Runway Fashion Exchange (Corvallis Location) Social Media Commerce & Design
The mission: Updating Runway Corvallis’ instagram profile in order to increase foot traffic to their page, boost e-commerce sales, and better utilize the free marketing tool that is instagram!
How does one define Runway Fashion Exchange as a business and a brand?
According to www.runwayfashionexchange.com, Runway’s main goal is to buy lightly used name-brand clothing that adheres to the latest trends so that they may resell it for prices that are accessible to ALL customers. In order to acquire the merchandise they need, they must maintain positive relationships with clients who sell their clothes and pay out reasonable amounts for their items. In order to maximize profits, they must sell what they buy in, which means their buyers need to know what to look for, and more importantly, they need to know how to use social media platforms to market their items and deals.
Who is Runway trying to target?
As an employee of this company, I learned in my training that Runway is aiming to please a large demographic. Their target audience is men and women between the ages of 13- 45 years-old. This results in Runway buying/ selling casual wear since formal/ business attire would cause the brand’s identity to deviate from strictly trendy styles.
What was already strong about their page?
Runway Corvallis listed their cutest items for sale on their page, by communicating with their customers via comments, and occasionally via direct message. They also used their account to promote their sales and encourage people to sell their used clothes to them.
What was lacking in their old instagram page that could be implemented or changed moving forward?
The page was missing a strong bio, a good follower-following ratio, and an organized, cohesive theme that represents their brand. Lacking in these attributes causes the brand of Runway to come across as dated and out-of-touch, which is decreases the value of their commitment to trendiness. While these things can be easily changed, they make a huge impact. The page was also posting 4-5 posts a day, whereas most companies post once a day and allow for the rest of their daily content to be shared via “story.” Since customers perceived this as spam-posting, Runway Corvallis was losing dozens of followers a day.
Runway Corvallis’ instagram page before redesign (part I)
Runway Corvallis’ instagram page before redesign (part II)
How did my team and I rebrand Runway’s social media presence?
First impression:
First and foremost, it was important to rewrite Runway’s bio. The language in the previous one was dated and didn’t express the capabilities of their page. It’s especially important to communicate the different modes of e-commerce available while in a pandemic. Capitalizing on online sales is essential right now, and will remain essential moving forward. Additionally, we fixed the follower-following ratio by unfollowing any accounts that were not A) following back, B) consistent customers, and C) company/ influencer accounts that are consistent with our brand.
Cohesive design:
At first glance, the old Runway page had a chaotic mix of infographics, flat-lays of outfits with inconsistent backgrounds, and modeling photos that didn’t have dazzling backgrounds. We fixed this by implementing the use of cohesive story highlight covers, and focused on how the colors of the page worked cohesively. Seeing as it is too hard to plan the exact page layout based on which merchandise Runway will find that day, it’s important to post items/ model pictures that match pre-existing or drafted posts. Flat-Lays are to be edited through the PhotoRoom app for a consistently white background, and modeling photos were to be taken in front of specifically hand-picked walls or backdrops.
Analytics:
We reviewed Runway’s instagram analytics page. It showed that customers were responding less to posts (-28.9% interactions in a 30 day period) and more to stories (+52.7% interactions in a 30 day period). This caused us to move to a system where we posted “daily favorites” on our stories, which caused customer engagement to increase. We also found that customers gave the most likes to the outfits with the trendiest brands and items, as well as the photos of our employees modeling new merchandise. This amplified the importance of having a cohesive page layout and avoiding dated posting methods.
Implementing Rules on Customer Relations:
To maintain a sharp image, we implemented strict standards towards correct grammar and professional language when talking with customers. Emoji’s are allowed in tasteful use, but casual language (I.e. the way one would DM their friends) was to be avoided. Employees responding to general questions, item inquiries, and purchases are to uphold these standards in all facets of this page— stories, direct messages, and comments!
Runway Corvallis’ instagram page AFTER redesign (part I)
Runway Corvallis’ instagram page AFTER redesign (part II)