In recent years, a wave of emerging interactive technologies has transformed how people spend their time online. Referred to generally under the umbrella-term Web 2.0, online tools such as blogs, social networks and wikis have marked a shift from an era of one-way ‘read-only’ communication on the internet to one which is characterised by a collaborative dialogue among groups of individuals.
In the luxury space, passionate groups of consumers, in their millions, are talking about luxury brands on blogs and social networks. In France, Café Mode’s independent perspective on the latest runway shows and fashion trends has become so influential that L’Express, a leading daily newspaper, now houses the blog on its own website and pays its blogger a salary. Manolo, an American who writes a popular blog on shoes and celebrity, earns a six-figure salary from his blog and has a column in the Washington Post. Every month, hundreds of thousands of Japanese visit @Cosme, a Japanese consumer review website dedicated to the cosmetic industry. The recommendations are so influential that they can make or break a cosmetics brand in Japan.
Some of the most prolific participants in these communities, said to be about 1 per cent of internet users, may know more about the brands than the brands even know about themselves. As trusted authorities, these experts have the potential to become a brand’s most fervent evangelists — or detractors. What’s more, through the active engagement of these passionate communities, luxury brands can also gain valuable feedback to understand what consumers want and what they expect.
Read more in the Trend Tools CONCISE INFORMATION REPORT