“With the rise of the millennial generation and their self-selecting predilections, customization has become the must-have trend,” says Executive Producer of Fashion Week Los Angeles,” Christina Ianuzzi. “No longer willing to simply accept the options offered to them, they are looking for something that speaks to their personality rather than just their functional needs.”
In order to placate this extremely important generation, fashion companies are feeling the urge To gain a better understanding of their customer bases shopping habits, they are now tracking how long people are spending looking at particular pieces, what they’re doing online, and offering more information about their products fits, manufacturing, and fabrics.
By collecting data, these companies now have a greater understanding of their customer-archetypes.
Fashion companies are conducting rigorous research on rival companies. Previously, such information was largely private. Along with the digitalization of almost everything, comes accessibility of information about the ways that companies relate to their targeted audience.
Companies such as BuzzSumo allow people to track the metrics of publications and blogs. This is allowing fashion companies to better customize media pitches.
With the current rise of retargeting that allows companies to collect data on what consumers are looking for on the Web and then target those consumers with ads, companies are narrowing their advertising focus onto those most likely to convert.
“Applying the retargeting method, rather than implementing the catchall method, is allowing for brands to reduce their marketing expenses while simultaneously expanding their sales,” says Ianuzzi. This technique also produces the psychological effect that companies are in fact larger than they are, leading their consumers to assume that the companies are more “legitimate.”
The proliferation of data about consumers is allowing for an entrepreneurial golden age with companies now being able to more strategically apply their dollar to their communication and business goals. Those who are most able to interpret and apply this data will become the next industry leaders, and those who don’t will likely find themselves the new Myspace of their generation.
