In the past few decades, we have seen how harder fashion brands are trying to woo and impress their customers. As the dominating consumers are now Gen Z, it has become indispensable for brands to become more transparent and adopt practices that promote ethical decisions. They prefer shopping brands that share common values. And they are demanding more transparency from brands regarding material sourcing, pricing, environmental impact, and labor practices in order to make purchase decisions. The custom tailoring software is one such customization solution that enables brands to cater to these needs and provide better robust tactics to deal with rising customer needs. The custom-made tool is the epitome to make a fashion statement without causing harm to the planet and sustaining your business.
Tailoring Solution Software Supports Apparel Companies in Making Nature-Based Products
We all have been witness to something that was unprecedented, and the fashion industry seems to have changed completely since then. While the pandemic undeniably had a global impact, there were only a few that could bear the hit. One of them is the apparel sector that, for some time, had to deal with the financial and emotional loss and still has the endurance to bounce back. And digital technology provided that strength to the domain, and thanks to its customers, the sector had successfully implemented these strategies to better their performances. But when they were trying to catch up with the trend, they were caught off-guard, and many brands were criticized for it. Besides technology, there is another factor that contributes significantly, and that is the awareness of customers. It is challenging for brands to reach up to their buyers when they are already ahead of you and talking about introducing technological advancement in offline and online shopping. Also, fashion houses’ moral duty these days is enormous, and one misstep may lead to being canceled–leading to unwanted press, boycotts, and impacting sales.
More and more, Gen Z customers also prefer brands that take a stand on social justice and political issues, which brands have typically avoided. However, because of its higher price point and its focus on a more mature customer demographic, luxury fashion has not had to deal with this issue as directly as more accessible brands. Sure, there have been plenty of mishaps that have led to negative press, such as the recent Dior, Gucci, and Marni fiascos, but these largely blew over. But one must learn from its past mistakes and make sure that what they present tomorrow should be in a step to overcompensate what has been done in the past.
The most significant part brands learned was the need to adopt sustainable measures, and it helped brands check all the boxes they were supposed to follow. And this also works in favor of apparel companies as they now have the opportunity to present something new to the buyers. And as we know, in the fashion and luxury domain, the only thing that keeps pushing you forward is uniqueness and innovativeness. And sustainability has successfully helped them in keeping both of these aspects intact. But what more after this? Isn’t something like marketing your eco-friendly product also essential? Marketing is bodies that keep the soul (business) alive in the toughest times. Sustainable marketing may sound like an oxymoron, but that doesn’t mean brands should stop trying. These sustainable PR experts are leading the way.
Let us look at the various ways how these tricks can help brands to advance their presence in the apparel market further:
- Partnerships with Influencers are The Way Forward
Partnerships are effective for brands as well as for influencers because the former needs to make a statement for itself, while the latter use for funding activities and forming relations. They often build consultancy into their contracts to further their progress on sustainability as well as diversity and inclusion, which are believed to go hand in hand.
Jazmine Rogers, a California-based influencer who shares sustainable living tips with her 40,800 Instagram followers, says BIPOC influencers are often held to higher standards and have been historically underpaid. To avoid this, she often spends half a day researching a single brand. As well as asking direct questions, she looks through brands’ tagged photos to see what customers say about their products, checks if people she respects follow them, and scours past press coverage to see how long-term their commitment to sustainability is.
The online tailoring software works differently here as its customization feature allows your customers to become a trend-setter on their own. It comes with a built-in digitization solution that ticks all the eligibility criteria to become a sustainable brand. The modern technology comprised in the tool makes it a suitable way to promote your brand value keeping the ethical values intact for the business.
- Promotion Should Come Out as Transparent and Humble
This is an essential part before reaching out to your buyers and telling them all about your product. Generally, when one talks about marketing, it is considered an exaggerating process, where the company projects itself as larger than life. But when we talk about environmental campaigning, it is supposed to come out as a rather humble and trust-worthy advertisement. Also, one must understand that fashion is more susceptible to greenwashing with little by way of legal regulation than other industries, such as food.
Brands could benefit from sense-checking marketing claims with independent sustainability experts. Emerge consults data analysts and psychologists too. Therefore, many experts who have worked with big fashion houses are opening their consultation firms to help brands choose their social and environmental credentials. For example, Leah Thomas, a sustainable influencer closely working in PR and communications for Patagonia from 2018 until recently, believes that the brand’s “Everything but the teeth” campaign was the perfect example of sustainable marketing. It was an upfront admission that there was still work to do before the jacket advertised could be completely recycled. “It showcased how sustainability is a journey,” says Thomas. “No brand is perfect, so sustainable clothing and sustainable marketing will always be oxymorons.”
- Simpler Messages Go Long Way
While broad claims and vague terms tend to lead to greenwashing accusations, brands need to consider how eco-literate the consumer really is. One problem, Slater points out, is that large brands with deep pockets can spend more to buy up these SEO keywords, drawing more traffic than smaller but perhaps more sustainable brands.
When Covid-19 shut down production in March, Birdsong started a Patreon for customers to pay a monthly subscription to support the brand in exchange for blog posts and exclusive discounts. This further shifted the relationship between customer and brand from one centered around commerce to one focusing on education and shared values. Recent resources include sustainable clothing care, transparent costing, and recycled polyester, all designed as shareable posts.
The Future Lies in Nature-
It is undisputed that being nature-friendly is not an option now; rather, one has to think about bringing in customers’ awareness and telling them what your brand stands for. At present, making nature-based products that are recycled, reused, re-purposeful, along with the technological win, is the need of the hour. On the same note, the digital tailoring software by iDesigniBuy works and enables brands to promote their work through their customers. It is a unique customization solution comprised of digital technology that offers your buyers a chance to set their standard.
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