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PAGE 2 Luxury Daily CLASSIC GUIDE TO LUXURY MARKETING
PAGE
3
CONTENTS
EDITORS NOTE: Luxury marketing evolves to
two-way communication
By Mickey Alam Khan
Quick, functional experience integral for
luxury ecommerce
By Rachel Lamb
Customization is key to in-store marketing
By Rachel Lamb
Mobile commerce platforms no longer optional
for luxury brands
By Kayla Hutzler
Personalization, channel integration key for
digital marketing
By Rachel Lamb
Rich media not always better for
mobile campaigns
By Kayla Hutzler
Q&A: Digital will continue to lead the way for
luxury marketing
By Morpheus Medias Shenan Reed
Luxury branded search presence keeps
top-positioning control
By Rachel Lamb
Email, mobile should drive multichannel
marketing campaigns
By Kayla Hutzler
Q&A: Multichannel is no longer an option for
luxury brands
By Afuent Insights Chris Ramey
Mobile marketing engages consumers during pur-
chasing process
By Kayla Hutzler
Content is key for mobile apps
By Kayla Hutzler
Television advertising still holds appeal for
luxury brands
By Kayla Hutzler
Radio is a mass-reach platform that can be
highly targeted
By Kayla Hutzler
31
PAGE
Q&A: Agencies need to understand the nuances
of the luxury customer
By iProspects Andrea Wilson
Cause, event marketing allows innovative,
personal experiences
By Rachel Lamb
Internet is the biggest legal challenge for
luxury brands
By Rachel Lamb
Trademark, legal back-up key to protecting
luxury brand privacy
By Rachel Lamb
Holistic multichannel approach is vital for driv-
ing in-store sales
By Kayla Hutzler
Q&A: Communicate an over-simplied message
to luxury consumers
By Ries & Ries Al Ries
Social media adds personal experience to aspi-
rational consumers
By Rachel Lamb
Direct mail is more relevant now than in
past decades
By Kayla Hutzler
Mail catalogs efective when part of a
multichannel approach
By Kayla Hutzler
Q&A: CRM is critical for afuent customer
retention
By Luxury Institutes Milton Pedraza
Out-of-home ads enhanced, not depleted, by
digital advances
By Kayla Hutzler
Print allows the ability to control brand image
By Rachel Lamb
Luxury brands need to be wary of ambigous
research trends
By Rachel Lamb
Q&A: Is the luxury shopper demographic
shrinking?
By Unity Marketings Pam Danziger
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elcome to Luxury Dailys inaugural Classic Guide to
Luxury Marketing, designed to be an indispensable re-
source to marketers and brands interested in the ins
and outs of luxury marketing.
This edition is chock full of ideas on how luxury brands can
execute campaigns across all mediums, including the Internet,
mobile, print, television, outdoor, direct mail, in-store and radio.
The Classic Guide is meant to help luxury marketers understand
how to navigate 21st-century marketing, with all its complexi-
ties and privacy issues as well as database-building and brand-
ing opportunities.
Print has long been the mainstay of luxury marketing, depend-
able for its association with pertinent content and the gloss
factor that showcases luxury brands to their best advantage.
But there is a perceptible shift in luxury marketing.
Newer tools in marketing such as social media and mobile mar-
keting are giving luxury brands the option to not only talk to
their audience but also hear back from them in real-time.
Indeed, social media is single-handedly changing the face of
luxury marketing. So is the rapid adoption of ecommerce and
mobile commerce, requiring marketers to have a 360-degree
strategy for marketing to discerning consumers.
That said, nothing beats the in-store experience to appreciate
the real value of luxury products and services. Indeed, smart
marketing is the best trafc driver.
Expert insight
Please feel free to read every page of Luxury Dailys Classic
Guide to Luxury Marketing and to subscribe to the publication
at http://www.luxurydaily.com/newsletter. Do send the guides
link to colleagues, peers and clients.
Luxury Daily reporters Rachel Lamb and Kayla Hutzler worked
hard on this edition, so thank you to them for the content. Also,
thanks are due to Kayla for the art direction on the guide.
For their insights, many thanks to Morpheus Medias Shenan
Reed, Afuent Insights Chris Ramey, iProspects Andrea Wilson,
Ries & Ries Al Ries, Luxury Institutes Milton Pedraza and Unity
Marketings Pam Danziger. Their support has been invaluable
in making Luxury Daily the indispensable read on smart luxury
marketing and retail as the world moves from yell-and-sell to
tell-and-sell.

Mickey Alam Khan
401 Broadway, Suite 1408
New York, NY 10013
Tel: 212-334-0128
Fax: 212-334-6339
Email: news@napean.com
Web site: www.LuxuryDaily.com
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Luxury Daily is the leading trade publication focusing on how luxury brands are conducting their marketing and commerce eforts
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2012 Napean LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced without permission.
Luxury Daily CLASSIC GUIDE TO LUXURY MARKETING PAGE 3
Mickey Alam Khan
Editor in Chief
mickey@napean.com
Rachel Lamb
Associate Reporter
rachel@napean.com
Kayla Hutzler
Editorial Assistant
kayla@napean.com
EDITORS NOTE
Jodie Solomon
Director, Ad Sales
ads@napean.com
Luxury marketing evolves to two-way communication
W
Quick, functional experience integral for luxury ecommerce
uxury ecommerce sites must be easy-to-navigate and
functional for the ready-minded consumer to avoid
turning them of from the brand or causing them to
move to a competitor site.
Upscale brands are still using site-slowing features such
as Flash and rich media that disrupt the ow of the shop-
ping process. If a commerce-enabled site does not allow
consumers to get in and out quickly, customers could dis-
credit the brand.
Customers shop a variety of ways, said Tania Doub, retail
strategy lead at Optaros, Boston.
Although some prefer the in-store, high-touch expe-
rience, others know exactly what they want and like to
browse and shop online, she said. Customer experience
and ease of checkout online is important to users.
Internet clicks
Luxury brands often use Flash and rich images to make
their sites aesthetically pleasing and emphasize the
luxury aspect.
Unfortunately, this usually means forfeiting functionality
for beauty.
Luxury brands can and should have both. For luxury retail-
ers that enable consumers to shop online, functionality is
much more important.
Since it is important to both luxury consumers and brands
that ecommerce sites show high-resolution images and
possibly video, brands can incorporate this when showing
products instead of using Flash on the homepage, which
takes longer for the site to load.
To do this, brands can include zooming capability and mul-
tiple image views when consumers bring up an individual
product page.
Luxury brands need to maintain their brand identity and
image, but they also need to make their sites shopable,
Ms. Doub said.
Additionally, many brands including retailers, jewelers and
automakers are incorporating augmented reality into their
By Rachel Lamb
L
Web sites, enabling consumers to try on expensive jewelry
or garments and possibly buy them.
Party on
Although having a branded ecommerce site is denitely an
advantage, there are other opportunities for luxury brands
looking to drive transactions online.
For instance, third-party retailers such as Amazon.com,
Net-A-Porter, Gilt Groupe and many others are accredited
for selling luxury goods online.
In addition, luxury department stores such as Barneys New
York, Bloomingdales, and Neiman Marcus all have easy-
to-navigate ecommerce sites that sell luxury items.
Just because a brand is using ecommerce does not mean
that it has to be on its own branded site.
Luxury brands just need to ensure that the third-party re-
tailer has the same values that the brand does to avoid
confusing the consumer.
Additionally, it should make sure that the retailers ecom-
merce site is fast, easy and still nice to look at.
Luxury retailers can use the channel to really create a
central community where they can showcase the real
brand essence and leverage community and content to
drive commerce, Ms. Doub said.

Best-practice tips
Global integration. Ensure a unied experience
across the globe. Many luxury brands have difer-
ent sites for each country and there is no central
place for inventory management or to get a single
customer view
Content management. Being able to leverage
content assets multichannel and globally is a big
challenge for many luxury brands

Be relevant. For example, many luxury brands do
not have their pricing currency set to U.S. dol-
lars on their U.S. ecommerce site which makes the
U.S. customer feel irrelevant
Customization is key to in-store marketing
n-store marketing remains the No. 1 marketing tech-
nique that luxury brands use when drawing and keeping
customers and customization is how brands can give
afuent consumers a special experience.
Elegant and beautiful product displays and helpful and
courteous salespeople are the cornerstone of the luxury
industry, where customer experience and service are the
main ways to present luxury branded products. Many lux-
ury products are bought in-store rather than online, so it
is necessary for luxury marketers to have innovative and
interesting in-store strategies.
People do love to shop, and luxury brands should be set-
ting the standard for the ultimate in-store shopping expe-
rience, said Paula Rosenblum, partner at Retail Systems
Research, Miami. I think what I call the Walmart efect
has extended all the way up the retail food chain fewer
employees, more self-service.
That must end, its not fun, she said. The Web site or
mobile site should not be the agship for the brand it
still has to be the store.
Interior design
What sets apart luxury stores from their mid-level coun-
terparts is the feeling that customers have when they walk
in the door.
Impeccable customer service is a key behavior that afu-
ent consumers expect from a luxury retailer.
Since consumers are paying premium prices for luxury
goods, they expect to receive special treatment and to be
helped in the most swift and efcient possible way.
In addition, brands should take note of the latest technol-
ogy that can enhance the in-store experience.
For instance, department store chain Nordstrom now uses
iPod touches to checkout consumers and nd inventory.
Furthermore, other brands are dabbling in dressing rooms
that have virtual and augmented reality so that customers
can see what garments look like before trying them on.
Afuent consumers are often the forerunners in new tech-
I
By Rachel Lamb
nology and want the latest gadgets and inventory.
This is doubly efective because it not only adds an in-
teresting element to an ordinary in-store experience, but
mixes an old-world in-store marketing strategy with a
modern air.
Party time
One of the best ways to display a fascinating in-store
strategy is for brands to hold special events for their most
valuable customers.
This adds a personalized experience for an individual,
which is extremely important to the luxury customer.
Its up to luxury brands to bring that kind of show to the
people, Ms. Rosenblum said. Having private events in the
store remains a strong strategy.
Luxury brands can even make events personalized with
handwritten invitations, customized gift bags and person-
al shoppers or event planners.
In-store events are especially efective because getting
bodies in retail locations increases the chance that cus-
tomers will actually buy products, whether or not that is
the purpose of the event.
From now on, everything has to be personal, Ms. Rosen-
blum said. Anyone a customer interacts with has to know
whatever the customer chooses to let you know about
them, and they should be able to bring to bear merchan-
dise from many diferent designers for your review, based
on your preferences.
Best-practice tips
New technology to draw consumers in-store
Cross-channel integration of customer, inventory
and purchase information
Doing all of this efciently
Mobile commerce platforms no longer optional for luxury brands
By Kayla Hutzler
forms, as well as make purchases as efortless as possible.
Simply put, think about how the brand image translates
through a mobile experience, said Steve Timpson, presi-
dent of SiteMinis, Atlanta.
Make sure that you understand that diferent form fac-
tors may have diferent user behavior, he said.
Look at your demographic shopper and use that
information to lay out how you, as a brand, want
to implement mobile.
Eye for detail
When designing a mobile-commerce platform,
luxury brands should include a few basic neces-
sities such as a store locator, click-to-call, map-
it functionality and easy-to-navigate interfaces.
In addition, a brand needs to be aware and fa-
miliarize itself with all of the hardware and soft-
ware in the mobile space such as Apple, Android,
BlackBerry and Microsoft platforms.
Even though some platforms appear to be more
important than others, in reality, the whole eco-
system is important, Mr. Timpson said.
Also, a brands mobile site is an important part
of the mobile commerce discussion.
The optimized site should be simple, but still
maintain the brands quality and reputation.
A brand should not ignore its history or color
scheme in the simplication, but factors such as
buttons versus drop-down menus, less advertis-
ing and specic targeting are important when
creating a user-friendly mobile platform.
Most important for mobile commerce is making
the check-out and purchasing process as easy
and convenient as possible.
obile commerce will soon be an essential touch
point for luxury brands since afuent consumers
are beginning to expect a brand to be easily acces-
sible regardless of the shoppers location.
Luxury brands need to ensure that their mobile sites are
commerce-enabled for immediate gratication for the
current on-the-go afuent consumer. To increase ROI on
mobile eforts, a brand needs to be available on all plat-
M
Luxury brands should aim to provide one-click payment
and store credit information based on user-registration.

