How fashion brands are using image app for Insta-success
FOR SOME FANS, it’s a visual mood-board – a space to keep sentimental memories and document important moments in their lives. For other, savvier users, it’s a commercial juggernaut designed to build content and make money. Whether its purpose is personal or professional, the intrigue of Instagram – from creative storytelling to snippets of engaging footage – has tapped into our psyche.
It currently has more than 400 million users worldwide and has become the fastest growing social media platform. It has achieved massive amounts of good for smaller, creative communities and brands that weren’t all that reachable beforehand. Unlike Twitter and Facebook, the visual and viral nature of the site has been much more potent when spreading a message, especially when it comes to lifestyle and fashion.
People now buy heavily into brands on the premise of what of they see on an influencer’s or label’s feed, rather than how the product is portrayed in a glossy magazine or on a perfectly-pinned mannequin. This, of course, means smaller labels still grow and evolve without the overheads of a boutique or expensive, heavily-produced, advertising campaigns. It has been a directional selling tool, particularly for small Irish companies who are under the radar.
Take, for example, Irish jewellery label My Shining Armour – myshiningarmour.ie, pictured above – by Kilkenny entrepreneur Nikki Hoyne, whose online presence alone has elevated her jewellery into the hands of international fashion editors. Then there’s Galwegian Lisa Regan of Large and In Charge, whose Irish slogan jumpers – which include classics such as ‘Lads, the boom is back’ – have gained momentum via catchy hashtags on Instagram. Founder and owner of Irish brands Folkster and Shutterbug, Blaithnaid Hennessy’s personal Instagram is linked directly to the brand’s official account, where her team post outfit shots with a link to the website.
Other independent Irish brands like KDK by sisters Keira and Dairine (kdk.ie) and Juvi Designs by husband and wife Vincent Tynan and Julie Danz (juvidesigns.com) are using imagery via well-known Irish influencers to create conversation around their brands. Powering the rise of Insta fashion too are bigger players like Arnotts, Marks & Spencer and Brown Thomas, who use it to push new products and collections.
The beauty of Instagram is that you can take up from where you left off. I have recently invested in an Instagram detox from a personal perspective, which means abandoning my account so I can channel my energy into reading more books, exercising or simply doing nothing. From from a professional perspective, however, I will always find a reason for endless scrolling.
The intrigue of Instagram has tapped into our psyche