AI Influencers, Key Opinion Leaders & Spatial Computing | Fashion marketing is changing
This article was originally written by Demi Karanikolaou in Greek for Harper’s Bazaar Greece. You can find it here.
The fashion scene is changing in a rapid manner and it doesn’t take long to notice; Only a few years ago the burgeoning excitement over fashion’s evolution post pandemic, the growing demand for influencer collaborations and the proven resilience of the luxury industry during covid times painted a familiar, happy picture. In 2024 however, uncertainty has reached fashion, in the form of inflation, volatility and weaker consumer confidence. Against this backdrop and trying to strengthen their positioning, brands and executives are introducing changes that are becoming evident across multiple departments of fashion businesses. Fashion marketing and promotion are no exception.
Very few examples could be more publicly prominent, than the fall of fashion’s darling and top influencer: Chiara Ferragni. Trapped in a very public scandal around the customer misinformation she caused, when the Christmas delight her company sold - as part of a brand collaboration, which claimed proceeds would go to a children's hospital. Except, they never did. Ferragni paid with public outrage, a rapid decrease in followers, lost collaborations and contracts, but perhaps most importantly her marriage came to an end. However, Ferragni is only an example of how things are changing. New trends in influencing, brand marketing and overall fashion promotion are now the new guiding light for maisons dreaming of a flourishing future.
The new influencer marketing
Despite its continuous importance in the fashion industry, the industry of influencing and content creation is undergoing a major shift. This does not mean however, that it will be any less relevant: On the contrary, Goldman Sachs predicts that it is expected to approach a whooping half a trillion dollars by 2027. While being such a lucrative industry, influencing has started to become overwhelming to consumers - especially ones young enough to have grown up with influencers all around. With social media flooded by sponsored content, whether clearly disclosed or not, authenticity is the name of the game in 2024. This will of course require that big brands, known for their need of complete control, will be required to favour long term influencing strategies, closer to the model of a brand ambassador and choose very carefully content creators that feel honestly relevant to the target audience, regardless of the size of their following. The latter should also be given enough creative liberty to produce content that feels authentic to their community, all tracked with the right, updated KPIs and aiming to offer genuine value, aspiration and entertainment. Influencer partnerships and brand deals will also need to adhere to stricter regulations and heightened transparency - propelling even further the need for stable connections between brands and creators.
But those stable brand ambassadors can very rarely just be one hit wonder viral influencers. In fact, the previous reign of early influencers and their multiple business ventures seems to be coming to a halt, as consumers see past instagram glitz, seeking to find quality brands that resonate with their personal values.
According to inside information from elite PR executives in the luxury fashion space, marketing briefs from luxury brands for 2024 are focusing on onboarding Key Opinion Leaders instead of influencers. Esteemed athletes, musicians, fashion editors, poets and other industry leaders, have more to say and can build stronger communities around them. This is already becoming evident, as marketing/PR dollars are shifting towards those partnerships, as seen in the cases of Dior signing tennis player Emma Raducanu, Prada continuing to partner with American poet/activist Amanda Gorman or the many cases of Netflix starlets getting to promote prominent brands on their social media accounts.
Culture on the forefront
While a focus on culture is inevitably always prevalent for luxury brands, 2024 seems to emphasise that even further. The return of glorious couture as promotion, focus on mega events and their red carpets as well as new creative outlets, are driving brands into becoming cultural machines. The existence of haute couture fashion weeks has been challenged by many in later years, especially due to the extremely limited number of uber wealthy customers who can afford to buy such pieces. However, extravagant couture creations have also been traditionally used as a marketing mechanism that elevates the brand positioning and desirability of a maison, eventually driving the sales of its lower priced offerings. In a turn of events, January 2024 saw a new turn in the deep appreciation of haute couture, driven by Maison Margiela’s Artisanal show by John Galliano. The intricate, artistic creations, show set, mood and make up by the legendary Pat McGrath captured the hearts of many around the globe, prompting Instagram, Tik Tok and almost all publications to rave about the return of haute couture as a focus in culture. This is expected to continue for the rest of the year, hopefully translating creative dreams and aesthetics into real bottom line sales for the maisons. Similarly, this emphasis on cultural promotion is also shown in the revival of the red carpet as a marketing medium, with brands strategically embedding themselves in cultural moments and fostering collaborations with cross-industry creatives. Prime example, the red carpet of the Cannes Film Festival is bigger than ever, with a lucrative EMV of $413M, due to it being an A-lister magnet and having an ever increasing social media presence - In it Bollywood magnet Anushka Sharma summoned $17.9M of EMV, boosting the visibility of the brands she collaborated with. To lead this change, luxury maisons are now aiming at becoming “cultural brands”. Louis Vuitton appointed Pharrell Williams as creative director, aiming at merging celebrity and art in all its forms with fashion into a cohesive,creative narrative. Cultural video content is also vital, with brands trying to align themselves with any platform that can provide access to engaged luxury audiences, such as streaming TV, sporting events, product placements etc. As a result, in 2024 luxury houses are experimenting with creating their own creative outlets, such as having their own magazines, podcasts and creating TV series. Notable examples include the Dior magazine and Saint Laurent production company.
