At the very core of our social media strategy is an appreciation of, and respect for, our customer. We provide value that goes beyond our product offering and gets to the heart and soul of our brand. On Instagram, this means visual storytelling that is intended to engage and entice, creating a lens through which our followers can live the Anthropologie lifestyle.
We believe that a successful strategy involves a careful balance of proactive and reactive content. In addition to planned posts—anything from a behind-the-scenes glimpse to a seasonal contest—we intentionally leave room for serendipitous moments in which we can share a spectacular photo, #regram or sentiment with our customer.
In 2014, our Instagram feed generated +99% year-over-year audience growth and +122% growth in engagement. To us, this is demonstrative of a loyal audience charmed by the high quality of our messaging. By remaining nimble and responsive to customers' needs, we create an organic feel to our social presence with content that is timely, genuine and engaging.
Our aim is to create content that dovetails seamlessly with our business goals and customers' interests. To that end, we are constantly seeking new and exciting ways in which we can generate interest among brand fans old and new.
Each of the strategies below have been pivotal to our growth, and are united by a common thread: their success has largely depended on enthusiastic participation from our followers. Judging by the overwhelming response we've received to these initiatives—and the respective uptick in followers—we believe we have developed a strategy both created for, and driven by, our customer.
Your #Anthropologie Gallery
In May 2014 we began incorporating customer Instagram content tagged with #Anthropologie across our website, allowing our customer to play an important role in the styling and merchandising of our digital storefront. We encourage her to share how she styles her Anthropologie products through calls-to-action in our catalogs, emails, store windows, fitting room signage and social media posts. This omni-channel approach pays dividends in terms of the quantity and quality of UGC collected, and helps us build a more engaged community. To date, there have been over 306,000 uses of the #Anthropologie hashtag and, as a result, we continue to see exponentially higher conversion rates among customers who interact with these images onsite.
We adopted the same strategy in folding UGC into our editorial content. Every Friday, we share a fun recipe or cocktail on our blog to kick off the weekend. In August 2014, however, we turned the tables and asked our audience to show us their favorite summer sips on Instagram using the #Anthropologie hashtag. After reviewing many remarkably high-quality submissions, we selected an eclectic mix of potables to feature on the blog—and promote on Instagram—while crediting the respective users and encouraging readers to try one for themselves.
Campaigns & Contests
One of the most exciting things we're able to do on Instagram is host fun contests that celebrate our followers' creativity and love for the brand. This past fall, we held our first two Instagram casting calls for our fall and holiday fashion shows, asking users to don their Anthropologie best and submit snaps using the hashtag #AnthroOpenCall. We received hundreds of submissions and were able to develop a personal relationship with winning entrants while treating them to an insider evening of Anthropologie style.
More recently, our #DearAnthro campaign successfully cut through the promotional noise of the bustling holiday season. Over the course of 12 days in December, we asked followers to tweet or Instagram their Anthropologie wants and wishes with the hashtags #DearAnthro and #Anthropologie for a chance to win their favorites. The campaign generated over 3,400 unique entrants, and millions of potential impressions among their respective followers. In addition to posting reminders throughout the course of the contest, we also incorporated #regrams from winners whose enthusiasm and love for Anthropologie shined through their snaps. We gifted everything from cozy new cardigans to a hand-carved, sheepskin rocking horse, and were ultimately able to foster goodwill and holiday cheer among our 1.2 million Instagram followers.
Like2Buy
In September 2014 we were excited to become the first URBN-owned brand to partner with Like2Buy. This third-party platform, aimed at converting Instagram traffic to revenue, enables our Instagram feed to be instantly shoppable, thanks to a fluid interchange between the platform and our e-commerce site.
Third-Party Partnerships
Some of our most successful social media moments were developed in conjunction with third-party partners. Content that we create with select style influencers greatly helps us extend our reach, as they often have large followings themselves.
In May 2014, we created a 'shoesletter'—an email sent to our subscriber list featuring Instagram snaps from Anthropologie enthusiasts wearing sandals and heels from our current assortment. The women profiled—some of our most loyal brand fans—shared the images on their own feeds to further increase our digital footprint.
We have found these partnerships to be mutually beneficial in that both parties see an increase in visibility and are able to integrate new community members into their respective folds. Our shoesletter email alone generated millions of impressions on the #Anthropologie hashtag and of the 11 styles featured, six beat their digital sales projections for the week.
