The Best Luxury Brands On Social Media
The term “luxury” can be speculative, but it covers high end items like haute couture clothing, designer jewellery and watches, expensive cars, yachts, fine wines and prestigious homes and estates. One defining concept behind luxury is exclusivity. This exclusivity is maintained by a high price point along with a limited supply of the item itself. We’ve already got FOMO here at Moondust and we can’t wait to dig into this market. In this article, we’re looking at marketing for the luxury goods market. And we’re looking at 3 luxury brands that are sparkling on social media. Louboutins on, let’s get going!
The Luxury Brand Market In 2021
The luxury market in 2021 is an interesting one. Whilst many sectors have crumbled and brands folded because of covid-19 related lockdowns, the luxury market has not. Whilst growth was predictably slow and even static in some segments, the forecast is positive. There is also less negative financial impact on the core demographic of this sector – very wealthy people!
Claudia D’Arpizio from Bain & Company, the world’s leading advisor to the global luxury goods industry said “It’s clear that consumers still want to buy luxury goods, and this, along with the brands’ ability to adapt and innovate, is driving a return to growth in the market.”
· Comparing the first quarter of 2019 and Q1 of 2021, the market for personal luxury goods grew by 0-1% at current exchange rates. This is unsurprising given the effects of retail lockdowns.
· Revenue in the Luxury Goods market amounts to US$309,550m in 2021. The market is expected to grow annually by 5.44% (CAGR 2021-2025).
· The market's largest segment is the segment Luxury Fashion with a market volume of US$106,850m in 2021.
· Breaking this down by the total population, that’s US$41.19 generated in 2021.
· In the luxury goods market, 12% of revenue will be generated through online sales by 2021.
Marketing for luxury brands tends to focus on… surprise surprise luxury! The techniques used by marketers in these sectors evoke opulence, exclusivity, happiness and success. Let’s look at 3 luxury brands and the techniques they use to build brand awareness and increase sales via social media.
#1 TIFFANY & CO
Synonymous with vintage class, Tiffany & Co. (Tiffany's) is an American luxury jewelers headquartered in New York City.
It sells jewellery, silver, china, crystal, stationery, fragrances, water bottles, watches, personal accessories, and leather goods. However, Tiffany is probably best known for its jewellery, namely diamond rings. Tiffany & Co. was founded in 1837 by the jeweler Charles Lewis Tiffany and became famous in the early 20th century.
Tiffany’s is part of our culture with books, movies, plays, songs and cultural references all relating to the brand. So how is Tiffany’s marketing itself in 2021?
What They Get Right
· How do you maintain your classic vintage vibe whilst also keeping up with trends and appealing to today’s demographic? Like this. We are blown away by this stunning campaign featuring model and dancer Alton Mason. Not only does Alton look great, he also has an interesting history that fits with Tiffany’s. Alton was discovered in 2015 and went on to become the first black male model to walk for Chanel. The first black male model in 108 years of Chanel history! The black and white imagery, #KnotYourTypicalCity hashtag and the elegant flash of diamond jewellery makes this a winner.
· It’s 4th of July and Tiffany’s showcases this American flag brooch on IG. This ruby, sapphire and diamond creation was a vintage item that sold at auction for 20,000 USD in 2009. The point of the post was not to sell jewellery. It was to align the history of Tiffany’s with the history of 4th July in America. Reiterating its classic, elegant past and wholesome values, is a marketing move the brand uses frequently via the Tiffany archives.
- Tiffany’s Facebook posts also lead by example. The brand shows off its jewellery with stunning photography (a must if you’re going high end) and links to the actual jewellery campaign.
· The brand’s video campaign is, as you would expect, classy and high end. Uploaded to YouTube but also embedded in their homepage, the campaign maintains its black and white vibe with an edge storyline. Tiffany’s models are always classic, slightly understated and often wearing plain black dresses or white tshirts. This allows the jewellery to stand out but also maintains class and bypasses fashion trends that come or go.
· And lastly, we’ve said it before and we’ll say it again, don’t dismiss Pinterest as a craft site! Tiffany has 283.8k followers and gets 10m+ monthly views on the site. Its boards are as beautifully curated as its jewellery collections with some noticeable takeaways for marketers. Again, notice the classic black or white clothing, minimalist approach to hair and makeup and all the photos branded in the same way with the logo bottom left.
· Tiffany also takes the time to set itself apart as a diamond expert (which it is) by showing the craftsmanship of a diamond and educating readers on carat, cut, clarity and colour (the 4Cs).
Because of its timeless approach to marketing, we can easily see how Tiffany & Co will be around for years to come.
#2 LOUIS VUITTON
Louis Vuitton (French pronunciation: [lwi vɥitɔ̃]) or by its initials LV, is a French fashion house and luxury goods company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton. Like Tiffany & Co, the brand has evolved over the centuries (yes actually centuries) to appeal to today’s street smart and wealthy clientele. In 2021, the Louis Vuitton brand was valued at 14.86 billion U.S. dollars, in comparison, the brand's valuation was 13.58 billion in 2019.
The brand sells luxury trunks, shoes, watches, jewellery, accessories, sunglasses and books. Louis Vuitton is one of the world's leading international fashion houses so for the purpose of this article we are focusing on clothes.
What They Get Right
· The first thing to note about Louis Vuitton is that the brand’s campaigns and social media posts are incredibly artistic and with 45.2m followers on Instagram (sharp intake of breath!) they have a captive audience.
