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Marketing is a key driver of fast fashion, creating the desire for consumption of new designs as close as possible to the point of creation.

In recent years, fast fashion retailers have taken a new approach to reaching consumers. Initially, social media’s sole purpose was to act as a platform allowing people to connect with other users worldwide. However, social media has become a way for retailers to promote their products and impact consumer behavior. Now, consumers are able to look at products and businesses on social media before heading to a store or going online to make a purchase. 

Additionally, consumers can read real customer reviews on different social media accounts to get a better idea of the quality of the products as well as the customer service. Fast fashion retailers were quick to jump on the trend. Fast fashion retailers like Boohoo.com realized that social media advertisements could be a great way to reach their target audience, young girls. Such users were swarmed with fast fashion advertisements each time they opened Instagram. Companies like Boohoo hoped that the constant exposure to their products would influence users to not only visit their website, but also to buy clothing from them. 

Instead of posting pre-made ads on their accounts, fast fashion retailers realized that an effective way to advertise could be to use social media influencers. Social media influencers can be defined as “regular” individuals who have accrued a large number of followers across multiple social media platforms as a result of the content they post. 

For the most part, influencers focus their content on one subject area, like food or fashion and have become their own kind of “internet celebrities” whom followers value and whose opinions they trust. As a result, when social media influencers post content wearing an outfit from Shein, their followers may feel compelled to purchase clothing from that retailer too. Studies have shown that there is a correlation between following social media influencers and shopping more frequently. Even though some fast fashion retailers still have “celebrity ambassadors”, many retailers have turned to social media influencers to promote their clothing. 

The world saw a surge in these social media marketing practices during the coronavirus pandemic. Shein quickly took center stage across numerous social media platforms. Social media users, specifically young women, could not go online without seeing something from this fast fashion website, and “Shein hauls” became one of the most popular trends on TikTok, with 4.7 billion views as of March 2022.

Haul videos consist of individuals recording themselves showing items they purchased (typically a large quantity) and posting the video on platforms like YouTube or TikTok. Amid a global pandemic, these billions of views allowed Shein to bring in about $10 billion in revenue that year.

 

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