The be all and end all for any brand is finding—and targeting—new consumers. On mainstream Social Media channels, this can be a hard ask. The likes of Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are highly saturated with Brands vying for attention, amassing a following that may not stay engaged. While the big names battle it out, smaller social media sites are stepping out of the shadows to show them how it’s done. What platforms can fashion brands be looking to, and how should the industry utilise them? 

Which platforms are doing well?

Reddit may be a classic style forum, but it certainly holds power. With over 430 million users, some brands are finding success opening Q+A style forums to interact and engage with users that choose to subscribe. In early findings, brands that have adopted this strategy have found an increasing new surge of customer growth, with a number of direct sales from codes shared during the interaction. Even though fashion brands may be late to the game, Reddit has historically been known as a place to create community—something sorely needed within brand strategy. From mainstream platforms come issues of rising advertising costs, with very little seen in return. Smaller sites like Reddit, Twitch and Discord now seem to be the places to target who really want what you’re selling. 

What do they offer?

Stereotypes around the kind of people that use these smaller platforms are being blasted out of the water. Far from a ‘bedroom warrior’, the average Reddit fashionista is 41% more likely to visit a retailer’s site, according to Vero Analytics. Similarly, out of Twitch’s 30 million daily users, the average consumer is three times more likely to purchase something they’ve seen an influencer promote. Now, each of these platforms are actively working to become the new destination for brands to be. Video and audio functions are being tested in text-based formats, and advertising remains manually programmed—meaning brands have much more control than they traditionally would. There’s also the option to run custom ad, create weekly sponsors, as well as chances to pursue affiliate marketing. 

In the bid to find new consumers and hold their attention, advertising on platforms like Twitch requires a lot more attention. Being the least familiar to fashion brands, many sites like Discord run on servers instead of profiles, offering a digital hub of content in a community setting. To win consumers over, brands will not only need to provide a customer service but additionally offer experiences or education. No platform has all its issues worked out, but investing time and resources before the floodgates open could reap a huge sales reward.

Photo source: https://seismic.com/