Marketing in the Creation of Popular Fashion Trends - Essay Example

Is marketing the main determinant in creation of popular fashion trends Introduction Fashion is a major influence in the clothing industry, and this influence is creating fashion brands which are marketed heavily. The importance of fashion brands in particular, is that they represent intangible assets in the form of trade marks (Okonkwo 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007) which can be exploited through marketing. Trademarks often need to be communicated extensively to the consumer especially in the current competitive environment. This is an important point because fashionable clothing is said to fit in with economic values, social functions and meanings to the consumer (Okonkwo 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), which is consistent with the fact that fashion products tend to reflect individuality and personality by allowing the consumer to reflect their self-image (Okonkwo 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). Therefore in a way, one of the significant concepts of fashion is to develop a sense of personal importance or self to the consumer. This concept of self is further reinforced through marketing campaigns which tend to confirm consumers' views and opinions on a fashionable product. Fashion can also be attributed with developing the notion of identity in certain communities (Okonkwo 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). The creation of identities and concept of self is a necessity in the fashion industry, as the consumer has choice, and fashion outlets cannot really distinguish themselves on price. The only differentiation will therefore come from the personalities and identities they are aiming to attract. For example, a certain fashion chain may design clothing for consumers who like to emulate catwalk and celebrity fashion, and this message and product they are offering will need to be communicated to the consumer using the appropriate channels, so that they can attract the most in terms of consumer numbers. Marketing in fashion is therefore responsible for creating a relationship between the manufacturer, retailer and customer. The purpose of marketing in this instance is to influence the consumer and direct their purchasing pattern to the intended product (Okonkwo 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). The need to influence purchasing decisions, and to align products to identities and personalities, has resulted in the new concept of fashion marketing, which is "the application of a range of techniques and a business philosophy that centres upon the customer and potential customer of clothing and clothing-related products and services, in order to meet the long-term goals of the organization" (Okonkwo 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007:p11). This relationship between fashion and marketing has created interdependence between the two, which has raised the bar in the way fashion design is promoted. This interdependence has changed the view of fashion design and marketing, which previously relied on consumers to define their preferences and choices. The current view of fashion design and marketing has meant that the onus is no longer on the consumer to define the style they want. The diagram below illustrates the relationship between fashion and marketing: Table 1. The fashion marketing concept. Source: M. Easey. Fashion Marketing. Blackwall Science. London 2002, p.7. Table 1.0 demonstrates that if the concern for fashion design, customers and profit is low, then it is likely that an organization will fail to fulfil its objectives, as this situation leaves the organization open to disregarding customers' preferences which will affect profits (Easey 2002). However, by having a high concern for fashion design, customers and profit, objectives will be driven by marketing which is designed to influence and persuade consumers to change certain behaviours, which puts the control back with the organizations, and not with consumer. By controlling demand, organizations will be able to control the trends and the nature of the market. This subject area is important for a number of reasons: marketing has been able to influence consumers to purchase items they initially disliked; and this topic area also lacks sufficient literature to explain this interdependence of fashion and marketing. Therefore any research in this area would significantly benefit those working in the fashion and marketing industries. Research Questions The increasing influence of marketing in fashion has led to an investigation to determine whether marketing is the main determinant in the creation of popular fashion brands. Research Objectives The questions this research paper is aiming to answer are: How does a trend become fashionable How do people suddenly fall in love with a 'fad', what and who influence their decisions To what extent is a fashion trend influenced by marketing Chapter 1: Marketing and the role it plays in the fashion market 1.1 Fashion market The current operating environment has presented challenges for the fashion market due to the high levels of competitiveness experienced in the industry. This level of competition is mainly linked to customers' increased expectations from market executives, which has placed tremendous strain on resources for organisations trying to keep up with their consumers (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). Examples of pressures being faced by the fashion market include the short product life-cycles which have resulted in forecasting and production problems, as organizations have to predict trends and quantities up to one year in advance. There demand is also very dynamic, in that it keeps changing and this demand can be influenced by factors such as marketing, celebrities and advertising (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). For instance, a fashion item worn or accessorized by a television personality can trigger a demand for the similar product, and the fashion industry has to keep up with this. In a bid to keep up with demand, the fashion industry has resorted to off-shoring its production to developing countries to keep costs down and to appeal to consumers attracted to the price attribute (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). Such pressures have led to the intensification of marketing efforts in the fashion industry, as the main distinguishing factor between competitors. Consumers