Social Media Case Study: Armani Exchange #DressedFor

How did the Armani Exchange #DressedFor campaign generate buzz, engagement and a lot of publicity for the brand?

The Armani Exchange #DressedFor campaign was designed to reach out to consumers, influencers and bloggers and encourage them to use the #DressedFor hashtag on Instagram and leverage the power of the photo-sharing network.

Though the campaign was launched in November, 2012, data gathered using Fashionbi – the world leader in Digital Marketing Optimization for the fashion industry – has shown that the campaign continues to generate engagement, with over 340 Instagram users sharing images with the #DressedFor hashtag in June alone, seven months after the campaign was launched.

Fashionbi also found that more common hashtags such as #night and #summer were used in conjunction with the #DressedFor hashtag, which led to even greater exposure.

Finally, after the campaign was initiated, the marketing team behind #DressedFor reached out to influential bloggers and Instagram users in the fashion world in order to expand their reach even further.

So what can marketers take away from the Armani Exchange #DressedFor campaign?

Customize Your Campaign

It might have been easier to get people talking with hashtags like #summer, but there would be no way of knowing whether or not a conversation originated due to the exposure of the campaign.

By creating a custom hashtag that is instantly recognizable as the backbone of this campaign, Armani Exchange was able to monitor their reach while encouraging users to continue talking about topics they would normally discuss.

Be sure to include some form of customization in order to see the effects of your campaigns, and know where you are successful and where modifications might be needed.

Reach Out to Influencers

This campaign would not have had as much lasting success if it were not for the efforts by Armani Exchange to reach out to influential bloggers and Instagram users in the hopes of extending their reach further.

Influencers-turned-brand advocates are the key to longevity. There is only so much a brand can do on its own. If people are not talking, there is an expiration date on a given campaign. The reason why a campaign such as this can continue to generate conversation months after it was launched was due in large part to the help of industry influencers. (Find out more about influencers in this case study on Kotex.)

Engage Your Users

User-generated content is the second secret (along with influencer-engagement) to a brand’s long-term success on social media.

By reaching out to the community around the brand and giving them a chance to share their content and have it seen by the world, Armani Exchange increased the likelihood of success considerably.

People want to share their content, that is why social media is as popular as it is. Give them a chance to do so and you can rest assured that your brand’s reach and exposure will grow significantly faster than it would have without them.

Special thanks to Fashionbi for their assistance in gathering data and disseminating the information pulled on the Armani Exchange #DressedFor campaign. You can also view this article at the Fashionbi newspaper.

Have you put together any Instagram campaigns? Tell us about them in the comments below or on Twitter!