How an Influencer Marketing campaign helped an e-commerce site "get noticed" and see a 57% increase in sales
In an increasingly competitive retail environment, Shoe Mart is one of the largest footwear and accessories retail chains in the Middle East region and is widely popular as a family destination store of choice for shoes and accessories.
With the UAE retail market in 2016 valued at an estimated $53.7 billion, competition is fierce, and gaining or for that matter sustaining market share is a constant battle.
With this in mind, ShoeMart’s adopted the aggressive approach and aimed to target a new set of audiences – the millennials, with its 2016 Autumn Winter collection launch.
The A/W launch season is one of the busiest periods for the fashion industry and Matrix PR was tasked with conceptualizing a campaign that would not only attract and connect with the younger audiences but at the same time preserve the positioning of the brand as a family footwear destination.
Find the right idea, approach and mechanism to drive traffic to the ShoeMart website and highlight the brand’s new trendy offerings and unique designs specially crafted for the younger audience.
Breaking through the clutter and standing out among competitors during the A/W season
Identifying and deploying new methods of reaching out and engaging with new audiences
The need for newer and interactive methods to get our audience to participate in our communication outreach
Reaching out to a new target audience without alienating the brand’s discerning customers who are predominantly families
It is no secret or revelation that millennials are identified by their tech-savviness and online following.
With internet penetration at a phenomenal 187% in the UAE with 17.9 million mobile connections, and 65% of users making an online purchase every 30 days, the writing was on the wall.
The target audience was already online – all that was required was to find a way to reach them.
The strategy was to create an online campaign with a dedicated hashtag, reaching out to well-known online influencers and creating an experience that would accentuate the various elements of the new collection.
Influencer Collaborations
Dedicated Hashtag
Selection of Venue
In order to set the tone and scene, choosing the right location was key. With a harmonious blend of Parisian café and Provençal bistro, Aubaine located in The Dubai Mall provided the ideal venue- it was also a strategic choice as it is located 500 metres away from the Shoe Mart store at the mall. A laid-back atmosphere and aesthetic décor set the perfect mood and served as an excellent backdrop for the cameras.
To create the perfect experience for the influencers and bloggers, the designers who were the brainchild behind the new collection were put forth as the primary spokespersons, a gesture that was well appreciated and markedly contributed to the overall success of the event.
Compared to last year the e-commerce (www.shoemartstores.com) revenues increased by 57% in the 3 weeks following the event with an Average order value growth of 42% in comparison to last year
42 bloggers generated 21,730 user generated likes on Instagram
Traffic to the ShoeMart E-commerce site grew by over 35% as compared to the same period the previous year
#GetNoticed helped generate a total of 46,768 new likes across all major platforms. ShoeMart saw a 66.5% increase in engagement rates on Facebook and 156.6% increase on Instagram during the period.
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