have also begun to take an interest in ethical manufacturing and social responsibility, particularly pay and working conditions of individuals working in developing countries to produce these items. This has also pushed the industry to develop employment standards and to implement these in the developing countries to ensure that children and individuals are not exploited (Valin 2004). This interest has also led to the increased demand for more ethical alternatives (Valin 2004), and in the fashion industry this will come in the form of working practices and product sourcing. The internet can be blamed for this rise in environmental and ethical awareness; however, this area is of growing importance, simply because ethical issues are known to drive consumer behaviour (Doane 2001). In the fashion industry, consumers rely on public relations and other information sources to determine whether the welfare for labour and workers was considered in the manufacture of a garment, as no labels or certifications exist in this market (Valin 2004). Research by Shaw and Clarke (1999) and Newholm (2000) has demonstrated that consumers in this industry tend to prioritise their ethical concerns to a limited number that they can cope with when making the consumption choice. This means that organisations in the fashion industry have to obtain a better judgement on the behaviours of their consumers, as these ethical concerns may not always be known to all. However, little research has been conducted in the priorities of consumers in the fashion industry as demonstrated by Dickson (2001), Shaw and Duff (2002) and Tomollilo and Shaw (2003). Such research would be important, as it adds another attribute to the equation which would fully explain consumer behaviour in fashion, as well as the role of ethics, which seems to be gaining more attention. By understanding consumer behaviour, especially in relation to ethics and social responsibility, one will be to compare the intended behaviour of consumers that are ethical, when they make a purchase (Valin 2004). This will be beneficial to the fashion industry, as the information gained forms part of the consumers' personality and core values, which may or not be able to be expressed in fashion. By starting a fashion trend in that takes ethics into account, it could well be that the profile of that cause is significantly raised through marketing, which will attract more consumers to that particular fashion brand. This ethical and social responsibility has also been used by organizations as part of their branding and marketing plans. Both of these are important in predicting and influencing consumer demands, and their role in the market and industry has been just that - to influence consumers to purchase a particular product or group of products. The fashion market has also become more conscious of brands and their perceived status and reputation, which has resulted in various fashion discount outlets to capitalize on these attribute. 1.2 Consumer behaviour in fashion "Consumer behaviour is the exchange process by which consumers conduct their lives" (Lim and O'Cass 2001:p120), and can also be defined as the "observable activities chosen to maximise satisfaction through the attainment of economic goods and services" (Baker 1998:p109). Both definitions are particularly interesting in this context, as fashion can be viewed as a medium of expression, and the definition by Lim and O'Cass (2001) would imply that consumers seek fashion outlets that can provide a service/product that is compatible with the way they conduct their lives. This would also support the case for organisations maintaining customer databases, in a bid to find out who their customers are, and what they do in order to provide the service and/or product they require. This would also support the current interest in ethics and social responsibility from the consumer. The definition by Baker (1998) leans towards the maximisation of satisfaction, which is probably accessed by appealing to the emotional aspect of consumers. Fashion also creates an identity for its consumers, and it is this identity that determines the behaviour in this market (Mandel et al 2006). One of the main determinants of consumer behaviour is consumer culture (McCort and Malhotra 1993, Holt 1994, Hoyer and MacInnis 2000) and this in itself will include other factors such as religion, gender, age, ethnicity and regions. Such aspects of consumer culture will affect how consumers categorise products and it will guide consumers in classifying fashion that are consistent with cultural values and norms (Arnould, Price and Zinkham 2002). This means that consumers are more likely to purchase fashion items which do not conflict with these norms, and this can be seen in the fashion clothing market, where it is mainly adolescents who shop at certain outlets, with adults preferring other outlets. Another influence on consumer behaviour is the social influence, which can be defined as information by and pressures from individuals, groups and the mass media that effect how a person behaves (Hoyer and MacInnis 2002), however Hoyer and MacInnis (2002) also demonstrated that social influences are more likely to be greater in collective societies and not individualistic societies. Psychographics are additional factors that influence consumer behaviour and these consider consumers on the basis of their psychological and behavioural characteristics, which include their values and personality (Mandel et al 2006). For instance, personality and value cannot be easily categorised, which means that fashion tends to be aimed to accommodate common values and personality. For instance, social groups known as "Goths" are usually not catered for in mainstream fashion. Consumer behaviour is obviously a complex area, as consumers' needs and motivations cannot simply be explained by one theory and model, and in fact several models can apply to one situation. Various models of consumer behaviour have been developed and Figure 1.0 demonstrates Kotler's (2000) model which is a basic model of consumer behaviour. Figure 1.0 Model of buyer behaviour (Kotler 2000) Figure 1.0 illustrates clearly displays the link between marketing and the buyer's decision process. This suggests that marketing is very important to the consumer when making a decision to purchase, even more so in the fashion industry. This model also shows that consumers' behaviour does not end at the purchase but continues after the purchase, which suggests that