Did you know that 80% of creative content downloads from editors happen within 72 hours of Fashion Week’s launch? In fact, last season, brands generated more than +$155K in Media Impact Value™ (MIV®) through their images alone. Fashion is fast-paced and one powerful image's media coverage can transform a brand’s online presence.
But no matter how stylish your latest collection is, poor-quality images and a weak distribution strategy will have a less-than-desirable impact on your bottom line.
So, how do you measure image process success? In this blog, we’ll break down how smarter processes can dramatically amplify your collection’s media impact and strengthen industry ties.
A picture's worth a thousand words
In this extremely competitive landscape, getting noticed with strategic media coverage while building solid relationships is critical.
One inaccessible image, or clunky distribution channel, will only detract from the goal that brands and publishers share: to give your item a wider reach.
And there’s a lot at stake, as each amplified image can generate more than $1K in Media Impact Value™ (MIV®). Not only that, well-managed high-quality images can improve engagement, brand credibility, and even conversion rates.
From File-Share to Showroom
So, we've clarified the importance of creative assets following Fashion Week (and the data that backs their need), but how do you currently share these assets?
Distribution is a trigger word for many brands, as the process is often tricky and hard to measure. File size, access, and security are just a few of the challenges the industry faces.
There’s an abundance of free alternatives, but we’ve all fallen foul of the seemingly simple options like DropBox and WeTransfer. It’s not long before you and your recipient's desktop are cluttered with random folders and renamed files. Not to mention the long download waits when the files are of high quality. Not very professional.
Editors, journalists, and influencers can’t naturally or natively access the images they need. The process is slower and far less secure, as the back and forth of requesting the correct item or color is a common time-wasting exercise for all parties.
Many of these processes are considered old hat. Today, there are alternatives that can be tailored to the brand requirements of the Fashion, Luxury, and Beauty industries.
Take a look at the comparison between WeTransfer and our Launchmetrics Galleries tool for example 👇
Showcasing Collections of the Future
Brands can now create stunning virtual showrooms to showcase their collections. These showrooms can be curated, containing the specific items you’d like to share, and then assigned to contacts through a simple, secure link.
Once shared, the journalist, Influencer, or stakeholder can view the collection and choose their favorite pieces, request samples, or even contact your PR team directly (you will see your media coverage increase!). This removes the process of downloading bulky zip files and sorting through the media themselves.
A curated digital showroom is also a chance for storytelling, as these modern galleries can be customized to your own guidelines, maintaining your all-important brand look and feel. They can even be broken down into sections, in some, you could mix media formats (such as images and video) and break down showrooms by topic, such as ‘front row’ or ‘designer’.
At the click of a button, all requested assets are visible in your recipient’s very own digital lookbook. It’s easy to filter and quick to download. Not only that, but brands can update their lookbooks regularly, without the hassle of having to reshare files. Items can be removed or added swiftly.
Consistency is key
Efficient asset sharing shouldn’t be limited to external parties. Having one cloud-based platform that houses your digital lookbooks means that even internal teams can reap the benefits without clogging up their hard drive.
To simplify access for all parties, digital galleries allow you to hierarchy your digital content and even file brands or designs by season, collection, color, pattern, and more.
The internal benefit to this is designated access and the ability to promote keywords and names for your digital items. This promotes consistency across your team and externally, so you control the narrative of your pieces and nothing is lost in translation. Once your look hits the digital shelf, your message (and product) will be clear to see.
True Data Control
Each asset is precious and often time-sensitive. When emailing multiple attachments, it’s easy for a recipient to get lost in the download process (and also lose sight of any embargo notices).
Brands can gain complete control over who looks at each piece of media in a virtual collection. This includes when creative assets can be viewed and when they’re ready for publication - leaving no room for collection confusion.
Ultimately, digitizing your creative media will improve user experience and streamline distribution amongst both your external and internal recipients, giving you more time to assess that all-important asset data while achieving even greater media coverage.
And once you’ve got more time for the results, you’ll realize the multiple new opportunities to be seized. Once you start to see clear download and view data for each digital asset, you can make a bigger global impact with coverage while tracking distribution more proactively.
Amplify your media coverage (beyond your contact database)
Small-to-medium-sized brands usually have smaller PR and marketing teams, without the assistance of a dedicated PR agency.
A lack of connections across media landscapes, along with little to no journalist or Influencer relationships to build upon, leaves PR teams having to come up with one thousand and one creative ways to grow media coverage and engage new audiences. Evidently, the chances of amplifying the impact of their collection are slim.
It's important to know where all those relevant journalists and contacts in the sector are. This way, brands can reach them without having to invest days, weeks, or months of work building relationships.
In July 2022 we launched Launchmetrics Spotlight, a professional community of creators through which journalists, Influencers, and other industry professionals access 5M+ industry images and videos each season.
With over 500K downloads and +$155K in MIV® generated for the brands that shared content through this platform in the last season, it seems like a good opportunity to amplify your brand coverage, right?
Amplify your collection images through +2,000 editors and creators
Access a professional network of media editors from Vogue, Marie Claire, Elle and more! Achieve greater coverage of your collection connecting with over 500 media outlets downloading content in Launchmetrics Spotlight every season.
Traction in action
Now you know the benefits of an enhanced image distribution strategy and technology, are you ready for next-level coverage? Here is a quick checklist of the steps to take then:
- Start planning your distribution strategy
- Build a virtual showroom with the best creative content from your collection
- Distribute it easily through a single link to your contact base
- Amplify your impact by sharing your images on Launchmetrics Spotlight
- Measure the Media Impact Value™ that the coverage of your images generates for you
Head to our website to find out more or book a demo today.
Take the distribution of your collection images to the next level
Launchmetrics Galleries is the solution for archiving, distributing and amplifying your creative brand assets. Achieve greater media coverage and measure the interest and impact of your collection. All in one platform!
By Hollie O'ConnorContent Marketing Manager
Hollie is a passionate writer, editor and former journalist with a penchant for storytelling. As Content Marketing Manager for Launchmetrics, Hollie's experience involves producing relevant, thought-provoking copy and creative visual assets.