Mobile commerce allows a customer to buy immedi-
ately, possibly in front of a competitors product, Mr.
Timpson said.
Mobile is a great way to drive sales at the point of sale,
although a car purchaser is less likely to buy from a
phone, he said.
Multi-marketing
A mobile platform can drive sales in two ways: by sending
consumers in-store and allowing them to purchase right
from their mobile devices.
Therefore, it is important that a mobile efort be incorpo-
rated into all marketing eforts.
Brands need to use
mobile along with sig-
nage, digital, in-store,
SMS, social media and
email channels.
Equally important is
the ability to get con-
sumers to opt-in and
possibly register for a
brands mobile eforts.
This can allow a brand to rene user informa-
tion and develop better product-targeting SMS and
email messaging.
In terms of social media, a mobile-commerce site should
have sharing options so that users can easily post branded
material to their Facebook or Twitter accounts, per SiteMi-
nis Mr. Timpson.
Allowing the shopper to ask friends for advice or share
their latest purchases with social networks expands the
brands reach and further advertises the brands mobile
commerce platform.
Brands that adopt aggressive mobile strategies cre-
ate multiple opportunities to bond with consum-
ers in a more personal way than traditional marketing
afords, Mr. Timpson said.
Also, mobile creates a more immediate interaction with
the brand, he said.
[When brands] couple that with the ability to add
multi-media interactivity and social media, [it]
gives brands a low-cost method to get eyes on the
brand and products.

Best-practice tips
Making sure that there is a store locator
Let consumers determine if they want to link
through to the PC site from mobile
Create a simple and consistent navigation
header or process
Digital will continue to lead the way for luxury marketers
A Q&A with Morpheus Medias Shenan Reed
lthough luxury brands were cautious to get on
board with digital marketing, most companies are
nding that ecommerce, mobile and even social
media are some of the main ways to engage with afuent
consumers and prove impressive revenue drivers.
Often viewed as slow-to-the-game or too hesitant as com-
pared to mainstream brands, luxury marketers are slowly
but surely ghting their way into the digital medium. In
fact, luxury brands are now nding new and unique tactics
to share their own voices that connect to consumers in a
manner that has not been done before.
Obviously, it is not a wise decision for any luxury brand
not to have a digital presence, especially since 92 per-
cent of luxury consumers regularly shop online and spend
four times as much on online purchases than non-luxury
households, said Shenan Reed, chief media ofcer of Mor-
pheus Media, a Createthe Group company in New York.
While digital may lack the tactile attributes of other me-
diums, I believe that digital luxury experiences are getting
better and better more upscale, engaging and entertain-
ing especially in comparison to their traditional media
counterparts, she said.
In this Q&A, Ms. Reed discusses the future of Web and
mobile commerce, various digital channels and why social
media may not be a silver bullet for luxury brands.
Do luxury brands get digital marketing?
Yes, they do and they are gravitating to digital marketing
now that they see the results it generates. Five or six years
ago, many luxury brands were reluctant to embrace digital
marketing, and for good reason.
Luxury marketers are under constant pressure to maintain
their brands image and, therefore, had understandable
concerns about how their brands would be portrayed in
new, evolving worlds such as digital, mobile and social.
Moreover, they were used to having greater control over
their brands in traditional mediums such as print and tele-
vision. This mindset has
shifted considerably.
Luxury brands now re-
alize how digital can
dramatically deepen
engagement with afu-
ent consumers and keep
them closer than ever
with brand devotees.
Digital lacks the touch-and-feel tactile experience
that adds premium to a luxury brands value, and yet
an absence from digital could be foolhardy. What do
you think?
Obviously, it is not a wise decision for any luxury brand
not to have a digital presence, especially since 92 per-
cent of luxury consumers regularly shop online and spend
four times as much on online purchases than non-lux-
ury households, according to a recent study that we did
with Cond Nast.
At the same time, it is critical for a luxury brand to have
the right digital presence one that is tailor-made for
them, their consumers and how they like to shop and dis-
cover their products.
While digital may lack the tactile attributes of other medi-
ums, I believe that the luxury experiences are getting bet-
ter more upscale, engaging and entertaining especially
in comparison to their traditional media counterparts.
For example, the new sites for David Yurman, De Beers and
Nars take consumers on a magnicent journey while mak-
ing it easier than ever for them to shop.
Additionally, advances in video and augmented reality
continue to take digital luxury experiences to new heights.
Which digital channels seem to be performing best
for luxury marketing?
I am not sure we can call out any one single channel be-
cause I think that a variety of channels working together
A
in concert can deliver the most impressive results.
We have seamlessly integrated many of our brands and
their commerce initiatives across all digital channels in-
cluding display media, search, afliate marking, mobile, in-
store and social media, which often results in incredibly
high conversion rates.
As a baseline, I always advise brands to look rst at how
users are nding them. Search is the gateway to the Inter-
net and how you are found or, in some cases, if you are
found says so much about your brand.
With Googles universal search results page, a smart digital
marketer has the opportunity to own or inuence a great
deal of that page and, therefore, a customers rst digital
experience with their brand.
Will ecommerce and mobile commerce gain a larger
share of luxury retail over the next three years?
Yes, absolutely.
Many luxury brands want to expand globally, particu-
larly in Asia, where luxury goods spending will likely
dramatically increase.
Within the next ve years, China will become the worlds
largest market for luxury goods, spending $14.6 billion on
luxury consumption.
Luxury brands want to deeply connect with afuent con-
sumers all over the world and new advances in ecommerce
will allow them to quickly and easily launch new sites and
digital marketing initiatives in new regions while still
maintaining their brand integrity.
We believe mobile commerce will further transform the
digital luxury experience. But before luxury brands em-
brace mobile, they need a branded engagement strategy
that addresses what they really want to accomplish.
Do they want to engage, entertain or both? Or are
they looking to make a lifestyle experience for the
brand and consumers?
Exclusivity is a key driver of the luxury mobile ex-
perience. Ofering something to afuent consum-
ers that very few people have access to, such as a pri-
vate trunk show or other invitation-only events, can be
very powerful.
Luxury brands can leverage foursquares gaming capabili-
ties to lead afuent consumers to a private event or lever-
age the iPad to allow them to watch streaming video of a
live runway show.
These are all ways that they can reward their most inu-
ential consumers in a way that speaks to the exclusiveness
of the experience.
I think that luxury brands are beginning to understand
that the mobile Web is diferent than the stationary Web
and, as such, provides a unique way to better engage af-
uent consumers in a more relevant, time-sensitive and
personalized manner.
I am excited to help these brands better understand and
execute the four core pillars of an optimum mobile strat-
egy: location awareness, immediacy, personalization and
When you think about it that way focusing on the great-
er interactive potential of social media as opposed to just
an individual platform or campaign you realize the in-
credible opportunity it presents.
It is about innovation and creating unique experiences,
which ultimately have always been the key elements of
luxury positioning. Luxu-
ry brands are still learning
how to leverage social me-
dia, but the ones that have
it gured out are reaping
enormous rewards.
Many of our clients are acti-
vating social media strategies.
In our work with Bergdorf
Goodman, we have not only
launched their blog, Facebook,
Twitter, Tumblr, Polyvore, Ins-
tagram and other social chan-
nels, we have found ways to
engage and reward consum-
ers that are 100 percent rel-
evant to the brand.
Theyve truly embraced social
media as a constantly inno-
vating channel, providing new
ways to bridge the gap be-
tween online and ofine.
Fendi Frenzy and Faces of
5F are just two amazing ex-
amples of how a brand can
create something unique in
the social space and still be
very brand appropriate.
Similarly, in our work with
DKNY to launch DKNY PR-
Girl, we worked to be cer-
tain that we knew what
this voice was going to be
in the space, making sure it
was correct for DKNY and
its audience.
social connectivity.
Is social media overrated?
No it is just misunderstood.
In todays digital space, all media is social in one way or
another.
Personalization, channel integration key for digital advertising
By Rachel Lamb
n the cluttered environment of digital advertising, the
most important aspects to keep in mind are personal-
ization, channel integration and scale.
Luxury brands have been reluctant to latch on to digital
marketing, but are now adapting at a steady speed. How-
ever, luxury brands should be more willing to take some
risks and stand out from the pack to diferentiate them-
selves from competitors.
This one is a little bit ufy, but is still only truly being
focused on and executed by a few really big guys at the
top, said Vic Drabicky, a New York-based luxury digital
marketing consultant.
With the amount of data and type of targeting we have
with digital media, there is a big push for advertising to be
more personalized on a per-user-type basis, he said.
Personalization is key
Some luxury brands are reluctant to take chances, but get-
ting into marketing just for the sake of doing so and copy-
ing tactics because it seems to work for other brands is a
great way to get lost in the crowd.
Therefore, personalization is important.
Whenever consumers see a banner ad, it should have a
personalized copy, look-and-feel with images based on
your previous interactions with the brand or previous
browsing behavior, Mr. Drabicky said.
This crosses online and ofine, afecting everything from
catalogs to display to email and just about everything in
between, he said.
Brands should also pay attention to channel integration.
Smart marketers work hard at making transitions between
the channels seamless and efortless.
By eliminating the wall between direct response and
branding or the wall between search and display, market-
ers get a more holistic view of the efect of their eforts.
This leads to smarter, more integrated approaches to mar-
keting, per Mr. Drabicky.
Finally, marketers need to pay attention to scale. The
rate at which luxury companies are investing in digital
is increasing.
This means that since a brands competitors are spending
more on digital spending arguably one of the most lu-
crative channels marketers need to kick it up a notch to
keep up with the trends.
Potential pitfalls
Luxury brands are spending more time than ever on digital
advertising, which is encouraging.
However, there are certainly a few places where luxury
I
brands can improve.
Many luxury brands
still use Flash on
their Web sites,
which is widely
known as one of the
least-valuable assets
to any kind of site.
Flash takes away
from functionality
and efciency, making the experience annoying and frus-
trating to consumers.
If a branded site takes a while to load or is hard to navi-
gate, then consumers may head to a competitors site.
However, any presence on digital is usually benecial to a
brand, but the most important aspect to remember is to
employ tactics that work specically for a company.
Far too often, people lose track of the marketing idea they
are trying to execute and get caught up in the details of
one channel versus another or evaluate all their channels
diferently to support pre-conceived ideas of how things
should work, Mr. Drabicky said.
Instead, be open to digital as another channel worth ex-
ploring and dont be afraid to look externally for exper-
tise, he said.
When it is done well, digital marketing can do all the same
great things your traditional marketing channels can do,
and it can move your brand and your business forward.
Best-practice tips
Data is an advantage, not a limit
Do not chase the buzz
Scale success
Rich media not always better for mobile campaigns
uxury brands often strive to have the most immer-
sive and visually-stunning advertisements, yet when
it comes to mobile campaigns it is better to maintain
a simple approach.
Often, luxury brands convolute their mobile ad campaigns
with rich media that takes too long to load or not work on
all devices. To help keep mobile ads short and simple, ads
should be integrated into a larger multichannel campaign
that explains the full brand story or message.
The key to a well-thought-out optimized mobile site is
only to include the optimal number of relevant sections
from your Web site, said Richard Wetherill, advertising
director at AdFonic, London.
Too much information will make it data-heavy, crowded
and [it will] lack focus, he said.
Not so rich
Luxury brands should keep mobile ads relatively simple so
that the ads are able to load on all phones.
Brands can make up for excluding rich media by using cre-
ative and engaging content.
All mobile ads should also have click-through ability that
links the user through to a mobile-optimized site.
A non-optimized site could aggravate afuent consumers
and cause them to stop interacting with the brand.
However, the mobile site should contain only the informa-
tion for which an on-the-go consumer would be looking.
The key elements would include information on latest col-
lections, where to buy, contact numbers and further infor-
mation on co-promotions or priority access ofers to key
events, per Mr. Wetherill.
In addition to an optimized click-through site, simple but
creative mobile ads should be complemented by activity
that has been integrated correctly through a brands mar-
keting and media strategy.
Brands can integrate between in-store, print and televi-
sion as well as through other mobile oferings.
Right now we are seeing some strong moves from brands
such as Rolex and Cond Nast who have both optimized
mobile sites and apps, Mr. Wetherill said.
Scanability
As technology increases and more consumers begin to use
QR codes regularly, these can be used as a great way to
increase and integrate mobile advertising.
By Kayla Hutzler
L
The best use I heard was that some designer labels are
actually putting either QR codes or a simple silicon chip in
clothes as a clever [digital] pull, Mr. Wetherhill said.
The silicon chip can even be scanned or picked up by the
device through a shop window giving the consumer an
opportunity to read up on further detail on the garment,
he said.
For now, Mr. Wetherill said marketers can take cues from
luxury brands such as Hugo Boss and Armani that work
to implement their mobile ads within larger, multichanel
advertising campaigns.
For example, apparel
and accessories de-
signer Hugo Boss used
a multi-faceted mobile
marketing campaign for
its male fragrance that
comprised mobile ban-
ner ads, mobile display
ads and mobile search
engine marketing that
all clicked-through to a
mobile site.
In addition, Italian fash-
ion house Armani saw
high rates of success
for its spring collection
when it used banners
and expandable canvas
ads in the iPhone network that linked to a mobile site.
The most worthwhile efort that luxury brands can run is
to jump into the mobile advertising arena, see what works
for them and learn from their mistakes.
Be brave, commit to small steps but have a long-term
strategy in mind, Mr. Wetherill said.
The early days of the mobile journey can ofer invaluable
insight whilst signposting your next steps, he said.
Best-practice tips
Keep things simple. For mobile ads, keep the
message simple, clear and remember to deliver
on the value being signposted in the respective
banners
Be targeted, but do not negate scale. Coverage
is key, too
Measure prior to going live to make sure that the
partners know what success looks like
Luxury branded search presence keeps top-positioning control
By Rachel Lamb
uxury brands that employ search and display market-
ing have a greater chance of remaining top-of-mind
as well as getting a leg-up on competitors and third
parties that may be selling illegal goods.
Using an efective search and display strategy will help
luxury brands have more of a presence on the Web. Ad-
ditionally, there is a good chance
that it will boost brand credibility
and make it easier for consumers
to nd and buy branded products
and services on the Web.
An efective search strategy for a
luxury brand is one that provides
share-of-voice and top position-
ing on a variety of search queries,
ranging from brand and product
names to product categories,
said Michael Dub, partner at
Raspberry Red, Lyndhurst, NJ.
Qualiers can be used to tar-
get the luxury segment such
as designer or luxury in both
the keyword list and creative, and
negatives can be used to dis-
suade searchers for afordable
or cheap, he said.
Starting with an understanding
of your customers behavior on
the search engines is key, and of-
ten existing organic search data
can help to inform individual
keyword selection.
First impressions
Any luxury brand can stand to in-
crease its visibility and awareness
on search engines.
Therefore, brands should use SEO to place their products
and services at the forefront of consumers minds, both
literally and guratively.
Based on what people are looking for, brands can see
powerful and impressive results from SEO in terms of site
trafc and click-throughs.
L
The chances that the luxury brand will be seen, rather than
a competitors site, is a lot higher when brands use search
and display.
The presence of a luxury brand on search prevents re-
tailers, competitors and knock-ofs from obtaining top
positioning and allows the brand owner full control of
message and positioning, [which is] very important for a
luxury brand, Mr. Dub said.
Having a search strategy can generate direct, tracked
sales, he said. Also, the search ads themselves provide
branding against key target markets.

