Project 1 REVISION

Morrow 1 Shelby Morrow Professor Isaacs English 2135 Project 1 Re-write 21 April 2017

The Wonders of Instagram and Fashion Social media has become very prevalent in today’s world and there are substantial consequences if a company or industry fails to conform to the movement. Specifically, in the world of fashion, Instagram has repeatedly shown its prevalence. Individuals in the industry who embrace Instagram and have a strong following are considerably more successful and get more campaigns. This is quite true for young Brooklyn Beckham who is an armature photography who landed a gig for a lucrative fashion company, Burberry, for merely having a large Instagram following, specifically 9.7 million. What attracts people to Beckham’s Instagram is his edgy photos and lively pictures that give off the perception of an “ideal” life that people want to follow and get updates about. This shows the importance of embracing the way of the world and using social media to one’s advantage.

According to Katie Louise- Smith from Pop Buzz, Beckham who is just sixteen years old was hired by Burberry to shoot their fragrance campaign over numerous professional photographers simply because they liked his Instagram aesthetic. Burberry wanted to reach a more “millennial vibe,” in an effort to reach younger audiences; the company accomplished this by focusing on social media trends and celebrity tactics (Louise-Smith) - which presumably got

Morrow 2 Beckham the job. This is confirmed by Christopher Bailey, the boss of Burberry, in Katie Hope’s article analyzing how social media effects the fashion industry, suggests that Brooklyn’s 5.9 million Instagram followers that got him the gig. Bailey continued by saying, “Brooklyn has a really great eye for image and Instagram works brilliantly for him as a platform to showcase his work” (Hope).

Brooklyn Beckham is a perfect example of how Instagram and other media platforms put individuals ahead of traditional workers, simply because they have the social media “cred.”

What attracts so many people to his Instagram is the fact that his pictures are very edgy and many have an unique perspective. He has a photo that has a particularly unique perspective, it’s a picture of him viewing the street with a mirror; it which allows you to see him as well as his surroundings. It’s almost as if the viewer has a total 360-degree vantage point. Unique photos like this as well as his youthful, lively pictures giving the perception of a “perfect life” is what makes his Instagram so appealing.

It is quite effective for fashion companies to consider their team’s social media following as those who possess more followers subject their large audience to the item they are advertising. This is very beneficial for the fashion companies because it expands the audience.

For example, all 5.9 million of Beckham’s followers will see the Burberry ad which could potentially expand their cliental significantly. Additionally, having a young star representing their work will help them accomplish their goal of appealing to a younger audience as most likely the majority of Beckham’s followers are millennials.

Brooklyn Beckham is just one example of the fashion industry attempting to take advantage of the effects of social media. Many other companies consider it when hiring. For

Morrow 3 example, Victoria secret is rumored to having a clause in the contract about social media. The New York Post speculates “that the models are contractually obligated to show a healthy lifestyle on social media, which is why you see so many Instagram shots of them working out” (Fleming). As of 2014, the Victoria Secret Angels had a grand total of 17.4 million followers combined, which has undoubtedly grown since then. One of Victoria’s Secrets own, Stella Maxwell, has reportedly stated, “I think social media has played a huge role in giving models just a little power” (Nolasco). The Victoria Secret model continues by saying how she can show them facets of her work as well as her personal life (Nolasco). Thinking about the benefits of this, by showing glimpses of their lives they keep their followers interested while advertising the brands they represent. This idea is confirmed by Jose- Florez from the Inquisitr, “For the longest time, modeling has been solely about looks, however, since the rise of social media, big named brands are now looking for women who have large amounts of Instagram followers… In addition to the followers, big brands are now pushing models to do some posting on social media to promote the products and brands one represents.” Over the years, Victoria Secret has really instilled this idea. The annual fashion show becomes more and more extravagant every year, bringing various models who are famous, although not strictly associated with Victoria secret. However, what they all have in common is a large social media following. Victoria’s Secret has hired some of the most famous performers to play at the fashion show, this brings in their fans to watch them perform, thorough out the fashion show, bringing more eyes to their product. VS has also carried this over to their models who will walk the show. The company has invited Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid, Bella Hadid, Cara Delevingne, and many others to walk for their fashion show; all these women have a strong social media prevalence and are often

Morrow 4 considered role models. What makes their accounts so popular is the fact that they often make statements with their post. They are all perceived as strong, beautiful women that the youth idolizes. Also, they commonly post about what they eat as well as their exercise routines which again, brings in another audience, health advocates that want to see what arguably the most fit models daily routine consists of. And fortunately for their followers, Instagram is a great platform for this as they update daily with a picture, video, or Instagram story. Their popularity combined with them being invited to walk for such an event can potentially bring a plethora of fans who possibly would not have watch the show, but will tune in to see these particular role models/ favorite public figures. This is comparable to Brooklyn Beckham’s experience with Burberry, supporting the idea that social media prevalence is something that these companies consider when hiring for their campaigns. Clearly Burberry isn’t the only company noticing the benefits of hiring people with large social media followings, this is becoming the way of the world. As social media grows, a models relevance on social media becomes increasingly important.

