The landscape of influencer marketing has been continuously evolving and has become the preferred way of establishing and growing brands. In a recent study, 94% of digital marketers found influencer marketing to be highly effective as it can generate eleven times as much ROI as traditional forms of marketing.
Not surprisingly, another 2018 Linqia study shows 39% of digital marketers are looking to increase the budget allocation for influencer marketing with a majority of them spending up to $100,000 for one program.
Fashion Nova’s success story is a validation of the power of influencer marketing.
Fashion Nova influencer marketing success story
The California based fashion brand has enjoyed phenomenal growth in five years of its inception to become an internet sensation.
The brand has more than 14 million Instagram followers currently. As per the 2017 Google report, Fashion Nova alongside other big names like Gucci, Chanel and Louis Vuitton was one of the top searched brands. The success of Fashion Nova is even more amazing since the brand did not use SEO tactics, magazine placements, traditional campaigns or runway shows, according to its CEO and founder Richard Saghian.
The accessories, beauty and apparel business was born in 2006 with the very first store in Panorama City’s Panorama Mall in California. It was later in 2013 that he noticed the online presence of his competitors who were able to push their products at a higher price range. The germ of an e-commerce idea was born at this time, but Saghian also began thinking about ways to direct people to the website. He zeroed in on Instagram where most of his existing shoppers were already posting selfies wearing Fashion Nova’s clothes. Having made the smart choice of using these customers to promote his brand for a free product in exchange, Saghian sold everything within the first week of going live with his website in 2013!
As Fashion Nova grew, Saghian added celebrities as influencers on Instagram. Celebrities like Cardi B were paid $20,000 per month to wear Fashion Nova and promote it to her 19 million-and-counting- followers while one post on the brand from Kylie Jenner meant a sales figure of $50,000.
Fashion Nova now has 3,000 influencers on Instagram and experienced a 600 percent growth in 2017 thanks to clever influencer marketing!
What makes Fashion Nova different from others?
As Saghian says in an interview, although he planned on opening hundred retail stores all over the U.S. initially, he later realized focusing on online sales is a much more effective strategy. This would help the brand reach more countries across the world rather than being limited to brick and mortar stores in the U.S.
Fashion Nova speaks directly to an urban audience that has an extensive reach over social media, and this is where the brand scores over its competitors.
Although the brand uses celebrities as influencers, Saghian also believes every customer is an influencer and focusing on each one of them is the brand’s secret success formula!
The brand posts at 30-minute intervals on Instagram every day, all day and talks directly to its customers in the age group of 16 to 35 using a language and tone that resonates with them. When Millenials wear one of its products and tag others on Instagram, they are honored with a #NovaStars or #NovaBabes title!
Customer care staff always end their response for Instagram queries with a double heart or “love” emoji. By following, liking and commenting on every post of their customers, the brand has continued to build strong and long-lasting connections with their influencers.
You can build your brand by using highly effective influencer platforms like iFluenz.com who can help you find the right influencers for your products.