Using Social Media To Manipulate Brand Perception
Up until a few years ago, it was rare to have seen advertisements or any sort of images of luxury brands unless you had a Vogue, GQ, or catalog of said brand in hand. That is until social media became one of the top ways for companies to advertise themselves, with magazine sales declining over 14%. Luxury brands are seen more on social media than magazines due to it allowing brands remain exclusive – rather than sending their photos to any and every magazine – the company has complete control.
With social media, they are able to inform their customers of the company, products, and/or services without losing their exclusiveness, and let’s be honest, part of the reason we love luxury brands so much, is the exclusiveness they offer.
Although, it is not only luxury brands using this method to help their brand name to have a certain type of perception. Social media has helped brands from lower sector markets to engage with their consumers (and gain customers) with the help of social media, brands can almost manipulate their products or services to portray a different image across social networks.
Ferrari VS. Ford
While Ferrari and Ford are both well known worldwide automobiles, they are for completely different reasons. While Ferrari is an Italian luxury car brand, Ford is an American day-to-day brand. Who would have thought you would have seen these two brands on the same social platform (especially considering how exclusive Ferrari portrays to be)!
When you have a look at Ferraris official Instagram account (@ferrariusa) you can see that they have 499K followers! With pictures and videos of their engines, interior and exterior of cars, it almost feels like you’re inside a Ferrari. Their photos are all quite similar, if it’s not a photo of their interior or engine, it’s a video or photo of the cars on a race track.
Team @scuderiacorsaferrari gives the #Ferrari #488GT a final test run during the #Roar24 #FerrariFirsts A photo posted by Ferrari USA (@ferrariusa) on
However when looking at Fords official Instagram (@ford) you do not get the feel of an average day-to-day car even though it is catered to a completely different target market. Generally, when people think of Ford, the image of luxury doesn’t exactly follow that thought, but with 919K followers, Ford has done a brilliant job on the presentation of their brand.
Although the photos from Ford are not as simple as Ferrari – Fords photos are very unique. With different angles, parts of the car, beautiful backgrounds, it’s almost hard to believe how inexpensive these cars are. Companies like Ford do this to show that it’s not just luxury cars that have a good image – it just depends on where and how you’re looking at it ????, it also doesn’t hurt to show their customers some amazing photos.
The all-new 2017 #FordGT is the Official Vehicle of #CES2016! Pre-production model shown. Available late 2016. #FordCES #FordPerformance A photo posted by Ford Motor Company (@ford) on
Harrods VS. Debenhams
One of the many beautiful things about London is the amount of options for shopping we have available! Whatever you are looking for, London has it for you.
Harrods may be one of the best things about London, whether you’re out looking for something specific or just window shopping, it’s always a great choice. Harrods isn’t far away from 1 million Instagram followers, with 803K followers (@harrods) they give their followers a little taste of what is inside of Harrods. From photographs of clothing, accessories, food, beverages, and occasionally the cheeky sneak peak of clothing items that will be seen on the runway.
Harrods offers a relationship feel to their followers with their social media, plus exclusive runway sample drawings, how cool…
While Debenhams – like Harrods – is a department store, they’re targeting a completely different audience, With 52.7k followers on Instagram (@debenhams), new followers would never have guessed this was not in the same category as Harrods.
Debenhams has used social media to its full potential. On their Instagram they have maintained a classic theme, and made their products the main focal point in nearly every photo, it gives a very elegant feel to the brand. This isn’t to say that Debenhams is some ordinary shop, it is definitely no Harrods – but their social media allows them to pretend to be (sorry Debenhams!).
With Oscar nominations being revealed and last week’s Golden Globes, we’re feeling all red carpet glamour with sparkles from Debut and Jenny Packham A photo posted by Debenhams (@debenhams) on
By Carolina Herrera
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