· Magazine chic meets social media. Remember when you would open a high end fashion magazine or browse fashion adverts whilst aboard a plane? Stroke the glossy pages and picture yourself in a world of high end luxury and elegance? This is the look and feel that Louis Vuitton has crafted for its Instagram account. And aspiration is a large part of luxury brand marketing. We want to be in an exotic location, wearing beautiful clothes and meeting glamorous people.
· The brand’s captions tell the story of the photo making it even more intriguing. This one was based on drawings by Piero Fornasetti linked.
· Often brands collaborate with influencers to raise their own profile but as Louis Vuitton has over 45 million followers, this isn’t the case here. Instead, the collaboration adds elusive and artistic meaning to the fashion collections and its photography. They become a storytelling piece that will appeal to their target audience. And yes, storytelling is a big part of luxury marketing.
The campaign spans across the website, social media and video to emphasise the message and collection.
· Louis Vuitton clothing is available to buy on their website which provides an impressive catalogue of imagery, videos and descriptions. The leggings shown below are over $2,000. Whilst price might not be a barrier to sale, the brands audience will still want to read all about the product prior to purchasing.
· Louis Vuitton also maintains an active blog and online fashion magazine with features on upcoming ranges, campaigns and trends for the season. This is necessary for a luxury fashion brand who are not only selling fashion items but also showcasing catwalk trends and defining what will be hot in the coming months. Being a trend setter keeps Louis Vuitton ahead of other brands.
· With 9 million Twitter followers, Louis Vuitton maintains its branding with chic gifs, a good use of tagging and on brand hashtags.
· But they don’t forget their heritage and are currently celebrating the bicentenary of their visionary! Merging modern tech, streetwise fashions with a timeless history is a skill they have mastered.
· LV has a presence on a range of social media channels including SnapChat which indicates that their audience (or target audience) also features 13 to 29-year olds, which is the apps main user demographic.
#3 BUGATTI
We talked about the best car brands on social media in our recent article. Cars like Audi are certainly the higher end of the market and out of reach price-wise for many people. But now, we’re taking it up a gear by zooming over to Bugatti.
We will ease you in gently by telling you that changing the oil of a Bugatti car often costs upwards of $25,000! The Bugatti Centodieci sells for 8.6 million dollars and that isn’t the top price in their range. So, we are talking high end luxury.
What They Get Right
· By creating limited editions and one-offs, Bugatti adds dollops of exclusivity to their range. La Voiture Noire, beautifully described below is valued at a staggering $18 million USD, claiming the title for the most expensive new car ever made. The owner of the one-off hypercar has yet to be officially revealed but there is speculation that it was bought by former VW Group chairman Ferdinand Piech!
· If you’re going to spend upwards of 2 million dollars on a car, you’re probably a true enthusiast. And Bugatti’s website is the candy store for car enthusiasts. Here you could spend hours browsing all their old models, reading about their history and of course, getting very excited about their new cars. And here’s the marketing takeaway. If you have a rich and impressive history, tell the story, feature your old photos and founders, and immerse your viewers in the wonderful world of motorcars.
· Bugatti has over 14 million followers on Instagram. Of course, most of us are not in the market for one of their cars, but we do contribute to their engagement and fan count. Bugatti’s IG is beautifully curated so fans can easily find the model they want in the highlights.
· Bugatti’s Facebook posts are for real car enthusiasts and so feature the performance and specs of the vehicles. Fans are not interested in captions like “beautiful green car in Milan” they want details. That doesn’t mean the captions are dull however. They stir up excitement whilst also showcasing the knowledge of the carmakers.
- Showcasing your positive PR and awards is a must for luxury, high performance car brands like Bugatti. The brand doesn’t say come and buy our cars. Instead, it says- here’s what industry leaders think of our cars and here’s what people are paying for them. This type of social proof is a powerful marketing tool and makes great reading for genuine Bugatti fans.
· Bugatti’s photography is breathtaking. With each photo emphasising the car from green rolling hills through to a futuristic parking spot like this one. Luxury brands must invest in professional photography, sets, props and videographers. A cheap photo could ultimately damage the brand.
· We didn’t mention LinkedIn yet in this article, but Bugatti and its employees are all there. Featuring job posts, company awards and events, the company nails its professional presence.
· Event photos make great LinkedIn posts for luxury brands. You can also shine a light on your team, designers, offices and partners. Notice the casual (not casual) attention to detail in these collated photos on LinkedIn.
· Bugatti is nailing Twitter too with a good use of brand and event hashtags and the tagging of partners and events. Hashtags are important in social media, but luxury brands tend not to use paragraphs of hashtags in their posts. Perhaps to maintain their minimal exclusivity but also because they don’t want to appear desperate for business.
Here’s what you won’t see in any luxury brand marketing.
· Obvious sales CTAs like “Buy Now”, “Don’t Miss Out!” “Hurry Up!”
· They rarely put prices on their posts. If you have to ask you can’t afford it apparently.
· Off brand campaigns rarely happen in the luxury brand world. Each brand has a clearly defined content and style guide that they stick to. This maintains consistency, exclusivity and helps to preserve the history of the company. It also means instant brand awareness.
· End of season sales are rare with luxury brands. Many designers have publically stated that they destroy clothes and goods rather than discount them or give them away. This is highly controversial but shows how far they will go to prevent cheapening their brand name.