It is so important to embrace the social media movement and there are serious consequences if companies do not comply. Katie Hope from BBC News addresses how social media is transforming the fashion industry. Social media is huge in this day and age, and designers who understand that are ending up on top. “US women's clothing designer Tory Burch beats well-known global luxury brands such as Gucci, Hermes and Chanel” (Hope).

Traditional brands could potentially continue to lose out if they do not embrace social media because they simply aren’t reaching as many audiences as some of the other brandsspecifically, those who have embraced and implemented social media. By doing something as

Morrow 5 simple as making an Instagram, a company can expand their audience astronomically. News of events and advertisements of their line will spread much quicker through social media platforms opposed to traditional methods of advertising. Billboards, magazines, and commercials are just not as effective as they once were. Social media has taken over because the ads included on the traditional methods can be accessed and viewed much easier by a few clicks of a button. Successful companies have actually adapted their magazine into social media platforms. Many update through Instagram, twitter, snapchat, an app, as well as many others.

Those who do this will beat out their competitors.

Fashion companies are starting to acknowledge the impact and extensive conventions a genre like Instagram possesses. Instagram is art; especially for the fashion industry. Companies spend copious amounts of money in effective advertisement. They hire a social media specialist to make it aesthetically pleasing. The lightning, colors, and mood of the picture are conventions that make such a genre successful. It also can appeal to pathos or logos depending on the post.

Additionally, tone of the caption can affect the genre. A casual picture may pair with a causal caption, likewise with something that is supposed to be comical may have a witty caption going along with it. Other tools used to affect the tone are emoji’s. They are common throughout social media and are used to appeal to pathos. A laughing face emoji correlates with humor just as a crying emoji relates to a sad emotion. None the less, these are all conventions that boost the genre and allow the message to be relayed to the audience effectively.

In summary, the fashion industry is ruled by social media. Brooklyn Beckham is a perfect example of how embracing social media, for example Instagram, can benefit and jumpstart a career. Because his Instagram is so lively and appears to be full of opulence, parties, and

Morrow 6 inclusiveness- demonstrating the life that many young people yearn for he has managed to reach 9.7 million followers. As a teenager he managed to beat out industry professionals.

Individuals in the fashion industry who embrace social media are putting themselves in a better position; by getting their name out there they are subjecting themselves to get noticed by the larger companies and therefore will get more gigs. This is the same for the companies as well.

The companies who embrace social media and the networking that it entails are ending up on top. This makes a ton of sense because by using social media they are expanding their audience; it also allows their products to be shared and distributed quicker. Individuals in the industry should take away from Beckham’s experience with Burberry that social media is so important. In the eyes of a company a model’s large following will not only increase the potential audience of a campaign but it will also provide good advertisement as they will be displaying their products. This will bring the attention to the model, and just like Beckham they can beat out their competitors who do not have the same command they do, simply because they did not embrace Instagram and other social media platforms.

Morrow 7

Works Cited Fleming, Kristen. What it really takes to become a Victoria's Secret Angel. 6 December 2014. 22 April 2017. <http://nypost.com/2014/12/06/what-it-really-takes-to-become-a-victoriassecret-angel/>.

Florez, Jose. “Want to Model? You Need 10,000 Instagram Followers, Say Big Brands.” The Inquisitr News, n.d. Web. 24 Jan. 2017.

Hope, Katie. “How social media is transforming the fashion industry.” BBC. BBC News, 05 Feb. 2016. Web. 24 Jan. 2017 Louise-Smith, Katie. Brooklyn Beckham's Big Burberry Scandal Is All Social Media's Fault. 3 Feburary 2016. 21 April 2017. <http://www.popbuzz.co.uk/style/news/brooklynbeckham-burberry-photographer-instagram/#51zL1VvAV0c8fZrC.97>.

Nolasco, Stephanie. Victoria's Secret Angel Stella Maxwell: Social media gives models 'power'. 1 March 2017. 22 April 2017. <http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2017/03/01/victorias-secret-angel-stellamaxwell-social-media-gives-models-power.html>.