Wowza. This is a new conceptual boutique Dwell blogged about in Hollywood. Apparently it's a mix of retail and design commune with everything handmade by local artists with the exception of Mission Bicycles, from SF. Seemed pretty cool, so I skipped on over to check out the website, which is crazy. Can't say I like it, but it's definitely worth a look.
What interests me about this is how they've rearranged the rules of retail. They're still selling product, and not on the cheap either (silkscreened shirts start at $85). But they've also made an environment with a strong guiding mantra, and unique POV. Always inspired to apply some of this broad thinking to our little corner of the mall.
This summer, AE started the "Live in these jeans" campaign, complete with facebook-posted video and jeans giveaway sweepstakes. I think they made an interesting video depicting their vision of AE values and young lifestyle personality. I think PacSun will have a lot more to offer than people falling though the air and girls posing on male models, but it's a little food for thought.
Yes, that's the correct term nowadays, isn't it? " "Viral" "? Not that there's a checklist for how to make branded video that people love and rapidly share, but if there were... it might look something like these keen recommendations from Mashable.
Read in the spirit of having fun and getting the most, for the least.
Earlier in our branding exploration we were tossing around the importance of creating a PacSun initiative that our Millennial customers could get behind. While we haven't acted on it yet, Edleman recently published a study indicating that "taking action on behalf of brands" is part of Millennials' (born 1980-1995) core values. "Taking action" includes sharing brand experiences with others, joining online communities, and posting reviews online. According to the study, more than 8 in 10 have acted on behalf of a brand they support. Here are the study's key findings:
Brand relationships are a form of self expression: Brand preference ranks with religion and ethnicity as top personal identifiers that 8095ers are willing to share about themselves online.
Information is a key to influence: In addition to 8095ers that use four or more sources of information to help them make brand purchase decisions, thirty-one percent use seven or more sources of information.
Taking action on behalf of brands is a core value: Fifty-seven percent of 8095ers would volunteer to try new products from a preferred brand and most would post an online review of the experience.
Reverberation is online, offline and increasingly mobile: For those brands that Millennials love, 68 percent have recommended their products to friends and family and 44 percent have friended/followed that brand on their social network
I wonder, in the ever-evolving brandscape, what acting in support of a brand can mean in a myriad of ways. What about sponsor or partnerships? For example, I love Tour de Fat, I've been in San Francisco, I'll go in LA. I love bikes and I love festivals. But, as the Tour is sponsored and promoted by New Belgium, does it also mean that I'm acting on behalf of the brand? How conscious of our "brand actions" do we need to be in order for it to count in a study? Does it help or hurt the brand when people are lured to support something they're not aware of? Well, I don't think Edleman answers these questions, but there's more information about the study here.
A lot of savvy musicians [art/entertainment brands] are great with connecting to their fans and making them feel, if not directly including them, connected to the music. I love how artists are using social media to really bring a community together instead of letting everyone get sucked into their little niche tunnels. Here's a piece by an artist named Sophie Madeleine, a cute ukulele/vocalist/songwriter. Apparently she asked her fans to record a video singing and playing her song, "You Are My Favourite". She got some great responses back and ended up making the compilation into her music video. I heard about it through an excited tumblr account. Obviously the fans are thrilled to be a part of this project, and she's offering exclusive downloads to benefit charity.
Another online community building GENIUS, Ze Frank, has long built his brand on fan involvement, or "Speed Racers". While the group was always egging him on and simultaneously inspiring his profound antics, lately he's taken a more empathetic route to understanding his fan base by responding directly to requests that touch his heart and using the support of the community to create something special for that person. Check out the "Chill Out Song" he wrote for a distressed Laura. It's amazing how loyal people are to him, but it makes sense because he's genuinely interesting and compassionate.
And of course, I need not praise the virtues of the Old Spice ads, when it comes to getting fans all hot and bothered.
What if PacSun, inspiring creation and self discovery, did something similar for their fans? I think the point here is that great brands have people who love them. And great brands know how to love back.
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