5 Marketing Approaches To Look Out For In 2013

Print : The rise of the luxury magazine

With handheld devices driving a new industry in published content, you’d think it would be bad news for the printed magazine. But at TFOL we think that with continued experimentation and innovative finishes with print techniques and the ability to order lower print runs we will see more quality, niche magazines (such as PORT and The Gentlewoman). With the Olympics and knighting of Sir Bradley there will be a further rise in the cycling trend. One magazine that can cash in on this will be Rouleur, the specialist cycling magazine.

 

Integrated digital : Social Commerce for the Luxury sector

For some time now consumers have been able to shop directly from a social network, such as Facebook . And with the offering of product exclusives, luxury brands have been able to maintain their premium promise. When Chanel were launching their new lipstick line, to reward their loyal Facebook fans, they opened up a popup shop on Facebook where you could purchase the lipstick ahead of the main launch. However now with the increase of mobile commerce and more interactive in-store experiences (interactive mirrors) such as those seen in Selfridges and Burberry, consumers can instantly share their experiences instore with their social communities, bringing offline and online communities ever closer.

 

Events : The rise of experiential luxury

As Nathalie Remy partner at McKinsey & Co, commented at the Luxury Marketing Council, “Experience matters more and more. Respondents are ready to buy fewer goods to have better experiences,”. In a time when a self proclaimed luxury T-shirt is competing in multiplied marketing channels with a hand made watch, demonstrating quality has never been more important. Brands need to tap into the ‘experience’ factor, either by opening their own hotels (as fashion brands Versace, Bvlgari and Missoni have done) and spas (such as the Dior Institut in Paris, below), or creating events that are relevant.

 

Content : Bigger commitment to branded content.

For too long brands have struggled to see the value of the soft sell. Whether mainstream or premium, brands have only just started to cotton onto the idea of selling the brand with strong messages and collaborations. Great story telling and branded content allows the luxury brand to be seen as individual and confident, sharing the dream of the brand, not aggressively just pushing the product. The best content creators show a commitment to the very highest quality storytelling and production. One brand that has been doing a good job of this is Dunhill and their brilliantly understated approach to their Day8 campaign, most recently their ‘For The Love’ film for Channel 4.

 

Augmented experiences :

The use of AE as a marketing tool has quietened down in recent years partly perhaps because in the app format it does not always seem that cost effective. However with Google’s Project Glass we might start to see new creative ways to utilise this technology. In November 2012, Google Project Glass received recognition by Time Magazine as one of the “Best Inventions of the Year 2012” and has already been used at designer Diane von Furstenberg‘s spring 2012 fashion at New York Fashion Week, models wore Google Glasses down the runway, filming the audience. Google have already been working on putting displays into contact lenses. How this might be used in the future will be interesting, from windscreen display to ‘information windows’ in the home.