Best-practice tips
Educated and specic keyword and landing-page
selection
Extensive testing of creative and message
Using of all available tools to maximize SEM im-
pact and minimize costs
In addition to making it easy for consumers to nd luxury
brands on the Web, a successful search engine optimiza-
tion strategy can help prevent competitors from obtaining
top positioning.
This allows the brand full control of message and position-
ing, which is important for a luxury brand, per Mr. Dub.
To do so, many luxury brands put tags such as their name,
Web site name and various products that they sell or for
which they are especially known.
Tagging the competition
In addition to using tags to keep their sites at the top of
the queue, many brands pay for sponsored ads.
These ads can range from store listings and maps to de-
partment store listings.
The sponsored ads appear at the top of the page and
alongside the column on search engines.
Apart from the obvious in-your-face strategy, having ads
at the top of the page may subliminally tell consumers
that the brand wants their attention, which makes afuent
consumers feel special.
This may also increase the chance that consumers will take
the brand more seriously.
Email, mobile should drive multichannel marketing campaigns
By Kayla Hutzler
uxury brands need to focus on all touch points to
reach consumers with one unied message that is
constantly pushed across multiple platforms to in-
crease brand recall.
For luxury brands, in particular, email and mobile appli-
cations are leading the way for interacting with wealthy
consumers. Increasingly important for luxury brands is
that each message be personalized as much as possible.
Clients and prospects are using all kinds of platforms and
communication tools these days, said Lorenzo Benazzo,
CEO of HyphenLab, New York.
It is important for luxury brands to be able to reach their
market simultaneously via email, social networks and mo-
bile apps and SMS and MMS messaging, he said.
Digital leads the way
Brands must look to reach consumers on every medium to
interact with people and other brands.
The current luxury consumer is no longer interested in just print catalogs or the newest mobile apps. Now, consum-
ers want to be able to ip through a printed catalog, scan
or text a short code and be able to access and order the
product online.
For this reason, luxury brands must adapt to all platforms,
including print, email, direct mail, social media and mobile.
The core platforms of a multichannel approach should be
email and mobile, according to Mr. Benazzo.
Email remains at the forefront, especially given its ability
to personalize content to each recipient.
Mobile marketing, whether it is an optimized site or a
branded app, is also key as shoppers are more frequently
accessing the brands marketing content and products
while on-the-go.
It is important for brands to make sure they personalize
the experience to each consumer as much as possible.
L
For instance, a mobile app or SMS messaging should take
into account the consumers location to ofer specic
events or deals in the persons area.
In addition, emails should be personalized with the con-
sumers name as well as information she may be inter-
ested in giving about previous purchases.
Threes a charm
A multichannel campaign should have three main focuses:
sales, conversion and efciency, according to Mr. Benazzo.
In terms of sales, increasing average tickets while also
driving repeat purchases should be key objectives for all
luxury brands.
In addition, the ability to turn online or boutique visitors
into actual customers is as important as driving trafc.
Also, efciency should always be measured and opti-
mized to lower operational costs and positively impact the
bottom line.
A centralized multichannel strategy and the right technol-
ogy to help achieve efciency, according to Mr. Benazzo.
Brands should use technology to automate and centralize
communications as well as limit redundancy.
This technology should be used to centralize customer in-
formation and their communication preferences to ensure
that brands are reaching consumers on their preferred
platform be it Web, mobile or print.
Luxury brands are constantly challenged to produce rich-
er and more personalized content that is up to par with
their image and price points, Mr. Benazzo said.
Clienteling client-facing, personalized CRM and the
ability to tailor the message to each contact is an impor-
tant part of that, he said.
A unique multichannel solution designed to simplify and
centralize clienteling then becomes a crucial element for
brands to market themselves.
Best-practice tips

Limit redundancy: centralize customer infor-
mation and their communication preferences
Think mobile: SMS, MMS, apps and mobile
access to the Web site
Continue to support one-on-one communica-
tions but only with select segments that are
worthy of the attention
Multichannel marketing is no longer an option
A Q&A with Afuent Insights Chris Ramey
ultichannel marketing is no longer an option for
luxury brands since afuent consumers expect
brands to be present on all the channels that they
use at all times.
Luxury brands need to remember that a multichan-
nel approach reinforces a brands story and ofers the
opportunity to drive consumers to additional plat-
forms. As technology increases, it is hard for brands
to decide on which medium to focus, although a
unied message is key no matter which channel
they choose.
Multichannel marketing is necessary because in
a highly-fragmented environment, no one chan-
nel can drive enough business or elevate an orga-
nization, said Chris Ramey, president of Afuent
Insights, Miami.
The best marketers are using the strengths of each me-
dium, he said.
Mr. Ramey discusses the multichannel shopper and how
luxury brands can devise a unied multichannel campaign
in this interview.
Is there such a thing as a multichannel afuent con-
sumer or luxury shopper?
Luxury shoppers are often multichannel, but brands
should not assume a luxury shopper is necessarily an
afuent consumer.
However, multichannel marketing is necessary because
in a highly fragmented environment, no one channel can
drive enough business or elevate an organization.
Every company, depending upon their targeted cli-
ents, will generally nd a channel that is best-suit-
ed for them and then use other channels to support
that platform.
Because all consumers are diferent, there is no right plat-
form for all brands.
It is safe to say that historically
for luxury brands, print has
been the main platform and it
will not go away.
However, the evolution of ad-
ditional channels will change.
What denes a successful
multichannel strategy for luxury brands?
Continuity, efectiveness and ROI are the main signiers of
a campaigns success.
The important pieces to obtaining success are to under-
stand your customer, understand what resonates with
your customer and understand the metrics and benets
of each category.
Marketing is not as simple as it used to be.
Should a particular retail channel lead over others?
Each retail channel has strengths and weaknesses,
just as each product category has unique strengths
and weaknesses in how it is purchased and can
be marketed.
The best marketers understand and leverage their particu-
lar sweet spot.
Historically, luxury customers or afuent consumers made
their purchases
in-store, but the
Internet is turn-
ing that upside
down and no one
can ignore that
any longer.
That is one of
the reasons we
call bricks-and-
mortar stores
br i ckas aur us,
M
because no one can guarantee the relevance of bricks-
and-mortar.
Where should marketing focus in a multichannel eco-
system?
An ecosystem is by denition dependent on interacting
and competing forces.
Success comes from the proper balance for your particular
category, so there is no one right way.
For instance, who is to say in the future the luxury sales-
person will not go to the luxury shopper?
There are concierge doctors, after all.
We cannot predict what the future is, but I would hold of
on any 10-year leases.
Will digital media, such as online and mobile, redene
the multichannel in luxury?
Digital media is a channel which you may ignore or em-
ploy. It is rare when a marketer luxury or otherwise has
an unlimited budget.
Good marketers have choices, and they know how to say
no and when to say yes.
There is, however, a corporate evolution at play.
For example, digital is no longer free, and publishing is
alive and well.
The initial fast growth in digital media was the result of
the perception that digital is free.
Companies often handed digital in-house and, therefore,
it was budgeted diferently.
As the market grows, everyone has to take a second look
at where their dollars are being invested.
Successful managers take a broad view of the entire
ecosystem and then strategize and invest appropriately
without bias.
Innovation and knowing where consumers and luxury
customers are is more important than ever before.
Mobile marketing engages consumers during purchasing process
By Kayla Hutzler
obile marketing is no longer disputed by luxury
brands since it ofers a direct way to interact with
consumers at all diferent levels of engagement.
The mobile platform can inform and excite new consumers
about a particular brand through QR codes and engaging
mobile apps. In addition, mobile marketing is important
to stay top-of-mind and drive sales with new consumers.
Luxury brands should be using [mobile] as a marketing
channel to immediately deliver more engaging, targeted
brand experiences to consumers captivated, motivated
or interested in [learning] more from brands, said Jane
McPherson, CMO of SpyderLynk, Denver.
[This] provides the opportunity for a deeper connection
to consumers by engaging targeted consumers in one-to-
one marketing dialogues, she said.
Mobile masses
Mobile marketing is quickly becoming the No. 1 concern
for retail brands.
The ability to provide consumers with immediate informa-
tion, regardless of which stage of the purchasing process
a consumer is in at the time, is one of the biggest assets
that mobile marketing brings to the table.
For example, mobile QR codes or SnapTags can intrigue
new consumers through print or out-of-home advertise-
ments to learn more about the brand through its mobile-
optimized site.
In addition, mobile marketing can provide consumers who
are in-store with an opportunity to learn more about a
product through a bar code or SnapTag.
Also, brands can use mobile features such as SMS and mo-
bile applications to keep previous customers engaged with
the brand and its new oferings.
Most afuent consumers are using smartphones or tablets
on a daily basis.
This makes mobile
apps, bar codes and
SnapTags a good way
for luxury market-
ers to increase their
brand reach and
help them reduce
marketing waste.
Marketers can eas-
ily build a brand-
specic mobile mar-
keting database of
consumers who want to hear regularly from a brand, Ms.
McPherson said.
M
This mobile database marketing opportunity allows a
marketer to maintain a relationship with target consum-
ers, she said.
Snapping up consumers
Before a mobile campaign can be put into action on the
consumer side, a marketer needs to establish a business
objective for the campaign.
Objectives can range from delighting consumers with ad-
ditional content to driving a sale through a SnapTag, bar
code or messaging campaign.
Luxury brands should also take into consideration the
needs of the target consumer when devising their mobile
strategy, according to Ms. McPherson.
Consumers needs can range from functional to emotional.
For example, consumers glancing through a brands cata-
log may want more information on product features prior
to making a buying decision.
In addition, consumers browsing a magazine might be
best-engaged with a brand-experience campaign.
Overall, the main objective of any marketing campaign is
to increase brand awareness.
Often times the best way to engage consumers through a
mobile campaign is to include a call-to-action.
The call-to-action needs to be prominent so that an af-
uent consumer who often does not have much free time
sees the value
of participating.
[Mobile mar-
keting] provides
the opportunity
to build a seg-
mented database
of consumers
interested in an
ongoing rela-
tionship with
a brand, Ms.
McPherson said.
SnapTag campaigns [particularly] accelerate purchase cy-
cles by enabling marketers to craft campaigns that impact
a consumers entire path to purchase, she said.
[This includes] engaging, inuencing, informing or in-
centing based on the consumer opportunity and the mar-
keting objective, she said.

