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Lilly Pulitzer sweetens summer sales with fan-shot videos on social

Specialty retailer In the Pink is tapping Lilly Pulitzer fans to shoot 21-second videos showcasing the resortwear brand?s latest prints and post them on Twitter and Facebook for a chance to win a shopping spree as well as a participatory discount.

The #LillyLife campaign is designed for fashion enthusiasts to show off their styles and use their smartphones to record a short clip displaying how they incorporate Lilly Pulitzer?s bright prints into their lives. One grand prize winner will receive a $1,000 shopping spree at any In the Pink store, while all participants will be rewarded with a $50 coupon to use on their next online or in-store purchase of $150 or more.

?By co-creating content for this campaign with its fans, In the Pink provided a process that was simple and fun for how their fans were already consuming and their sharing content: across multiple social platforms,? said Katherine Hays, CEO of Vivoom, Cambridge, MA. ?It also created a highly valuable experience for consumers and a very effective promotion for the brand.

?Fans were literally Tweeting/commenting about how excited they were the brand was running the campaign again this year. That is so fun to see!?

Converting fans into customers
A top priority for In the Pink, a New England-based retailer with storefronts in the Boston, Cape Cod, Nantucket and Martha?s Vineyard regions, is to convert social media reach into customer acquisition. Last year?s #MySummerinLilly campaign resulted in a sales uptick and a more engaged customer base to leverage for future campaigns.

The retailer is also seeking to drive awareness of Lilly Pulitzer?s Cape & Island print, exclusive to its stores. In a partnership with mobile marketing platform Vivoom, In the Pink tapped the peak of its summer season to roll out the campaign and attempt to convert its social media followers into active customers.

Fans are asked to shoot a 21-second clip showing off a Lilly Pulitzer item and upload it to Facebook or Twitter using the #LillyLife hashtag. All videos display a colorful, printed border, and are able to be distributed via email and SMS as well.

?Families shared videos showing three generations of women in their Lilly clothes, Mom's shared videos of their kids in the pool in Lilly suits, teens shared videos with their friends on the beach in their Lilly clothes or using the stop motion Vivoom feature to shoot stories of them wearing a series of different Lilly summer dresses,? Ms. Hays said.

?What's so fun about branded user content, is that while all of the videos shared were completely on brand for In the Pink and Lilly Pulitzer, they were also highly unique - basically the perfect micro-targeted video spot for all of the friends of each person shooting and sharing. It inspired friends to want to go to In the Pink to get some Lilly things!?

The cutoff date for entries this year is September 8.

Users? videos typically depict shots of themselves wearing Lilly prints, or videos of their branded products at home. Several adhered to the summer theme by showing off beachy looks.

In the Pink?s 2014 campaign ran for 25 days and saw a significant spike in social media followers, in addition to a large profit lift of $4.16 attributable gross margin per each Twitter follower at the start of the campaign.

Significant results
Vivoom saw 3.7 video views per each existing In the Pink follower on social media, making the campaign a valuable branding opportunity. The organic feel of the videos, featuring fans excitedly showing off their styles, likely resonated with consumers in a way that felt less like direct advertising.

The campaign also experienced an 11 percent click-through rate for a promotional gift card offer.

In the Pink was able to grow its social media followers, thanks to the increased traffic on the #MySummerinLilly hashtag. Instagram followers spiked by 19 percent, while its Twitter account grew by 65 percent.

Lilly Pulitzer has been ramping up its spotlight on mobile recently, perhaps due to its desire to leverage the summer season and warm weather for marketing its classic shift dresses.

Although its mcommerce application rollout may have been behind the times, the brand made up for its lateness by rewarding loyal social media followers with an exclusive chance to hear the announcement first (see story).

Additionally, Lilly Pulitzer is equipping its associates with tablets as part of a new push to improve the in-store experience and offer omnichannel capabilities, including mobile payments, with a goal of providing a customized shopping experience (see story).

?The campaign generated countless authentic but completely on brand 21-second, full screen co-created video spots that were shared peer-to-peer so friends saw them on friends' Facebook pages, in Twitter feeds, emails or texts,? Ms. Hays said. ?And because they were co-created - in other words it was a friend's story but in the In the Pink for Lilly Pulitzer brand voice - they were watched, trusted, remembered and caused people to take an action - in this case use the gift card in store or online, at rates that outperform any other mobile advertising.

?For example, three percent of all the people who saw friends? videos last year went to the store online and made a purchase - one third of them were completely new In the Pink customers.?

Final Take
Alex Samuely is an editorial assistant on Mobile Marketer, New York