evolving definition of “influence”: At Abercrombie, anyone can be an “influencer.” They work with creators who create all kinds of content, from fashion to sports, even featuring its retail store associates and corporate employees in their social content. Megan Brophy, VP of Brand Marketing at Abercrombie & Fitch, told Modern Retail, “At the end of the day, we’re all humans, we all have influence and we all consume. So it’s really about creating some content that resonates.”
- Creative freedom: Abercrombie provides influencers with a few talking points, but the brand’s control over their content stops there, according to Brophy. With loose guidelines, creators are free to create authentic, on-brand content that they know will resonate with their audience, leading to higher engagement and more conversions down the line. Take a look at how Dana Rose, who typically creates lifestyle content, seamlessly incorporated Abercrombie into her day-in-the-life vlog.
- Community building initiatives: Just 3 months ago, the retailer launched The Abercrombie Creator Suite, where creators can complete challenges and unlock exclusive perks, gifted products, and campaign opportunities, all while earning commission. Through this community program, Abercrombie can reward its biggest fans and deepen its creator relationships, ultimately boosting brand loyalty.
Princess Polly
First launching in the Australian Gold Coast, Princess Polly is now a leading fashion retailer with a global presence, particularly gaining quick popularity in the US. In fact, the US market accounts for 60% of the brand’s total net sales. In September, Princess Polly also opened its first brick-and-mortar store in Los Angeles, with 30% of in-store customers being new to the brand, providing a significant runway for potential growth in the future.
The global takeover of Princess Polly can be attributed to the brand’s influencer marketing initiatives.
- A focus on try-on hauls: A quick search of “Princess Polly haul” on YouTube will result in thousands of videos from creators trying on the retailer’s trendy clothes. While some of these are organic content, the brand also works with hundreds of Gen Z micro- and mid-tier influencers across YouTube and TikTok, who post try-on hauls that show off the newest Princess Polly items they now have in their closet. These hauls provide consumers with real examples of how Princess Polly’s clothes fit and look on different body types, massively impacting purchasing decisions.
- Affiliate marketing: Princess Polly’s Affiliate Program gives each creator a unique affiliate discount code to share with their audiences, from which they can earn a commission for every sale they drive. This strategy is a win-win for all parties involved. Affiliates have the incentive of revenue sharing to create more content around the brand, and Princess Polly reaps the benefits of increased awareness, traffic, and sales. As a bonus, With the code, influencers’ dedicated audiences can save on their orders, while also supporting their favorite content creators.
- UGC everywhere: Understanding the power of user-generated content (UGC), Princess Polly repurposes content from their customers and creators across various channels, including their organic social media accounts, website, and email marketing. By leveraging UGC, Princess Polly creates a sense of FOMO, driving those considering buying from the retailer to do so right away.
Revolve
Fashion retailer Revolve is a trailblazing icon in the world of influencer marketing. Since the early days of Revolve, the team has leaned heavily into unique influencer activations, from exclusive events to extravagant influencer trips. This strategy has allowed the brand to continuously climb the charts, outperforming industry averages in every sense — from average order value to net sales.
What’s the secret?
- Memorable influencer activations: Revolve has always gone beyond the standard #ad, instead pioneering practices such as influencer trips. While Revolve’s Chief Brand Officer Raissa Gerona said the brand is deprioritizing influencer trips, the brand is still providing meaningful experiences for their creator partners. From Revolve Festival to its recent Revolve x FWRD pop-up in Aspen, the brand frequently invites influencers to take part in major brand moments, strengthening their creator relationships and providing the perfect camera-ready backdrop for influencers to shoot content while strutting around in Revolve’s clothes.
- Influencer co-creation: For years, Revolve has co-created entire collections with a few special influencer partners, with each piece in the collection carefully curated by the creator. Of the most notable influencer-led collection is the REMI x REVOLVE collection with Remi Bader, a TikTok creator (2.3 million followers) and curve model, who consulted with the brand after getting feedback from her audience. Its first extended-size collection comes after years of consumers — including Remi herself — calling out the brand for neglecting plus-sized women and women of color in its fashion campaigns. The REMI x REVOLVE collection was so successful that the brand launched a second collection with the content creator.
Fashion creators are your key to success
Influencer marketing’s significant impact on the fashion industry is evident in the success stories of brands like Abercrombie & Fitch, Princess Polly, and Revolve. Utilizing strategies such as influencer-affiliate marketing and co-branded collections, leading brands have leveraged influencer partnerships to drive growth and redefine industry standards. Follow in their footsteps to achieve your own brand success.
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