Best-practice tips
Start with a business objective and a target
market
Craft a campaign that is of interest to the target
consumer
Create a sustainable relationship with customers
Content is key for mobile apps
By Kayla Hutzler
obile applications give luxury brands a chance to
engage and interact with afuent consumers in
ways that ofers product information and harmo-
nizes the brand with the luxury lifestyle.
Mobile apps should not only include product information,
but current technology allows brands to create interac-
tive, multimedia content that engages consumers in a way
the coincides with the afuent lifestyle. Luxury brands also
need to consider the devices that their target consumers
are using and optimize their presence on these devices.
Interactive multimedia components allow consumers to
connect with the brand on a whole new level, said Laura
Woolston, marketing manager at Mobclix, a Velti company
in San Francisco.
For many consumers, this is the only opportunity for them
to feel part of the brand and get an inside look, she said.
Content is king
Engaging content is a must for all luxury brands that
choose to create a mobile app.
Particularly for afuent consumers, simply providing a
mobile-optimized site with product information is not
enough to keep the consumer engaged with a luxury
branded mobile app.
To stay ahead of third-party retailers that create a lifestyle
around content such as Net-A-Porter, luxury brands need
to provide engaging, interactive multimedia content on
their mobile apps.
Mobile apps that host games, editorial and video content
will increase the amount of time that a consumer spends
with the brand per app visit.
Content will also increase the instances of luxury consum-
ers visiting the app in between purchases.
This allows the luxury brand to stay top-of-mind in be-
tween each luxury purchase, which for products such as
luxury cars can be as long as three years.
Video and multimedia components will denitely engage
consumers more than static images, Ms. Woolston said.
On average, an app will see at least a three times increase
in engagement with video, she said.
Device discovery
In addition to creating an engaging app through content,
M
luxury brands should also consider which devices their
target consumers are using.
Most likely, the iPad ofers the largest reach with the least
amount of marketing waste for luxury brands, according
to Ms. Woolston.
Moreover, afuent consumers are more likely to own an
iPad than aspirational consumers. The iPad can also ofer a
better shopping experience than a smartphone because of
the increase of canvas space.
The brand needs to think of both the software and hard-
ware capabilities when choosing what to develop for, Ms.
Woolston said.
Once a brand chooses the platform and creates engaging
content, it needs to make sure that it is continually updat-
ing the content and product oferings.
Constant updates will bring a brands current users back
into the app and keep them engaged with the brand.
Updates are also a great way to push new content and
marketing campaigns.
In the end, content is king and your app will only survive
if it engages with users, Ms. Woolston said.
Also, it is critical that there is a solid marketing plan in
place prior to launch, she said. The rst two weeks of
an apps life is most critical and typically determines how
successful it will be.
Best-practice tips
Invest in user experience. Bringing luxury into the
app experience is key to correctly portraying a
luxury brand
With the number of smartphones increasing,
developers should start planning on expanding
reach and diversifying their platform portfolio
Make sure to listen to users and update the app
and content based on the feedback
Television advertising still holds appeal for luxury brands
By Kayla Hutzler
L
uxury brands cannot disregard traditional television
advertising due to an increase in digital marketing,
since they can use the new technology to increase
their appeal across the masses.
To get the most out of TV advertising campaigns, brands
should focus on developing engaging creative concepts
and displaying this in the appropriate context. Brands
should also consider newer TV channels, such as Google
TV, to cut back on the waste that accompanies mass-
advertising approaches.
TV, for the foreseeable future, will continue to be the
dominant marketing player that it always has been, said
Greg Angland, senior vice president of Blitz Connects,
Waltham, MA.
Fragmentation plays a big role, but people are still watch-
ing [TV] in very high numbers, he said.
First and foremost is to have creative that will engage
with the target audience and will breakthrough and be in-
teresting and be in the appropriate content areas.
Channel surng
Luxury brands need to focus their TV ads on the appropri-
ate channels as well as the appropriate programming.
Too often, brands run a commercial and miss their target
audiences by not concentrating on buying the right day,
time and channel slots to reach these people.
For example, a luxury hotel may want to run a commercial
on a travel channel during the evenings or weekends when
adults are most often home and watching TV.
In addition, brands should include the TV as one factor of
a 360-degree holistic approach, per Mr. Angland.
This can include having a print ad in corresponding pub-
lications, such as running the same campaign on the His-
tory Channel and a historical magazine, or including on-
screen mobile short codes or some other call-to-action.
To reduce waste, luxury brands need to focus on channels
such as CNBC or Fox News, which are more likely to have a
higher percentage of afuent, educated viewers.
In addition, cable channels can rapidly cut down on the
amount of waste that advertisers normally encounter on
network TV.
So often you see content run in areas that is not as di-
rected as it could be, Mr. Angland said.
With the ability to target more tightly using channels like
cable television, you can really understand the prole [of
the viewer] and deliver the right message in the right en-
vironment, he said.
Dividing the masses
New technology, such as GoogleTV, TiVo and iTV are of-
fering ways for brands to cut down on the waste of mass
TV advertising.
These give brands additional addressability opportunities
in terms of prole, Mr. Angland said.
TiVo and iTV overlay, allowing people to request more in-
formation about products, he said.
Google TV allows brands to use the Google search plat-
form to overlay data collection information and build a
national buy with a targeted prole.
The problem is that it is only in about 25 percent of house-
holds, per Mr. Angland.
Still, this technology cannot be the ultimate end-all for
luxury brand TV advertising.
Marketers need to think outside the box and present
themselves in unexpected places that will surprise and
therefore intrigue afuent consumers.
Generally, luxury brands are looking for people who are
willing to spend higher amounts of money, and to align
the quality and the brand which is equally important, Mr.
Angland said.
For example, TV advertising in elevators allows brands to
pick in which professional buildings they want to display
their brands.
Additionally, luxury brands can also think about using Taxi
TV ads to target afuent New York consumers.
Its hard because TV by its very nature is a mass medium,
Mr. Angland said.
The percentage
of the popula-
tion that has the
extra income to
buy luxury goods
is shrinking, so
TV tends to be a
strategy much
further down
the line in luxury
brands market-
ing, he said.
But, [in the end],
its all about being as targeted and relevant as possible.
Best-practice tips
If the brand is going to use TV, it should spend
the appropriate budget to produce a high quality
spot to align the brand appropriately
Take the ability to understand the target to the
best of the brands knowledge and align this
with programing, not only on networks, but also
channels where the message will be relevant and
contextual
If there is a budget to do so, a holistic approach is
a very smart way to do whatever the brand does
on TV also in a print application
Radio is a mass-reach platform that can be highly targeted
By Kayla Hutzler
adio advertising is still a viable way for luxury brands
to reach afuent consumers, particularly if they focus
on radio programming.
While being a mass medium in nature, diferent radio pro-
gramming and station formats allow luxury brands to tar-
get their niche audience. Digital radio, such as Pandora, is
another way for companies to reach afuent consumers
in way that easily connects to a multichannel campaign.
With luxury specically, you have to be careful because
consumers dont want to be hard-sold, they want cred-
ible information and a soft-sell, said Greg Angland, senior
vice president of Blitz Connects, Waltham, MA.
The best strength [of radio] is the theatre of the mind and
allowing people to visualize what you want them to do
and using the imagery of the mind to draw people where
you want them to go, he said.
From the masses
With the wide range of stations and radio programming, it
makes it easy for luxury brands to use the mass-nature of
radio to target a relatively niche audience.
For example, all-news radio channels reach 257 million
people whose personally-owned securities are valued at
$150,000 or more.
In addition, classical music radio stations reach 203 million
people whose homes are valued at more than $500,000.
These programs of-
fer opportunities
for luxury brands to
reach their target
consumers while
they are out-and-
about and possibly
interacting with oth-
er forms of advertis-
ing such as news-
papers or the Web
while they are listening.
Also, digital radio formats such as online radio or satel-
lite radio ofer another way for luxury brands to reach
consumers in a highly-targeted environment. Online ra-
dio stations such as Pandora can easily drive trafc to a
branded Web site or social media page with click-through
visual ads that are accompanied by a traditional radio
ad format.
Additionally, many brands have ads on Pandoras
mobile application.
With Pandora, if you have compelling piece of audio
that will run during the music breaks you can get people
to take action right then and there by having them click
through for more information and go to a landing page,
Mr. Angland said.
Soft sell
In terms of messaging, it is important for luxury brands to
R
convince consumers to take the next step, whether that
is downloading an app, visiting a Web site or joining the
brands social media network.
Afuent consumers do not want to be told what to do
through a hard-sell, and they are not normally interested
in one-day sales or discount deals.
A radio ad has to have a soft-sell aspect to it, which gives
consumers a URL or short code that allows them to get
more information in a way that is convenient for them,
according to Mr. Angland.
By allocating 10 percent of a brands budget to radio, a
brands online search increases 52 percent, according to
a 2010 study by the Radio Advertising Bureau in Britain.

In addition, brands should keep a radio ad message to
the point.
Radio messaging should be concise, compelling
and as engaging as possible, Mr. Angland said.
Just because you can buy a 60-second spot
doesnt mean a brand should if they are going to
ll the rest of it up with music, he said.
Overall, the biggest feature that radio ofers over
other advertising methods is its frequency, which
helps to further drive brand recall.
This can be particularly important in tough eco-
nomic times when even luxury consumers spend
longer amounts of time considering purchases
and viewing them as lifestyle investments.
As afuent consumers are beginning to compare
prices, look for a certain quality level and wait for
bargains from trusted brands, radio represents an
opportunity for advertisers to reect their brands
luxury qualities.
Radio can certainly be efective on both levels
and it still performs very well, Mr. Angland said.
To have it be part of a multichannel approach
will most often yield better results, although ra-
dio can drive retail on all levels, he said.

Best-practice tips
Optimize radio usage with sounds because the
best strength of radio is the theatre of the mind
and allowing people to visualize what the brand
wants them to do
Buy the stations that reach the target audience
and buy them well before moving to others. Do
not try to be on 10 stations instead of using three
relevant ones
Have a call-to-action or a measurement piece to
see how the campaign is performing
Agencies need to understand the nuances of the luxury customer
A Q&A with iProspects Andrea Wilson
any luxury brands pride themselves on their mar-
keting prowess, but behind every luxury brand is
a well-educated and knowledgeable advertising
agency that helped them get there.
Brands may choose to hire a few diferent agencies
for specic needs or one company for a broad market-
ing swoop. However, all luxury brands rely on the sea-
soned opinions of experts who know the ins-and-outs of
the industry.
Luxury brands should expect three main things from their
marketing service partners: providing best industry prac-
tices, recommending new opportunities and understand-
ing the needs of their luxury client, said Andrea Wilson,
Fort Worth, TX-based luxury practice lead at iProspect.
All of this hinges on the ultimate requirement that the
agency has educated opinions and shares them with their
luxury client, even if those opinions difer, she said.
Ms. Wilson discusses best practice and need-to-know in
the relationship between luxury brands and their advertis-
ing agencies in this Q&A.
Are online, performance-based ad agencies getting
their fair share of luxury ad dollars?
There are three main groups of luxury marketers as de-
ned by their investment and focus on online advertising.