consumers will probably make purchases based on personality based choices such as lifestyle and taste. This is where the promotion of fashion comes in, as advertising and other marketing efforts will market fashion on personality and lifestyle aspects. Another model known as the consumer decision-process model relies on consumer memory (Engel et al 1995, Hawkins et al 2001) which is probably stimulated by advertising, marketing and promotion to reinforce certain key concepts that a fashion trend/product/service is trying to communicate. Therefore, in fashion, consumer behaviour is more a form of expression of identity, and this is clearly reflected in the various fashion outlets which market themselves on that basis. Consumer behaviour is also affected by consumer culture, which is not uniform, and this is where the importance of marketing has come in. Marketing in fashion, has been instrumental in segmenting the market, so that consumers can quickly find the outlet that represents their views, and marketing also been used to promote the core values that the outlet is trying to project. 1.3 The role of marketing in the fashion market: analysis Marketing in fashion can be defined as "communications used to create a favourable predisposition toward a brand of product or service, an idea or even a person" (Zavrnik and Mumel 2007:p12). This suggests that marketing in the fashion industry has the primary aim of changing consumer attitudes, tastes and preferences, so as to fulfil business objectives. Marketing has previously been regarded as an activity to simply promote a product and raise its awareness in the marketplace; however the level of competition in the industry is no longer sufficient to secure a competitive advantage. The role of marketing in this case is also to support an organisation's marketing plan which is designed to help consumers understand and believe the advantage being communicated (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007:p12). For instance, certain marketing campaigns can focus on exclusivity and uniqueness, which other competitors may not be able to offer. Therefore in this case, the role of marketing is to significantly differentiate between brands and products for the consumer. This changing role of marketing has come about for various reasons which include the following: more products and services have reached or are reaching the maturity stage of their life-cycle (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), which means that the returns on the product have reduced, and that other competitors have entered the market and captured their consumers. It also seems that conventional marketing is no longer able to revive some of these products and services, without a radical overhaul in the way marketing is delivered. This once again goes back to a shift from promotion, to differentiation for organizations. Differentiation also introduces the notion of creating brands which stand out and help consumers appreciate the comparative advantage (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), especially in the global marketplace. The global marketplace cannot be ignored, as competitors no longer come from within national boundaries, but from international competitors as well, which has made it more important for organizations to focus on their marketing. For example, brands like Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton are currently being illegally duplicated by factories in countries like China, which raises the importance of fashion marketing, as the brands at risk have to convince their customers of the benefits and advantages of purchasing original products. Marketing in fashion can be used to inform and educate consumers on how and why a certain product is used, the type of person who uses them, where and when they can use them, as well as incentives and rewards for trying their product or service (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). This has the effect making the product and/or service accessible to new consumers, especially those who may not have considered the product/service due to misinformation. In the fashion clothing industry, marketing usually consists of advertising, personal selling and sales promotion, and public relations (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). It seems that the fashion clothing industry utilizes the entire spectrum of the marketing communications machine. Advertising involves paid forms of non-personal presentation and promotion of ideas, goods or services by a sponsor (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), and most consumers will certainly identify with such forms of marketing. For some fashion brands, they will advertise in high-end magazines to focus on a particular group of consumers. The purpose of advertising is to raise awareness of the brand to consumers, so that they are aware of its existence and they can use for comparative purposes. Sales promotions tend to encourage trial or purchase of a product or service by offering incentives and discounts (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), and once again consumers are familiar with this, and the benefit of sales promotions are that they can introduce a product/service for the first time to individuals who would previously not have taken any notice. So for instance, money off discounts can entice consumers to buy products and/or service if they will pay significantly less. Trial periods will also allow consumers to asses the product without any long term commitments (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), and sometimes these short term incentives achieve results as some consumers may perceive the disengagement process as too cumbersome. Public relations and publicity programmes are designed to promote and protect an organisation's image, including literature (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). Examples of such programmes include those undertaken by Nike when it surfaced that they were employing workers in China to produce their clothing, and supposedly turning a blind eye to poor working and pay conditions. This negative publicity did affect sales of their clothing, and what this incident did, was that it highlighted that consumers do possess a sense of social and ethical responsibility which needs to be communicated in marketing communications. "Personal selling involves direct interactions with prospective purchasers for the purpose of making sales" (Zavrnik and Mumel 2007:p12), and