The rise of experiential marketing
Brand marketing is changing with today's consumer expectations, and with it the more straightforward performance marketing tactics of the past are giving way to a focus on sophisticated brand storytelling - beyond a simple push on specific items. Indeed, brand marketing can help differentiate a house's positioning in a media-saturated world, while attracting new audiences through unconventional activations. Prime examples: Boss enlisted the help of a giant hologram of supermodel Gisele Bundhen for a projection on the London Bridge in early 2024; Burberry, Prada & Valentino continue to create immersive in-person experiences with Harrods, ranging from takeovers to the Prada café; while collaborative exhibitions with houses are more popular than ever (eg Gucci Cosmos & Chanel at the V&A).
Of course, 2024 also brings new advanced technologies and platforms that are disrupting previous marketing strategies. As a platform, Roblox - the online game/metaverse environment that has stolen the hearts of Gen Z - is now seen as a hot commodity for engaging with younger generations. Historic houses such as Versace have used the platform to create immersive experiences and capture the interest of young people by sponsoring content and partnering with local influencers. It seems, then, that by 2024, the ever-powerful influence of Instagram, and later TikTok, will be challenged as fashion marketing needs to keep up with changing demographics.
On another note, the buzz around artificial intelligence is not leaving luxury fashion advertising unscathed: AI can prove incredibly useful by streamlining campaign processes in general, making them faster, or being used for specific and time-consuming issues, such as helping with influencer discovery, due to its incredible capabilities. In fact, AI can help with multiple steps of a campaign, from segmenting audiences, analysing millions of images, sound and video signals for trend forecasting, ensuring quality control and brand safety, to successfully executing campaign analytics and measurement. Specifically for influencer marketing, AI can help marketers by automatically evaluating a given influencer's content, drawing conclusions about their image, community and tone of voice, and matching them with a suitable brand. Both houses and creators are also likely to start using AI to analyse which content is proven to create a stronger connection between them and their communities, and how to optimise it. One example is Jacquemus, which has used AI to create viral marketing campaigns. Of course, as the pace of AI integration accelerates, we may also see influencers created entirely by AI come to the forefront.
“As AI technology evolves, its integration in luxury fashion marketing is redefining engagement, creativity and consumer interaction, initiating a new era of AI nifluencer marketing. The rise in popularity can be linked to AI’s ability to generate hyper-personalised content and offer brands cost-effective, innovative marketing solutions. Virtual influencers, with their customisable appearances and controlled narratives, are key in storytelling and brand positioning” mentioned Influencer and fashion entrepreneur Jill Assemota.
AR/VR and Spatial Computing
2024 has also shown how VR & AR integration can be incredibly powerful in luxury fashion campaigns and influencer marketing. Immersive and 3D content can allow users to interact with products in new ways that have significant impact. This comes at a time when "spatial computing", or the combination of the physical world and virtual content, is on the cusp of becoming mainstream with the release of Apple's Vision Pro. Fashion catwalks, for example, can be presented using mixed reality headsets, or billboards can project an entirely different virtual overlay through a screen/headset.
"Fashion and luxury brands will begin to see spatial computing as the next computing platform and experiment with how devices like the Apple Vision Pro can create new shopping and fitting experiences for luxury shoppers. With spatial computing, physical spaces simply become the canvas or catwalk (for a digital overlay). Early adopters like the Hanifa brand are already preparing for the age of spatial commerce," says Cathy Hackl, CEO of Spatial Dynamics.
What’s to come?
It seems that 2024 is proving to be an incredible year for fashion marketing - but only for those who love innovation. Change is only natural, especially to any industry that aligns itself with digital technologies. The question remains, who will be able to keep up with it and future proof their brand. Something tells me that this year we will start to figure that out.