The rst and smallest group are the brands that commit
fully to new and current customer growth and retention
by investing appropriately in each of the major online
strategies such as search, display and social.
Like their product, they push to be best-in-class and rst-
to-market by maintaining a broad online portfolio and
pursuing new and appropriate opportunities that match
their customers needs as they come available.
The second largest group are those that maintain a rela-
tively conservative online portfolio by investing in only
some of these main online strategies, or all at small levels.
The biggest miss in this
group is not talking to
the customer in each of
the places they are on the
Web or not completely
focusing on the avail-
able opportunity to its
fullest potential.
The third and most com-
mon group are those
luxury brands that steer away from new forms of market-
ing by continuing to only focus on traditional marketing
outlets such as fashion magazines.
They usually have little to no presence in search engines
and do not participate in display or social advertising.
Clearly, this group will struggle with brand awareness and
new customer growth, especially as their customers time
spent online evolves.

In a perfect world, the majority of luxury brands should
be in the rst group, committing to fully participating in
digital performance programs.
However, the majority of brands fall into a much more
conservative last-to-market group that continues to focus
nearly solely in traditional, non-digital forms of marketing.
This is a big loss in terms of new customer growth, current
customer afnity, awareness and potential online revenue.

How can luxury brands stand out in a fragmented ad,
marketing and media market?
Luxury brands can stand out by leading new and innova-
tive advertising formats and technologies.
Being rst-to-market and innovative is a fast way to gen-
erate buzz, versus waiting until other brands participate
before executing a digital strategy.
Luxury brand products are fresh and best-in-class, so lux-
M
ury brands digital marketing campaigns should be as well.
Luxury brands should also look at campaigns holistically
by ensuring that there is equally weighted representation
in each major marketing outlet, both online and ofine.
This will ensure the brand audience sees a consistent mes-
sage, from banner ads, search copy and Facebook images,
to magazine ads, TV commercials and billboards.

What should luxury brands
expect from their marketing
service partners?
Luxury brands should expect three
main things from their marketing
service partners: providing best
industry practices, recommend-
ing new opportunities and under-
standing the needs of each specic
luxury client.
All of this hinges on the ultimate
requirement that the agency part-
ner has educated opinions and
shares them with their luxury cli-
ent, even if those opinions difer.
There should be frequent and
healthy discussions between an
agency and the brand to ensure
that the strategies are executed as
strong as possible.
Agency partners should know the
best practices of digital strategies
and be able to communicate and
execute those efectively.
They should also be tracking and
reporting results, as well as com-
municating lessons learned and
recommendations for the future.
Partners should also be constantly
bringing new opportunities and
ideas to their luxury clients, shar-
ing new technologies and well-
thought out strategies to ensure
luxury brands digital marketing strategies constantly
evolve and move forward.
Finally, agency partners need to have a strong understand-
ing of their clients business.
From the brand voice that appears in all marketing to the
typical approval process, agencies need to understand the
the luxury customer and the brands unique needs.
This understanding will ultimately make the entire rela-
tionship and results stronger and easier to maintain.
Could you ofer three best-practice tips for efective
luxury marketing in the digital space?
Have a well-functioning Web site that focuses on product
and brand education and ease of purchasing.
This means featuring a full product catalog using full
images and various views, as well as detailed information
about the product as well as pricing.
Additionally, functions that make it easy to purchase, such
as click to buy, saved personal purchasing information,
iPad and mobile functionality and store location detail to
buy ofine.
Know where the luxury customers are when they are on-
line and ask them what they want and expect from a brand.
This will help guide a brands digital strategies and also
allow its customers to know the brand, respect its opinion
and want to satisfy them.
Invest and focus on digital strategies that place a brand
where its customers are and where they want the brand
to be.
This will likely include search engines, content Web sites
and social networks.
Luxury consumers are denitely on search engines, so fully
fund luxury brand search programs.
Brands should cover 100 percent of demand on their
trademarks and product terms and invest to some level in
non-brand category terms to grow brand awareness and
new customers.
Show the luxury of the brand in the image of display ads,
either through direct buys with appropriate sites that its
customers frequent, or through specic behavior.
For example, remessaging, remarketing or retargeting dis-
play programs are a very strong way to share brands dis-
play ads with visitors that have been to their Web sites but
have not purchased.
Most premium networks allow brands to hand-select the
sites they want to appear on and the results are high in
revenue return and new customer growth.
If luxury customers are telling brands they want to see
them on Facebook and Twitter and that is an appropriate
outlet for the brand, put together a social strategy that
the brand is comfortable with, and use the agency for its
ideas as well.

Is the future of luxury online, mobile and store?
Not only is the future of luxury online, mobile and store, it
is as much the future as it is the now.
It is all about ease.
Customers want to learn about and buy luxury products in
the way most convenient to them.
That is almost always by going online rst, through their
mobile or tablet, then going in-store.
Luxury brands need to ensure that they are appropri-
ately investing in search, display and social strategies to
reach new customers and communicate with their current
customer base.
Once those customers go to their Web site, luxury brands
need to ensure their Web site shares extensive product in-
formation and images, and makes it conveniently easy to
nd and buy products.
Cause, event marketing allows innovative, personal experiences
By Rachel Lamb
rivate events and fundraisers have often been a key
opportunity for luxury brands to connect with their
most valued customers while proving their loyalty to
a charity or ofering special deals.
Many experts are encouraging brands to collaborate with
others so that they can further expand their customer
base. Indeed, cause-related events present opportunities
for brands to get innovative and creative, which will de-
light the afuent consumer.
Events are helpful to a luxury brand for a number of rea-
sons, said Greg Furman, CEO of the Luxury Marketing
Council, New York.
They are high-touch and allow for a level of intimacy that
broader media such as direct mail or Web do not have,
he said.
When I say high-touch, it means that it allows market-
ers to meet prospective or actual clients directly, giving
them the ability to showcase a venue, product or services
in ways that set them apart from competitors.
Series of events
One of the best reasons to collaborate with another brand
in cause-related marketing is the opportunity for an in-
creased client list.
Hypothetically, if a luxury automaker connected with an
upscale hotel and restaurant and all three invited their
best clients, then each brand would have access to those
quite similar to their best customers.
Indeed, if the event allowed consumers to bring guests,
there is a good chance that they would also be the kind of
customer that luxury brands target.
The consumers and their friends probably are within the
same demographic and would enjoy or be able to spend
money at the event, Mr. Furman said. Birds of a feather
ock together.
Not only will this increase the
number of consumers that brands
can connect with, but it also al-
lows them to collect data and
push sales and promotions on a
special and customized basis.
Luxury brands that use event mar-
keting to showcase their partner-
ship with a particular non-contr-
voersial charity are the savviest.
If you auction things of and
give proceeds to a charity, it just
P
of their best customers so that those consumers truly
feel special.
Brands should try to do well by doing good, Mr. Furman
said. It is increasingly important for brands to show that
they are good citizens and they are motivated to give back
and are involved as good corporate citizens.
Best-practice tips
Look for kindred spirit brands to partner with to
share cost and partnership
Intimacy of events is now the way to go. People
want that sense of being part of a smaller inti-
mate group
The customer is hungry to know what is the best
of the best, but they do not want to be talked
down to. Allow them to enjoy the experience and
talk about what a special experience the brand
provided them
sweetens the mix, Mr. Furman said. The charity wins, the
brand wins for getting more clients and the consumers
feel good about themselves.
Its win-win-win, he said.
Customization is key
Brands need to remember to customize these events.
Discounting is not important nor impressive to afuent
consumers, since money is not a problem.
However, these types of consumers denitely respond
to customization.
If consumers are going to pay high prices for goods and
services, then luxury brands need to do their best to in-
crease CRM and prove that they know their customers.
Therefore, inviting customers to an event is a great oppor-
tunity to show them how valuable they are to the brand.
This is especially convenient if brands invite only 100
Internet is the biggest legal challenge for luxury brands
By Rachel Lamb
lthough the Web presents many opportunities for
luxury marketers looking to engage with consum-
ers, it can also be one of the most dangerous tools
against them.
Privacy, copyright and counterfeit issues are only in-
creased by the openess of the Internet. Luxury brands need
to make sure that they are careful to protect their brands
reputation and image while making the most of the Web.
The Internet is perhaps the biggest battle for any luxury
brand today, said Martin J. Feinberg, partner at Olshan
Grundman Frome Rosenzweig & Wolosky LLP, New York.
With the Internets ever-growing presence, all luxury
brands need to develop and implement international en-
forcement strategies to protect their valuable intellectual
property rights, he said.
Protecting assets
Even more important than monetary value, the biggest as-
set to a luxury brand is its name and reputation.
This is why it is so crucial for a brand to defend itself on
the Web.
One of the main assets that needs to be protected is a
brands domain name, per Mr. Feinberg.
Most luxury brands have an online presence, but the few
that do not may need to get on there in case unauthorized
retailers try to sell luxury branded products.
That said, the sale of counterfeit goods online is also a
huge market.
These battles need to be fought on several diferent fronts,
