Product placement in film and television has changed drastically and the demand for these story-driven products is stronger than ever. A recent study by BENLabs found that 46 percent of consumers learned about a product for the first time by seeing it on TV or in movies. The same study found that 75 percent of consumers have searched for a product/brand after seeing it on TV or in a film, and a staggering 57 percent of them go on to purchase it. By definition, film and TV introduce customers to an alternative version of reality. So, …
Vyra Scher: A Startup Entrepreneur Overcoming the Odds
Today’s emerging brand founders face challenges around every corner. Vyra Scher is a transgender woman who faced multiple traumas in founding her startup hosiery and accessories brand, LECHERY. Factor in that she started the brand at the advent of the pandemic with just $800 in her bank account, and you have the origin story of a modern retail legend. Breaking Through You can now find LECHERY hosiery in Macy’s, Target, Nordstrom, Kohl’s, and Saks. Yet Scher will be the first to tell you that she didn’t start her brand in spite of being an …
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What The Taylor Swift Effect Tells Us About Branding
“The T Swift Effect” aka “The Taylor Effect” sounds like a seismic happening. If Taylor Swift has ever held a concert in your town, or if you have a Swiftie in your family, you already know that “seismic happening” is an understatement. “The T Swift Effect” refers to the economic boost in cities where Taylor Swift holds concerts, as well as the significant sales spike of any event or product with which T Swift is peripherally associated. T Swift’s Impact on Peripheral Sales Taylor Swift could give King Midas a run for his money because …
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REI and Dove Are Changing the Next-Gen Social Media Crisis
When did social media stop feeling like an option and start feeling like a responsibility? Few members of Generation Z and Gen Alpha, which include anyone born between 1997 and 2020, know of a life that’s not comprised of juggling multiple screens. A recent Gallup study found that 51 percent of teens average 4.8 hours a day on social media –– and that’s not even adding in their time spent watching television. But the 24/7 connectivity demanded by a life spent on social media can’t be fulfilled without a cost to the mental health of young …
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What Does TikTok Shop Mean for Ecommerce?
Brands currently spend $78.45 billion in video ads each year. The short-form video hosting service, TikTok, is making strides to secure its slice of the pie. This isn’t without irony, as TikTok was founded with the goal of escaping the ad-heavy experience on other platforms. It could be that last month’s TikTok Shop rollout was always planned. Or maybe platform leaders couldn’t resist monetizing the over 60 billion views that the #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt hashtag brings in. Despite the fact that TikTok Shop is an incredibly new feature, and critics …
Online Marketplaces Attract Gen Z
Variety may be the spice of life, but is it the future of online shopping? Signs point to yes: Online retail marketplace sales in the U.S. will grow by 10.2 percent this year to comprise more than a third of total retail e-commerce sales. It makes sense that Gen Z consumers, who prioritize finding the lowest price above all else, are part of the impetus for this shift. Online marketplaces let shoppers compare prices and product components right on the platform, which isn’t something that frugal young consumers can afford to …
Online DTC Sales Way Behind Established Brands
Established brands will comprise 79.4 percent of DTC ecommerce sales this year. And that’s not their only advantage: well-known, legacy brands will also grow nine times faster than digitally native vertical brands. Does this data seem out of place with everything you’ve been reading recently about the low threshold of entering the DTC Shopify ecosystem? Let’s give the issue some context. Shopify hosts 65.4 percent of DTC brands in the U.S., making it the leading platform for DTC businesses. Many of these businesses are SMBs that are …
Three Gen Z Fashion Looks from the Belly of the Beast
Gen Z fashion is a contentious topic. Even the question of whether social media has made Gen Z the most trend-conscious, or the most trend-immune generation, is constantly up for debate. The Zoomer generation’s dedication to uniqueness has made sourcing and selling to them a challenge for so many retailers. Unlike prior younger generations, there are very few clearly defined social cohorts for retailers to market to. There’s no Breakfast Club jock, princess, rebel, geek and outcast trend style happening here. However, there are a few …
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