this is mainly carried out by shop floor workers. The marketing in factor is communicated through the sales assistants who might be selected on their ability to best represent a brand or fashion image (Ganassali et al 2007, Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). It seems the role of marketing in fashion market, is to develop a brand and a following for the group of products. Research conducted by Zavrnik and Mumel (2007) in Slovenia into marketing in the fashion clothing industry demonstrated that the presence of a marketing department was a prerequisite for the development of a brand name. This suggests that marketing has a significant, if not major role to play in the promotion of fashion to the consumer, and that without established marketing departments; an organization will not possess the mechanism with which to differentiate itself. This research (Zavrnik and Mumel 2007) also demonstrated that advertising was considered the most important marketing instrument, with public relations ranking poorly. The low scores for public relations are indicative of the level of emphasis previously placed on ethics and social responsibility, and negative publicity in these areas have started to bring this to the fore. Advertising also received the largest portion of the budget, as this is the most common form of marketing. Advertising in magazines could be popular because magazines are already differentiated by their markets which remove the need to identify a target market. The research also showed that service, suggestions and fashion trends have the greatest impact on the consumer decision-making process, which demonstrates the level of involvement marketing departments have in the fashion market. 1.3.1 Decision determinants Marketing in the fashion industry is also important as the perception of a product will affect the final buying or rejection (Zavrnik and Mumel 2007), which is where the importance of advertising and differentiation comes in. The perception of a product is most likely to be determined by the advertising campaign as this is the consumer's first point of reference and contact with the product. When making a decision to buy or reject a product, consumers will assess the product by its functional, affective and economical attributes (Zavrnik and Mumel 2007). The functional attributes are concerned with whether the product performs a function which represents its core benefit (Park et al 1986), so for fashion clothing, the product will need to fulfil its main function, which most clothes will, which means the consumer will move to the next determinant to make their decision. It is also important to note that the decision to purchase on a functional need is also affected by reliability, durability and price (Sheth et al 1991), which marketing will exploit in a bid to differentiate. For instance, in the UK, there is probably a perception that durability and price will be different between two competitors. The affective attributes are concerned with the emotional value, in addition to the functional value of the product (Hirschman and Holbrook 1982, Sheth et al 1991, Westbrook and Oliver 1991). Marketing emotional attributes is very common in the fashion industry, with products like perfume and cosmetics being marketed on their emotional and intrinsic value. The role of marketing is therefore one which will focus on bringing out individual feelings and emotions, to allow the consumer to have a connection with the fashion product. For instance, advertising for fashion clothing can place the emphasis on individuality, status or wealth. By appealing to the emotional state of the consumer, marketing communications will influence their purchasing decision to only buy products that they associate with this emotive state. The effect this will have is that consumers will purchase certain products regardless of price and other deciding factors. The final attribute is the economic one in which the price of a product is deeply studied (Lichtenstein et al 1993). This involves assessing the benefits received against the sacrifices incurred (Leszinski and Marn 1997). The price of a product is a major influence in the decision to buy, but this does not mean that a lower price is always desirable. In fact, research by Erickson and Johansson (1995), Lichtenstein et al (1988), and Tellis and Gaeth (1990) have shown that the price of a product often has a positive role in determining the rational aspect of quality. This means that price was used to determine the quality of the product when choosing between different brands. The role of marketing in this instance would then be to emphasise the quality aspects of the product when advertising. When considering the role of marketing, one has to remember external influences such as personal influences and indirect influences such as celebrities and advertisements (References). Personal influences include family and friends, which form the social peer group, and the adolescent group is important as they will communicate with their parents and adopt rational consumer-related skills, knowledge and attitudes (Moschis et al 1977). Organizations take this seriously as research by Moore and Stephans (1975) and Moschis and Churchill (1978) has shown that parents teach children general consumer goals and encourage them to use price or price-quality relationships as criteria for evaluating products. Therefore when marketing fashion products to this group of consumers, one has to consider their position and the attributes they have been taught to value. This group of consumers is also likely to be influenced by celebrities, which supports the case for marketing the price-quality relationship (John 1999). When it comes to celebrities and advertisements, marketing communications in the fashion industry often encourage the purchase of products by using celebrities to endorse them (Belk and Pollay 1985, Kasser et al 2004), and this can sometimes appeal to the emotional side of the consumer. Herbst and Burger (2002) also state that fashion expressed by celebrities is an attribute considered by young consumers when assessing a product and branded fashion goods. This could be down to the desire to possess fashion brands as part of group membership to enhance their self concept and self-value (Dittmar 1994). Chapter 2: The creation of fashionable trend in the fashion market 2.1 The influence of price and retailer on the demand and sales of trendy clothes, shoes and accessories The influence of price and retailer on demand and sales are determined by the fashion year, which is split between spring/summer and autumn/winter. More spring/summer clothing will be sold at the end of this season for significantly less through sales promotions, and vice versa (Goworek 2001, Herbst and Burger 2002). This demand though is likely to be stimulated by the price attribute, even though the fashion trends will be making their exit. The demand is also affected by new introductions to clothing lines, as consumers are demanding shorter intervals between seasons. For example, the industry now has to work with two seasons at once, with winter clothing and fashion trends being designed and produced in the preceding summer (Goworek 2001). 