including domain name and copyright infringements, as
well as the sale of counterfeit products, Mr. Feinberg said.
The need for such strategies has been further reinforced
by ICANNs [Internet Corporate for Assigned Names and
A
Numbers] announce-
ment regarding the
expansion of generic
top-level domains be-
yond the current dot-
com, dot-net and dot-
org and the worldwide
proliferation of coun-
terfeit goods being
sold via the Internet,
he said.
Take it in-house
Brands cannot take the
dangers of the Inter-
net lightly and should
implement security to
protect themselves.
Brands should de-
nitely assemble a team
of professionals with
enforcement experience, per Mr. Feinberg.
The companies should have both in-house counsel and
paralegals as well as outside counsel such as investiga-
tors and Internet search companies to support the luxury
brands eforts.
The large luxury conglomerates such as LVMH Mot Hen-
nessy Louis Vuitton, Richemont and PPR have extensive
in-house anti-counterfeiting and privacy teams.
Furthermore, other luxury brands such as Tory Burch,
Burberry, Louis Vuitton and Cartier have recently won bat-
tles against unaccredited third-party Internet sites that
were illegally selling branded products.
The most efective means of policing the Internet is to take
as many precautions as possible, Mr. Feinberg said.
Based upon the budget allocated by the brand, this team
can then identify the Internet issues and develop an efec-
tive and cost-efcient strategy, Mr. Feinberg said.
Best-practice tips
Identify the scope of the problems
Determine a budget to address the problems
Most importantly, maintain a realistic view as to
what can and cannot be accomplished with the
allocated budget
Trademark, legal back-up key to protecting luxury brand privacy
By Rachel Lamb
nfortunately, the most common enemy plaguing the
luxury industry is counterfeit activity or trademark
infringement and the most useful protection is ex-
tensive legal back-up and trademark protection.
Whether it is an unaccredited third party or an alleged
trademark infringement by a competitor, there have been
many instances recently that have luxury brands putting
their sts up. Since there is not an actual way to com-
pletely stop counterfeit products, many experts nd that
legal support yields the best results.
We generally nd that the brands with the most suc-
cess in dealing with the problem of counterfeiting take a
holistic approach to the issue, said Travis Johnson, vice
president of legislative afairs and policy at the Interna-
tional Anti-Counterfeiting Coalition, Washington. You re-
ally have to consider brand protection from end-to-end in
your supply chain.
Beginning at the point of manufacture particularly if
the products or components thereof are manufactured
overseas, or by contractors brands need to keep close
tabs on their materials and how theyre being used, as well
as how any excess, waste or overruns are being disposed
of or recycled, he said.
Piracy protection
Unaccredited third-party vendors are common in the Chi-
natown district of New Yorks Manhattan and the beaches
of Europe.
Luxury watchmak-
ers, jewelers and
handbags are the
brands that sufer
the most. In fact,
Louis Vuitton, Cha-
nel and Rolex are
the most knocked-
of designer brands
in the world.
While those are
easy to spot, some
vendors are sneak-
ier about their ille-
gal handling of fake
luxury products.
Many Web sites are
now in the business
of selling luxury
products that are
either fake or the
unauthorized by the
luxury companies.
Agreements with third-party contractors or vendors
should include explicit provisions regarding acceptable
and unacceptable practices, as well as clear authority for
the brand owner to conduct oversight, inspection and au-
diting of the goods, Mr. Johnson said.
Maintaining strict practices with regard to labels, tags
and incorporating a variety of overt and covert indicators
of authenticity is also useful for brands trying to stay a
step ahead of counterfeiters, he said.
The next step is convincing consumers that luxury prod-
ucts are worth the prices that they are expected to pay.
Reminding consumers of a brands heritage, as well as the
unbeatable value, craftsmanship and pride that comes
with a luxury product, will help them to steer clear of
counterfeit products.
Although brands usually do not have a difcult time sway-
ing the truly afuent, it is the younger, aspirational con-
sumers that need to be watched.
More than the monetary value, a poorly-made product
passing of as a luxury good could damage the brands
reputation and dissuade future customers from buying.
One of the most important things a brand can do and a
U
consideration that is sometimes overlooked is to engage
their customers, to educate them not only about the harm
caused to the company by the trafcking of counterfeit
goods, but also the broader harms caused by that illegal
activity, Mr. Johnson said.
Trademark infringement
Nonetheless, a luxury brands biggest competitor is not
third-party sources it is other luxury brands.
Quite a few pairs, such as Polo Ralph Lauren Corp. versus
the United States Polo Association or Christian Louboutin
versus Yves Saint Laurent, have proved that luxury brands
need to protect themselves from competitors as well as
third parties trying to make a quick buck of of tourists.
To do this, many brands have sought trademarks on cer-
tain logos, colors and emblems.
For instance, Ralph Lauren won a battle against the Polo
Association because the logo on its fragrance looked too
similar to the luxury brands trademarked polo pony.
Additionally, Christian Louboutin is slowly gaining ground
in the lawsuit against Yves Saint Laurent because the for-
mer claimed a trademark on red-soled shoes.
Logos and colors become synonymous with certain luxury
brands, especially when the public connects them.
In this case, the only way to protect from trademark in-
fringement is to do so legally.
It probably goes without saying that brands need to reg-
ister their trademarks wherever theyre selling their goods,
and preferably in any market into which they intend to
expand their operations, Mr. Johnson said.
Where the opportunity is available, they should also re-
cord their intellectual property rights with the local cus-
toms agencies, he said. Taking the time to provide train-
ing to customs and other law enforcement ofcials, to
assist in identifying counterfeit product, helps in the inter-
diction of counterfeit goods before they reach the market,
and also helps to put a face on the brand.
It lets law enforcement know that this is an issue your
company cares about, and that your company is commit-
ted to providing any assistance that might be needed.
Best-practice tips
Make agreements with third-party retailers to sell
products that include explicit provisions regard-
ing acceptable practices, as well as clear authority
for the brand owner to conduct oversight, inspec-
tion, and auditing of the goods
Register trademarks wherever they are selling
goods and any market in which they plan to ex-
pand operations
Brands should record their intellectual property
rights with local customs agencies to ensure that
ofcials have a direct point of contact
Holistic multichannel approach is vital for driving in-store sales
By Kayla Hutzler
ultichannel
marketing is
increasingly
efective in driv-
ing sales and inu-
encing purchasing
decisions for retail
luxury brands.
Luxury shoppers are
not using one chan-
nel to discover new
products. Afuent
consumers are now
increasingly seeing a brand in a magazine, researching it
online and going in-store to make the nal purchase.
All brands today need to think multichannel, including
luxury brands, said Kim Edlin, vice president of market
management for retail at Epsilon Targeting, New York.
To be successful, marketers should focus on communicat-
ing meaningful and targeted messages across channels to
their audience of high-potential buyers, she said.
Efective multichannel campaigns start with targeting
buyer needs.
360 degrees
Multichannel marketing is no longer an option for luxury
brands, whose target consumers are opting-in to a vari-
ety of diferent platforms each day such as mobile, print
magazines, surng online, watching television or listening
to the radio.
A successful marketing approach presents consumers with
a holistic approach and boasts a unied message across
all channels.
Brands have the highest chance to increase sales when
they approach consumers on all communication levels
and allow them to nd a brand on whichever medium
they choose.
[Overall], luxury marketers should aim to build awareness
and inuence purchase decisions, Ms. Edlin said.
The most efective marketing also takes into account
consumer data.
Researching and analyzing the way a brands target con-
sumers spend their money, such as mostly online or mostly
in-store, will help a brand decide on the leading channels
in their marketing strategies.
The entire multichannel campaign should be planned and
executed to deliver a cadence of communication that con-
tinually advances brand consideration and leverages what
you know about the individual, culminating with the nal
purchase decision, Ms. Edlin said.
Traditionally, print and direct contact through mail, follow-
up phone calls and email were the most efective ways for
luxury brands to reach their target consumers and encour-
age in-store sales.
M
However, digital is becoming increasingly important as
more afuent consumers are using their smartphones and
tablets to research products while they are on-the-go.
Geo-targeting
One way to drive consumers in-store and increase sales
through mobile is to use geolocation applications.
Digital has created new opportunities to reach the con-
sumer where and when they are engaged with your brand,
Ms. Edlin said.
Brands are beginning to drive consumers to their bricks-
and-mortar stores by texting consumers with real-time
information on deals and events in their local stores.
In addition, geolocation mobile apps allow a consumer to
seamlessly research a product and nd out if it is available
in their local stores.
Engaging with consumers when theyre in the neighbor-
hood to stop by the retail store is becoming a reality, Ms.
Edlin said.
If a luxury brand chooses to implement mobile advertising
as a lead part of their multichannel campaign, it needs to
ensure every aspect of the campaign is up-to-par with the
luxury brands status and quality.
For example, a luxury brand should have a quick-loading,
mobile-optimized site that consumers can click-through
to from the banner ad.
As with all channels, communicating a clear, concise and
compelling mes-
sage is essential,
Ms. Edlin said.
As long as a
brands present a
unied message
and align every
campaign with
their core values
an, they are likely
to increase sales
with a multi-
channel approach.
According to our recent multichannel trend report, mul-
tichannel repeat buyers alone spend nearly twice as much
as buyers who come in through a single channel, such as
purely online, Ms. Edlin said.
Each channel presents unique opportunities and chal-
lenges, she said. But the best approach is an integrat-
ed program across the channels in which consumers
are engaged.
Best-practice tips
Ensure messaging is consistent in all channels
Ensure multichannel campaigns are coordinated
in terms of timing. with email, direct and display.
to optimize the contact strategy
Drive potential buyers to the store, bricks-and-
mortar and online, and ensure sales associates
or customer service representatives are poised
and prepared to inuence the nal
purchase decision

