As fashion brand digital directors scrutinize their social media impact for what seems to have been an endless global Fashion Week the past month, I challenged myself to come up with novel social media insights prisms using the enterprise social intelligence platform NetBase.
For this fashion media enthusiast and social media analyst, fashion's rich global content, when analyzed through customizable "listening lenses," presents opportunities beyond tracking influence, reach and engagement-to walk the catwalk of data trails of other trending fashion-related topics.
Into the looking glass I went.
Fashion designers are meticulous researchers, known for their keen sixth sense in predicting viable fashion trends, seasons in advance. Inspired by mixed media visual references of all kinds, from classic to pop culture. So, it's no surprise that designers increasingly rely less on actual globetrotting, traveling instead a hybrid inspirational path, prowling social media like Instagram and Tumblr for design stimuli to inspire their "mood boards" and, ultimately, influence their collections.
In addition to visual stimuli, social media conversations, too-sometimes on seemingly incongruous or oblique topics-can potentially resonate with a fashion creative. One way of doing this is to align social metrics, including brand passion metrics-sentiment and passion intensity index-of compatible trending fashion-related topics or other inspirational aesthetic references. This may include anything from social media discussions about film, music, dance or visual art.
For instance, evidence of a nascent social media visually inspired trend was pursued by Marc By Marc Jacobs designers for the brand's launch last year, with visual references riffing skate, BMX and manga culture.
As an example of how social metrics can discern fashion trends, in the NetBase Brand Passion Index chart below, I juxtaposed London Fashion Week's top-trending brand, Burberry, with several fashion topics and concepts I've been following in social media: fashion apps, wearable tech, smart watches, street style, Adidas and athleisure. The NetBase Passion chart produces some interesting insights into how quickly a trend can be detected.
For example, athleisure, a barely discernable concept blip earlier this year, clearly not yet a branded fashion concept and perhaps grossly underrated by the fashion powers that be, shows up in the hate quadrant of the Passion Intensity Index.
Within three months, fueled by such collaborations as Adidas x Kanye Yeezy Boost and soon Beyonce for Topshop, athleisure has climbed into the love quadrant with a high net sentiment. The trend was confirmed at the recent Magic Market fashion trade show, where athleisure brands were for the first time significantly represented.
Prior to the acceptance of athleisure as a fashion concept, Hip Hop had mainstreamed into menswear and onto the Fashion Week catwalk. More recently, the influence of rap icons such as Raekwon and Kanye West on street fashion and the runway has fueled a growing demand for luxury fashionable leisure wear, assimilated in recent men's and women's designer collections.
While Kanye West and Adidas stole New York Fashion Week in social media, Burberry dominated the London Show. Burberry's consistently high sentiment and passion intensity status are attributed not only to its show-stopping design language, but also to the brand's ongoing commitment to exquisite design and digital innovation. Social media fashionistas in New York and London were as equally fascinated by the street-style action outside as they were by Burberry's updated, albeit significantly more pricey, renditions of 70s hippie runway fashion.
I must admit, it's easy to fall down the rabbit-hole of fashion social media research, given the rich panoply of brand content. However, the risk of tripping on the catwalk data trail is abundantly diminished in the context of a high recall and precision NLP platform like NetBase.
As an example, the six-month Timeline Comparison below crescendos during London Fashion week, revealing potential impressions volumes for trending fashion-related topics. The Adidas x Kanye social media impact carried over from NYFW, peaking during London Fashion Week, second only to Burberry.
Another NetBase application observation is the emerging trend and steady growth in style and fashion apps. While last year saw the heavy backing of Instagram-like fashion app Spring, curated fashion platform FarFetch is an early darling so far this year, recently raising $86 million valuing the company at an unprecedented $1 billion. Whether you're looking for designer style advice or where to find a number you saw on Instagram, the app exists, leaving little doubt that fashion commerce on the go is a huge investment growth frontier.
So, before you trip on the Jabberwocky's tail and stumble into the looking glass, you might want to consider the catwalk data trail of social media. It's a no-nonsense play for sure.