Before launching your slow fashion or beauty brand your marketing strategy should be super well defined to avoid surprises and clarify your strategy
Here are the key steps when developing a clear marketing plan for launching your brand successfully:
1.Define the key problem: or gap you are addressing within your niche and market
2.Analyze your target: regarding their needs, expectations, what they are looking for within your product category , as well as what they would come to your for. I recommend doing some market research , with 5 key questions relating to these elements.
3.Find out where your product fits: within this necessity & gap you identified in your target market , think in terms of features, branding , design
4. Explore your competition: Think direct competitors , within your chosen product category and indirect competitors within your niche , Identify what they are doing right in terms of their marketing mix , and what they are doing wrong / or what they should improve on . (these are key opportunities)
5.Find your magic (AKA: the opportunity): Think of the key gap these competitors are not filling and how with your offering you can improve , innovate on this, maybe its removing a specific element of a product , or adding a more practical touch, changing the colour, or it can be as simple as adapting the product to another target .
6.Settle your pricing: From the competitor analysis you did and the customer you are looking to address what pricing is better suited (below marketing price, above , or at the same level?) , also considering product margins for the fashion and beauty industry (times 3.5 to 4 is good)
7.Identify your key sales channel: Are you looking for full control over your sales ? or would you rather gain awareness through working with other retailers ? Are you planning on only having a digital presence ? or would you also like to be present in physical locations with a pop up model ? (this could be especially beneficial for young beauty brands as customers need that first touch with the product)
8.Identify the key communication channel : What key digital advertising channel will you reinforce the most ? This should be considered according to your budget and where your ideal customer is mostly at ? Obviously instagram is a must for all fashion & beauty brands but what kind of strategy ? micro-influencers, paid advertisement, organic engagement, IGTV content, ...then you can consider FB and Pinterest ads ? And even a facebook group as a great organic strategy especially to gather market research and get customer feedback. The communication channel you choose should also be aligned with your sales and community objectives
That's it for now , for any questions regarding marketing plans, don't hesitate to email me mindfulinventions@gmail.com