Communicate an over-simplied message to luxury consumers
I
A Q&A with Ries & Ries Al Ries
n an era of
brand exten-
sions and trial
runs on diferent
products, some
luxury brands are
having trouble
nding their true
voice. In some cas-
es, it is not what
brands say, but
how they say it.
Luxury marketers, more than ever, are realizing the true
power of their brand and what they mean to consumers.
However, the most important thing is the message that
gets across in the right voice and medium to avoid
confusing customers.
Ironically, the more marketing messages that circulate,
the more important it becomes to have a simple, easily-
understood message, said Al Ries, chairman of marketing
strategy consultancy Ries & Ries, Roswell, GA.
The answer to an over-communicated society is the over-
simplied message, he said.
In this interview, Mr. Ries discusses focus, getting the
company message across and the power of branding.
Do most luxury brands have focus?
Brands cant be a well-known luxury brand without a fo-
cus. So, yes, most successful luxury brands have a focus.
However, they are not necessarily expressed verbally.
For example, Mercedes-Benz is widely perceived as a
prestige vehicle, but the brand never mentions this fact in
its advertising.
Most luxury brands have achieved their focuses through
publicity, not advertising look at the publicity brands
such as Chanel have received over the years.
How key is positioning in an age when consumers
are bombarded with hundreds of thousands of daily
marketing messages?
Ironically, the more marketing messages that circulate,
the more important it becomes to have a simple, easily-
understood message.
The answer to an over-communicated society is the over-
simplied message.
The brand is everything for a luxury manufacturer,
retailer or service provider. Is that notion understood?
In working with luxury manufacturers in many diferent
categories, we nd they all understand the power of the
luxury brand.
Even consumers in todays economy will willingly pay
more for a brand they want than a comparable product
with a little-known brand.
There is something reassuring about buying a well-known
brand, especially for a luxury product.
You might say that luxury products need brands more
than ordinary household products.
What are some of the biggest mistakes that luxury
brands are currently making that could hurt their
sales in this economy?
Selling products at big discounts.
Many high-end retailers are making this mistake and they
are teaching consumers to wait for a sale before they buy.
Its not a luxury product, but some of the strongest brands
today are marketed by Apple.
Apple never runs a sale on its products. There are never
ads that say, Buy one iPad, get one free.
As a result, this brand is incredibly strong and Apple is the
second most-valuable company in the world.
Are brand extensions a good or bad sign for the fu-
ture of luxury?
Brand extensions might increase sales and prots, but
generally they detract from the value of the brand.
Some brands, however, are so strong that the efect of line
extensions are hardly noticed. Ralph Lauren, for example,
might be one of these brands.
Most luxury brands, however, are going to be better of if
they avoid line extensions.
Rolex, for example, is focused on watches and has become
the largest-selling luxury watch brand in the world.
Social media adds personal experience to aspirational consumers
By Rachel Lamb
uxury brands that use social media platforms such as
Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, foursquare and blogs are
in a unique position to add a personal element when
engaging with fans.
Most brands are using the sites to push promotions, exclu-
sive ofers and contests. However, the especially savvy are
tapping social media as a vehicle to showcase new cam-
paign photos and videos.
Social media gives luxury brands a chance to interact, on
a somewhat personal level, with brand enthusiasts who
take the time to raise their hand and say, Im a fan of
this brand, I want a relationship with this brand, said Ron
Schott, senior strategist at Spring Creek Group, Seattle.
In those cases, its a direct delivery method that gives
them a chance to target users they know already have an
afnity for the brand and who share content with their
networks, he said.
Getting personal
Quite a few brands are using social media to deliver a more
personalized message to consumers.
For example, many designers choose to show their person-
ality on social sites to connect to fans or followers on
their pages.
Marc Jacobs and Robert Dufy from Marc Jacobs, Frida Gi-
annini from Gucci, Diane von Furstenberg from Diane von
Furstenberg, Stefano Gabbana and Domenico Dolce from
Dolce & Gabbana and Christopher Bailey from Burberry
have all made guest appearances on their brands social
media pages.
While some designers such as Burberrys Mr. Bailey just
wish consumers happy holidays or tell them about a new
campaign, others such as Mr. Jacobs post personal family
and vacation pictures.
Other brands personally reach out to consumers.
Many upscale department
stores including Berg-
dorf Goodman, Harrods,
Bloomingdales, Nordstrom,
Barneys New York and Nei-
man Marcus poll consum-
ers on new products or ask
them about their weekend
plans.
Interacting with fans in a
way that gives them some-
thing they dont get in ev-
eryday media is always im-
portant, Mr. Schott said.
When you look at suc-
cessful luxury campaigns,
theyre always working
with a sense of exclusiv-
ity, whether it is actual or
L
manufactured, he said.
Videos, photos and access to special deals make fans feel
like they have information that is beyond the normal pop-
ulation thats what luxury in social is all about.
How much is too much?
Although being social is the point of social networks, there
are denitely some limits for luxury brands.
Brands that rely too heavily on social media could risk
damaging their luxury status, since sites such as Facebook
and Twitter appeal to all consumers and luxury brands
need only to target a niche audience.
[This] all depends on the content, Mr. Schott said.
People have a chance to take part in the networks, but
not necessarily have the chance to buy a luxury prod-
uct or ever contribute monetarily to a luxury brand,
he said.
After all, social networks should aim to connect with as-
pirational, younger consumers since luxury brands realize
that their target customers are older and are not usually
on social media.
Therefore, this channel is better used as an acquisition
tool, and to collect data on consumers for when they are
able to spend money on branded products in the future.
What social media does ofer, however, is an easy way to
take a snapshot of a fanbase and analyze those fans, Mr.
Schott said.
If a luxury brand sees expansion of afnity for their brand
in a new, emerging audience they can shift focus and cater
to that audience, which might not have been focused on
before, but now has a chance to purchase their products,
he said.
Best-practice tips
Know the audience. If brands do not know how they
act on social media, all the content in the world
is not going to reach their marketing objectives
Have a strategy and see it through to measure,
rene and redirect, if needed
Likes, community sizes, retweets and video
views are all good, but only if brands know what
they mean and how they are turning those
actions into dollars
Direct mail is more relevant now then in past decades
By Kayla Hutzler
s digital continues to dominate the marketing
world, opportunities are arising for luxury brands
to amp-up their direct print mail marketing.
There is currently less spam print mail being sent to con-
sumers houses with the increasing concern over being
environmentally-conscience combined with domination
of email as a touch point. This means that consumers are
more likely to open a branded piece of direct mail than
they have been for the past few years.
Marketers know that good customers still like to engage
with the brand at multiple touch points, said Neil OKeefe,
senior director of CRM at The Home Depot, Atlanta.
Who doesnt like to get a letter from a friend or a card at
holiday time? he said.
If your customers are highly engaged with your brand,
theyll appreciate this communication as well and will be-
come even greater advocates of your brand.
Youve got mail
The most engaging direct mail items are catalogs, accord-
ing to Mr. OKeefe.
This is because Web sites often fail to communicate the
luxury or exclusiveness of a high-end ofering that can be
done through beautiful, printed catalog imagery.
However, a postcard, letter or store-trafc driver is still a
great way to stay top-of-mind with consumers.
A brands main goal for any type of direct marketing
should rst and foremost be to build a relationship with
the target consumer.
Mail volume, in general, has dropped signicantly. This
provides the best opportunity in years for luxury brands to
be able to stand out with their message.
Building a relationship is highly based on personalization
A
that makes the consumer feel impor-
tant and special.
This can be done through addressing
the card to the right names, provid-
ing relevant ofers based on past pur-
chases and spending behavior or sim-
ply providing relevant location-based
products and information.
Regardless of the format, be it a
catalog or pamphlet, all direct mail
marketing should be part of a multi-
channel approach.
[Print should] be integrated and per-
sonalized using QR codes and URLs
that allow for a true cohesive market-
ing approach, Mr. OKeefe said.
No free lunch
Personally-addressed mail is not going
to be a large enough gesture for luxury
brands to sell products.
Brands must also aim to create high-
ly-creative direct mailings that will engage and entice
afuent consumers.
Luxury consumers expect all brand touch points to por-
tray the same high-quality standards associated with the
brand itself.
After all, any type of printed marketing is a reection of
the brands craftsmanship.
Therefore, the direct mail piece must also align with the
brands reputation and relate to its target audience.
If a brand sends out a boring piece of mail that does not
speak directly to the recipient and lacks relevancy, then
the brand may quickly lose a lot of money.
Cost is often the biggest challenge faced by luxury brands
looking to engage consumers via direct mail. However, Mr.
OKeefe feels that if done correctly, direct mail is worth the
higher price of materials.
Most direct marketers still spend more on print than on
any other form of marketing, and with good reason, Mr.
OKeefe said.
Print still generates the highest response rates, he said.
And, compared to non-direct marketing, it still has a
higher ROI.
Best-practice tips
Make the mailing relevant. Do not mail a promo-
tion from a luxury brand to someone without the
desire or resources to purchase
On the printed piece, give consumers choices of
QR codes, phone numbers, store locations, Web
address and social media
Make sure the database is current and honor cus-
tomers communication preferences. Do not use
old data and do not mail someone who does not
wish to receive mail from the brand
Mail catalogs efective when part of a multichannel approach
By Kayla Hutzler
ail catalogs are still a great, physical touch point
to interact with afuent consumers as well as
drive Web trafc and sales.
On average, mail catalogs spend 90 days in a consumers
home, making them a reliable way to increase brand recall
and engage shoppers. Creative content and strong call-to-
action will make a brands mail catalogs successful.
A catalog is a printed salesperson for your company, said
John Schulte, president of the National Mail Order Asso-
ciation, Minneapolis.
It reaches out and introduces, reinforces and builds
a w a r e n e s s ,
while creat-
ing desire, and
driving sales,
he said.
The great thing
about market-
ing with cata-
logs and other
mail formats is
that there are
really so many
creative options
to draw from
for their strategic creation.
Goal line
To optimize a mail catalog, a brand rst needs to decide
what the major goal of the catalog is, per Mr. Schulte.
A brand needs to decide what its main goals
are for the catalog and how it will measure the
catalogs success.
The three most-popular goals of mail catalogs are bottom-
line prot, trafc generation to a brands Web site, store
or third-party outlet and reinforcing a brands image,
according to Mr. Schulte.
After a brand
decides on these
major factors,
then it can start
laying out the
strategy that will
optimize the ROI
for a catalog.
No matter what a
brands end goal,
all catalogs need
to have a strong
call-to-action.
After your catalog awakens the desire in a customer to
buy your product, you need to tell your customer what
you want them to do, and why they should do it right
now, Mr. Schulte said.
For example, if a brand wants people to visit its Web site, it
needs to give consumers a reason to do so, such as ofer-
ing a discount if they order this week or that day.
The same tactics can be used to drive in-store trafc.
People enjoy getting their catalogs, especially the baby
boomers that grew up with them and have money to
spend, Mr. Schulte said.
Printing press
Direct mail cata-
logs should also
be part of a larger,
360 campaign.
To start, a brands
Web site should
certainly have a
prominent but-
ton for request-
ing a catalog, as
well as an incen-
M
tive for consumers to sign up such as exclusive items or
free shipping.
Having a consumer sign up for a catalog also allows a
brand to capture more information about its audience, in-
cluding location and phone number.
In addition, every print ad should also have a well-placed
mention of the brands catalog along with a toll-free
number for ordering it.
If Im sitting at the doctors ofce reading a magazine and
I see your ad, I dont have a computer with me, and Im
likely to be too polite to tear out the ad, Mr. Schulte said.
But if I have my cell phone, I can get my catalog ordered
right then, he said.
Overall, a catalog should create an emotional experience
in a consumers mind that creates desire.
When designing the creative, a brand should aim to have
people imagine themselves using the products in the same
situations as the products are featured in the catalog.
Many times, the easiest way for a brand to ensure this is to
hire a copywriter and graphic artist who know its product
category well.
The basic thing to remember is that a catalog is a printed
advertising vehicle, but its also an extension of your store
and your stores image, Mr. Schulte said.
It tells your story and inuences readers, he said. Its a
method of shopping that some people still prefer.
Best-practice tips
Keep the customer list up-to-date and free from
duplicates
If prospecting with a catalog, mail to hot-line
names rst. If they do not work, the rest of the
list probably will not either
Have a copywriter and graphic artist who know
the product category
ustomer re-
l a t i ons hi p
management
is a growing con-
cern among luxury
brands since afu-
ent consumers ex-
pect a high degree
of personalization
and quality in re-
turn for the stif
prices that they
are expected to
pay for luxury goods.
As technology progresses, brands have the ability to col-
lect large amounts of data, giving them a better chance
than ever to increase CRM. Unfortunately, many brands
will collect the data and not implement any changes to
their CRM program, resulting in low customer retention.
Top-tier brands in luxury have recognized that building
customer relationships is essential, and that only peo-
ple can do that, said Milton Pedraza, CEO of the Luxury
Institute, New York.
Yes, a brand needs to have fabulous products, but it also
must have people that can build relationships through
in-store experiences and follow-ups, he said.
This will increase customer retention dramatically.
In this Q&A, Mr. Pedraza discusses the importance
of CRM and how it should be enforced to optimize
customer retention.
What is the state of luxury CRM?
Luxury CRM is beginning to really take of in the luxury
industry and this is because a lot of companies have re-
alized that data is critical.
In the top-tier brands, seven out of nine clients who
bought in the last year will not buy in the next 12 months.
Contrastingly, mass retailer Zappos has a 75 percent re-
tention rate. That is a huge, dramatic opportunity.
Brands need to understand that even though they are
growing in other parts of the world such as the BRIC [Bra-
zil, Russia, India and China] markets, they need to get a
greater share of wallet with people in Japan, Europe and
the United States.
The problem is that brands are creating CRM teams and
building systems, but they are bad at data collection and
even worse at creating a CRM culture where people do this
daily, automatically.
CRM is critical for afuent customer retention
C
A Q&A with Luxury Institutes Milton Pedraza
Why is CRM critical in this age of tablets
and smartphones?
CRM is critical because brands want to deliver a seamless
and extraordinary multichannel client experience.
Multichannel approaches are important because there is
proof that people who buy in the store and buy online,
or even buy in the outlet stores give you a much higher
spend compared to people who buy only online or only in
the store.
Overall, multichannel consumers buy a lot more.
Which industry categories excel at CRM?
The top-tier ready-to-wear and the handbags and leather
goods luxury brands have made the most progress in the
past two years.
This is because they have so many more choices and a
much greater opportunity to get consumers to buy
multiple products.
For example, a brand selling washers and dryers does not
control the retail channel in the way that handbag design-
ers can by having their own retail store.
When a brand controls its own stores, it can get data as
well as control the employees and therefore the entire
consumer experience. Whereas in other categories such as
beauty and personal care, brands often do not control a
department stores salespeople.
However, if you are Louis Vuitton or Gucci, a lot of their
products, be it handbags or cosmetics, are sold in their
own retail stores.