2.2 Merchandizing as means of forwarding a fashion trend Merchandising involves the process of planning, buying and selling specific products, and it plays a key role in the store where the local allocation planning is performed (Kincade et al 2004, Shaw et al 2004). Merchandising is important for forwarding a fashion trend, as product planning will influence what the organization will buy and sell. If the wrong items are bought at this stage, then it is highly likely that the fashion campaign will fail. Merchandising also affects product delivery which will affect forwarding of a fashion trend, as delays will jeopardize all marketing efforts to get the product in store (Kincade et al 2004, Shaw et al 2004). Merchandising will affect the pricing, as obtaining products in the right quantities at the right time will enable the fashion supplier to influence a trend at the planned time (Kincade et al 2004, Shaw et al 2004). This means that merchandising will need to take into considering the market trends in other locations, as fashion trends are not always influenced within national trends. In the case where production or some parts of the merchandising process are out-sourced, then consideration needs to be given to the state of the economies in those regions, for any potential warning signs (Kincade et al 2004, Shaw et al 2004). One example is that of a few British suppliers who were left stranded when new EU laws prevented fashion merchandise from China from entering the UK. This represented a huge loss in profits, as by the time the issue was resolved, it was too late to launch the fashion trend. Another important consideration is the space requirements for products, as ordering too much, will result in a surplus which will be difficult to shift. (Kincade et al, 2004). 2.3 Advertising as the key promoter of fashion trend It has been pointed out by Williams (1980) that advertising has developed from announcements to a major part of the business organization. This is true when taken in the context of fashion trends, as advertising campaigns are designed to promote products through identifying with consumer emotions and values. In fact one can also say that advertising promotes the values, both personal and social associated with the product (Piller 2001). This has also been supported by Baudirillard (1981) who stated that consumers look for commodities as signs of social prestige, position and success, which explains the popularity of luxury brands, and the move to branding for non luxury-brands. Such values and emotional states can only be communicated through the medium of advertising, which Lears (1995) described as offering the promise of self-actualisation and improvement. The success advertisers have had with promoting these values, have certainly simplified or eased the process of promoting fashion trends, as consumers have become accustomed to aligning their views and values with those of the advertiser. The fashion industry has also had the help of mainstream media (television and music) in indirectly promoting fashion trends. Some trends appear in the media first, and it is up to fashion outlets to deliver the style to consumers in a timely manner. Advertising is also important for promoting fashion trends as it has the ability to leave long term effects on thought and behaviour (Harms and Keller 1991, Haug 1986). This impact is far reaching because it starts off the process in the change of culture and values, so that they become more closely aligned with those of the fashion organization, and not those of the peer and personal groups. For example, the fashion trend for hair extensions has led to changes where the value is now placed on adaptability within a short space of time. Consumers no longer need to stick with short hairstyles, when they can obtain long hair for a fee. Likewise, this has translated itself to the clothing market, where its becoming more of a necessity to frequently change wardrobes and clothing preferences depending on the latest fashion trend. The role of advertising when promoting a fashion trend is linked to predicting customer future demand (Mandel et al 2006). By constantly advertising a trend, the industry will be predicting future demand, by creating a reaction and a demand to their advertising campaign. 2.4 Influence of PR on fashion trend Public relations can be defined as "the management, through communication, of perceptions and strategic relationships between an organisation and its internal and external stakeholders, for the mutual benefit and a greater social order (Valin 2004:p9). Fashion is often used by consumers to convey a message about their values and their personality to the rest of society, and consumers will expect fashion outlets to reciprocate this communication as well. It also follows that, consumers are more likely to purchase from or assign their loyalty to an outlet which is able to communicate their message, which is different to that of the next consumer. The stakeholders in this case, would include the consumers as some consumers may not be too happy to find out that its organisation aim has changed. One possible example is that which is linked to consumers and ethical principles. Consumers may reject a certain fashion trend if it is deemed to be unethical in any way shape or form (Dickson 2001, Doane 2001), and this has happened in the clothing industry where the sales of animal fur is shunned by most consumers, with most opting for fake fur. This awareness was a result of a successful public relations campaign which saw videos of animals being killed for their fur. In this instance, PR definitely did influence this proposed fashion trend, into something positive by still leaving the option of fake fur for consumers. 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