Fashion2.0: How Social Media to revolutionize Fashion Industry.

I happened to come across this article on the Forbes which particularly picked my interest for 2 main reasons:

1.     It had the magical words "social media"

2.     The Content had something that I and my colleague Vikram had been discussing lately – Taking Fashion Industry on the Social Media.

Whether you are interested in fashion or not, it is difficult to escape the constant onslaught of information on the latest fashions and trends that we receive through social media and the internet. This is a fact that none of us would deny. Considering the quantum of information one gets to see on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube the fashion Industry is definitely becoming accessible to the general public or should I say reaching a larger group of people.

 The beauty of this initiative of taking fashion industry on the Social Media is that one gets to see all sorts of opinions and dialog on a fashion trend or outfit rather than the traditional one way opinion of the designer. Just like in any other industry Social Media once again proves that would help bridge the buyer-seller relationship with its multi dimensional communication channel.  It also makes it evident that, in this era of the social media, fashion designers and retailers are no longer operating in an ivory tower or for solely the red carpet. Because of the close relationships they now have with customers on social networking sites, many have adopted an "ask and ye shall receive" policy.

As quoted in the Forbes article it’s undoubting that Social Media would the next big muse of the Fashion Industry and its here to stay for quite some time.

Just recently there has been a rush of retailers advertising & setting up programs to help gather customer feedback on the fashions and trends for the season ahead including Debenhams, ASOS, Calvin Klein and likes. This show much customer sentiments matter to the fashion designers and fashion brands. Now just imagine the same in case of private fashion boutique owners who have selected and limited customers. One bad design might just cost them a loyal customer... forever!

Yet another interesting website that I came across is www.jooraccess.com. Started by a Mona Bijoor who is a seasoned brand consultant for the fashion industry. Joor basically is a network that makes it easier for brands and boutique owners to connect and conduct business with their customers in an interactive and collaborative manner. It can be called as the Facebook of Fashion world in lay definition. This again shows how Social Media can play a vital role in the Fashion Industry.

Now considering all this above gyaan and cases on how Social Media can benefit the Fashion Industry, I don’t really know if this liberalization or the democratization of the fashion world by the social media good or bad as I’m not really a fashion expert. This is something that time shall tell us. But from a lay man’s perspective any creation created in an collaborative environment has always been a masterpiece. Hopefully such would also be the case in Social Media Fashion.

... and let the Games begin! **Roll Drums & sounds of Bugle**

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Be there for some action packed good Cricket!

FACE-the-BOOK: How Social Media can help writers and authors

Authors from all round the world are now turning to social media for their book marketing and promotion. Through social media they can connect with their consumers and generate potential consumers in a way that was not possible a decade ago. In addition, the reach and nature of social media makes it easier for consumers to discover, recommend and get feedback on the books that interest them.

The following strategies have been used effectively and can be used for making a book go viral:

1) Engage readers by creating a page on Facebook : The main aim here is to present a community site on the largest social networking community on the planet that would engage and then share. A certain reader base can be effectively built by giving away first few chapters of the book free. It provides a lucrative incentive for the consumers to ‘like’ the page and then share it making the book go viral. Guy Kawasaki did so with his book ‘Enchantment’ which helped him to grow his existing fan base. New authors such as Amish Tripathi (author of best seller “The Immortals of Meluha” & “The Secret of Nagas”) used similar strategy to provide an online flavor of his book and generate interest among people.

2) Bring readers on a common platform: An author can create his own social community or social networking site where members could interact with each other, share their feedback over the book and also get exclusive content related to the book. Seth Godin, a leading blogger, did so by creating an on online community, triiibes.com, on the lines of his book “The Tribe” which passed the correct message of what the book is all about.

3) Provide visual-aid through YouTube: Amish Triapthi adopted aggressive marketing for his book with the help of his musician friend launched a live-action trailor film on YouTube and built a community around it to tap in the readers' response. The video captured the consumer senses and took them through a roller-coaster ride helping them to visualize the subject of the book. The book became No. 1 best-seller within 2 weeks of its launch.

4) Identify and generate potential readers’ interest: Micro-blogging mediums such as Twitter and Tumblr can be effectively used to ask questions that stimulates discussion about the book. Twitter #hashtags can be used when discussing the book and its topics and encourage people to add the book to their LinkedIn Amazon Reading List. Online book communities such as GoodReads can visited where people regularly recommend books to others.

5) Promotion through contests and quizzes: A fun ad friendly contest can do wonders for your book and generates tremendous excitement among people for your book. Numerous authors have done so on Facebook, MySpace etc. A leading example was the launch of a photo contest on Facebook by author Michael Stelzner where people had to come up with creative photos with words “Help me Launch” and this created a viral storm about his book “Launch”.

These are some of the strategies that can be pursued but this is no way an exhaustive list. What are your views on suggestions on using similar techniques in launching and promoting a book?

About the author

Dr. Sumeet Kad is a Marketing and Business Strategy professional with over 4 years of experience in Healthcare/Life Sciences & FMCG sector. He is an avid reader, irregular blogger and a gadget freak. He blogs at www.newagemarketing.wordpress.com and has co-authored a book based on it. He can also be followed on Twitter @sumeetkad.