Additionally, the more categories a brand has, the more it
can cross-sell products.
Can you ofer three best practice for luxury CRM?
First, a brand needs to establish truly customer-centric
targets for the front lines instead of just revenue targets.
For example, customer retention target per store and per
salesperson. And make sure compensation and recogni-
tion programs are tied to the targets.
Second, brands need to establish a set of service values
and service standards which they will use to create a com-
pass to engage their customers daily.
Also, make sure the sales team participates in their cre-
ation so you get buy-in.
Third, measure everything related to customers such as
data collection, retention and referrals.
Then publish the results throughout the organization
to make sure every employee knows where the brand
stands collectively and individually in living its values and
standards daily.
What is the biggest challenge for luxury brands im-
plementing a CRM program?
The biggest challenge is establishing a customer-centric
culture rather than a CRM project directly from the top.
To establish a customer-centric culture, brands need to
start with values and they need to know which values will
engage their customers.
Then, a brand can create a CRM strategy based on what is
most important about the client relationship, and what is
important to the company.
Next, a brand should move on to implementing industry
standards such as in-store design, follow-up procedures
and clienteling.
Out-of-home ads enhanced, not depleted, by digital advances
By Kayla Hutzler
ut-of-home advertising ofers a platform for brands
to reach consumers when they are on-the-go and
can be used to drive consumers to Web sites and
social media.
Billboards, street furniture and public transit can reach
consumers when they are on-the-go during their every-
day lives, giving it a leg-up over more traditional adver-
tising platforms such as television or print that generally
reach consumers at home. Now, through QR codes and
calls-to-action, it is also ideal for driving consumers to
Web sites or social media platforms.
Out-of-home advertising reaches active consumers on
the path to purchase, when people are away from home
and most likely to make purchase decisions, said Stephen
Freitas, chief marketing ofcer of the Outdoor Advertising
Association of America, Washington.
Unlike in-home media channels that typically reach con-
sumers when they are in a passive state, out-of-home
connects with people on-the-go, he said.
Since out-of-home comprises many diferent advertising
formats, the messages can be demographically targeted
to inuence consumers at the right time and with the
right message.
Active advertising
Out-of-home advertising has the potential to reach con-
sumers when they are on their way to make a purchase, or
drive them to do so while they are out of their homes and
have easy access to stores.
Billboards, bus stops or benches, public transportation
and other types of out-of-home ads reinforce the brands
message on a daily basis as people generally take the same
route to work or school.
In addition, out-of-home ads can be used to reinforce tra-
ditional campaign messages that consumers saw on TV or
in print.
This is because people are often more likely to react to the
out-of-home ad since they are in an active state of mind,
as opposed to the passive state that most consumers are
in when they watch TV, according to Mr. Freitas.
In addition, out-of-home complements radio since they
both reach mobile consumers.
Radio provides sound, while out-of-home ofers pic-
tures, Mr. Freitas said.
O
Brands can also target their key audiences through unique
and well-thought-out ad placement.
For example, Audemars Piguet took over the New York he-
lipad port, one of the most sought-after helicopter landing
zones, for the summer to promote its brand to the citys
elite who jet to the Hamptons during summer weekends.
Dating digital
The digital world does not take away from the efective-
ness of out-of-home advertising.
In fact, in many cases, technology such as QR codes or
short codes can be incorporated into billboards or bus
station ads as a call-to-action that engages and drives to
mobile or Web platforms.
However, if a brand wishes to implement QR codes, it must
remember that the ad must be in place that consumers
can easily reach.
QR codes are most efective when positioned on pedes-
trian advertising structures so that consumers can stop
and capture a QR code during their day-to-day activities,
according to Mr. Freitas.
Luxury brands should also incorporate social media drivers
into their out-of-home strategies.
Out-of-home is an ideal catalyst for driving consumers to
a branded social media platform, Mr. Freitas said. Use the
power of the medium to build awareness for social media.
Overall, the most important thing for brands to keep in
mind is that, as with all advertising channels, creativity
and relativity to the brands image and core values is vital.
Consumers may not spend more than a few glances with
an out-of-home ad, so it is important that they associate
it with a particular brand right away.
Include out-of-home as part of a broader media
strategy, Mr. Freitas said. And think outside of the box.
The out-of-home medium ofers a wealth of creative
opportunities, he said.
Best-practice tips
Out of home messages should be simple and
capture the essence of a brand in a manner that
is compelling
Think about out-of-home holistically by con-
structing media plans that incorporate a diverse
assortment of formats
Think outside the box. The out-of-home medium
ofers a wealth of creative opportunities
Print allows the ability to control brand image
By Rachel Lamb
lthough luxury
marketers are
i ncr eas i ngl y
using digital means to
advertise, print still re-
mains the best oppor-
tunity for brands to
showcase their image.
Along with the un-
matched imagery,
placement in a high-
end magazine that
caters to afuent
consumers is a huge
opportunity for lux-
ury brands to reach
their niche audience.
Furthermore, many
luxury consumers are
still heavy print users.
While digital is cer-
tainly growing, since
afuent consumers
are often older, cer-
tain segments consis-
tently index lower on
digital than the gen-
eral population, said
John Barker, CEO of DZP/Barker, New York.
The primary benets of luxury marketing are, rst and
foremost, awareness, the ability to control the creative im-
age and portray the brand in a proper light, he said.
Pretty in print
Most luxury brands decide to advertise in magazines to
fulll their print quota.
For instance, upscale couture, accessories, fragrance and
makeup brands choose to run print ads in high-end maga-
zines such as Vogue, Vanity Fair, W and Town & Country
where there is a high female readership.
On the other hand, luxury automakers, watchmakers and
mens fragrance typically favor magazines such as Van-
ity Fair, Details, Monocle and Wired that generally have
higher mens readerships.
These images are colored and typically glossy, making
them particularly attractive to consumers because they
exude luxury.
Brands can also choose to take out multiple pages in a
magazine to portray diferent products, an entire line or
an experience.
A
For instance, luxury hotel chains sometimes take out tri-
fold spreads in magazines that feature people on a beach,
dining in the hotel restaurant or at the propertys spa.
Meanwhile, retailers show a storefront and apparel and
accessories from a collection.
Many luxury brands also take up real estate in newspapers
and other publications.
Risky publications
However, similar to all marketing tactics, location is crucial
with print advertisements.
Just as positioning in a high-end magazine can add value
to a luxury brand, placement in a middle-market publica-
tion could be detrimental to a brands luxury status.
This is why many magazines and newspapers have par-
ticular standards about which luxury brands they place in
which locations.
For instance, many luxury brands tend to covet front-of-
book or back-page ads in magazines since those are typi-
cally the most-viewed.
Similarly, luxury brands take up the entire second page
of newspapers such as The New York Times, Los Angeles
Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Financial Times be-
cause it is one of the pages that likely gets the most views.
Conversely, many feel that luxury marketing can actually
serve to make products less exclusive, Mr. Barker said.
Best-practice tips
Have a strong point of view and something about
the ad that diferentiates the brand
The days of simply showing pretty product shots
and logo are pass
Advertising needs to be more creative than ever
to capture the eye of the sophisticated consumer
Luxury brands need be wary of ambiguous research trends
By Rachel Lamb
any luxury companies look at research claiming
to have something to do with the afuent market,
but marketers should be aware of which studies
to pay attention to and which to take with a grain of salt.
Typically, large, well-known research rms truly know the
ins-and-outs of the luxury market and therefore have a
greater chance of knowing the real trends and crucial in-
formation. However, companies that are afraid of contro-
versy or that are just trying to generate publicity may not
have the research to be giving truthful information.
Luxury marketers should always try to learn as much as
possible about the methodology that is used to conduct
research and then make an assessment of whether the
methodology is valid and likely to produce accurate and
objective results, said Ron Kurtz, president of the Ameri-
can Afuence Research Center, Atlanta.
However, one should also be careful of research conduct-
ed by a business that needs to avoid controversy to be
successful, he said.
Researching re-
search
There are probably
two main trends in
research method-
ology, according
to Mr. Kurtz.
The rst is the on-
line research pan-
els of individuals
who have agreed
to participate in
frequent and often lengthy surveys.
While this is the least-expensive and fastest way to con-
duct surveys, one must question whether the
participants are truly representative of the afuent and
luxury market, Mr. Kurtz said.
A second trend is the increasing rate of survey research to
support a preconceived or self-serving position of philoso-
phy or to generate posi-
tive media publicity.
This is a misuse of re-
search that gives the
activity a bad image
among people who
could benet by having
good research data, Mr.
Kurtz said.
Before the stock market
decline in July and Au-
gust, it appeared that
the luxury market was
making somewhat of a
recovery in sales.
This is because a large
percentage of the truly
afuent that is, not
M
just aspirational were beginning to buy again.
Nonetheless, the stock market plays havoc with the spend-
ing habits of the afuent.
Although afuent consumers can spend despite a stock
market slump, most do not want to because they are ner-
vous or because of consumer guilt.
The sales improvement was essentially derived from the
wealthiest 1 percent of consumers with a minimum $6
million net worth as the so-called mass or aspirational
afuent were still unable to spend as they did prior to the
recession, Mr. Kurtz said.
In the numbers
Research powerhouses have recently been pushing out
interesting and suprising data on the luxury market and
afuent consumers.
For instance, according to J.D. Power and Associates, hotel
chains Ritz-Carlton and the Four Seasons top the charts in
overall customer satisfaction.
Furthermore, the number of afuent consumer house-
holds in China will increase by 52 million homes in the
next decade, according to a study from the Boston
Consulting Group.
Analysts from American Express and Yahoo that work with
McKinsey are claiming that engaging consumers today re-
quires redening the marketing organization.
Although it is typically a safer option to acknowledge the
bigger research factories, the main way that brands can
do their own research is to just listen to their consumers
via government-sponsored studies.
Studies by government entities such as the Internal Rev-
enue Service and Federal Reserve Board can certainly be
taken seriously, Mr. Kurtz said.
Marketers should be skeptical of sponsored research
where the sponsor may be trying to simply generate posi-
tive publicity or to build support for their market position
or brand, he said.
Is the luxury shopper demographic shrinking?
T
A Q&A with Unity Marketings Pam Danziger
he unstable
economy has
caused some
afuent consum-
ers to spend less,
but it has also
caused an entire
group of consum-
ers to stop spend-
ing on luxury
goods and services
all together.
The baby boomer generation, who prior to the recession
accounted for a majority of luxury spending, have ei-
ther curbed or stopped spending all together. In addition,
younger, Generation X afuents who were buying prod-
ucts on credit in line with their perceived wealth are no
longer charging so freely, creating a large gap in the luxury
consumer demographic.
I think its a very cloudy, confusing picture of these con-
sumers, said Pam Danziger, president of Unity Marketing,
Stephens, PA.
Prior to the recession, baby boomers used to indulge, but
now, with the recession and maturity, they have withdrawn
because it is not as relevant to their life stage, she said.
Its all driven by demographics and marketers cant to do
anything about the demographics.
Ms. Danziger discusses the current luxury shopper, how
she has evolved over the past decade and how luxury
brands can market themselves to a new, more reserved
afuent shopper.
What does the current luxury shopper look like?
There are mainly two age groups for luxury consumers:
the 44-years-and-younger group and the older afuent
consumers, a lot of whom are baby boomers.
These baby boomers are a more mature, afuent consumer
group, and since the recession they have sharply curtailed
spending or are out of the luxury market altogether.
This presents a challenge because baby boomers are with-
drawing and leaving a gap that Gen X just does not have
the numbers to ll.
So now, the luxury market needs to wait for the millennials
to have the money to spend on luxury goods.
However, people do not start making the big bucks until
they are about 35 years old, so marketers have to wait
for millennials to become inuential in the luxury market-
place, which will not be until about 2019-2020.
Has the luxury market evolved or has the shopper
evolved in the past few years?
The evolution is a very interesting topic. Prior to the reces-
sion in 2007, we really had a time when afuents, who are
luxury consumers, were spending their perceived wealth.
Their housing values were going up and their 401ks were
going up, so they felt wealthy and tended to spend above
their income level.
When the recession hit and the stock market went down,
home values bottomed out and these afuent consumers
had to go back to living on their real income, not their
perceived wealth.
The average income at the top 20 is roughly $170,000
that will give people a comfortable lifestyle but it does not
leave consumers with a whole lot left over for Birkin bags
or regular trips to Barneys.
In addition, the age range of afuent consumers is 45 to
50 years old, so they are sending their kids to college [and
therefore] they are also facing the complications of rising
college tuitions.
With luxury, nobody needs any of it and that is important
for brands to recognize. Luxury brands need to work to get
the money.
How do you make the case for luxury goods and
services in a world beset with high unemployment and
nancial meltdown?
Well, that is one of the main challenges putting the luxe
back in luxury. This involves guring out what is the luxe,
and what are the promises that luxury brands make to
their customers?
Once brands map out the answer to that question, to what
consumers are expecting of them, they need to make sure
they fulll these unspoken promises.
For true luxury consumers, it is not about the status, image
or the bling of luxury goods.
What luxe people are looking for is the quality.
For example, if I buy a Fendi bag, I know that I have bought
a classic item that I will use for the rest of my life. That is
a big diference than spending the same money on todays
it bag.
For luxury brands, it is really about understanding that the
real value of luxury is quality, performance and apprecia-
tion of workmanship and materials.
Luxury is about serving the needs of and connecting with
those consumers that value what your
brand ofers.
What seems to work best to con-
vince shoppers to spend or invest in a
luxury experience?
I think youve hit on the right word the
idea is that they are looking at purchas-
es as an investment.
That is one the biggest changes I have
seen. For afuent consumers, it is no
longer about simply spending their
money, it is about investing that money
in their overall lifestyle.
Even afuent consumers are making
calculated investment decisions on how,
where and why they are going to spend
their money.
Understanding this process and helping
consumers in their decision-making process is going to be
key for luxury brands. To do this, brands need to focus on
the salesperson.
For example, a lot of luxury brands are opening their own
captivating luxury boutiques and it has been a boom.
In theory, this is because consumers get a better picture
of the brand story and learn more about what makes a
particular product so great, as opposed to the service they
would nd at a department store.
Is the pie of luxury shoppers growing?
I would say no, denitely not, and that is what the luxury
draught is all about.
In the United States, we have a density of people in the
afuent center who are older.
The baby boomers who have the money are getting more
mature and their priorities have shifted, so they are no
longer focusing on brand names and images.
Add that to the simple loss in numbers between the baby
boomers and Gen X, and marketers are left with a shrink-
ing pool of available consumers.

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PAGE 2 Luxury Daily CLASSIC GUIDE TO LUXURY MARKETING

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