Missguided: The e-Retailer Dominating The Millennial Market
Who are Missguided?
If you belong to Generation Z, it’s likely you’ve already heard of the Manchester fashion company ‘Missguided’. Last year they were reported to have increased their revenue by 75% in the 12 months leading up to March 2017. Missguided’s target audience are millennials, they describe their mission to ‘empower young girls and women through fashion’. In 2015, the PRC reported that 24% of teenagers are “almost constantly” online, and in 2017 Statista found a whopping 96% of 16–24 year olds with a phone were reported to own a smartphone. With the majority of Missguided consumers being within that age bracket and only owning 2 physical stores in London, their online presence is vital.
What Is An Effective Online Presence?
In 2016, Forbes established 4 ways to achieve a strong online presence:
- Optimize your website: Over 97% of consumers search for products online, it’s important for a company like Missguided to ensure their website is user-friendly and presents their brand values.
- Choose your social channels wisely: Missguided’s target audience are young women, so they must communicate through the correct digital channels such as Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
- Go beyond blogging: In the competitive online market, blogging alone is simply not enough. Forbes suggest Youtube videos and podcasts can help companies gain a competitive advantage.
- Don’t forget guest posts and email marketing: These are two classic tools for creating an online presence.
Missguided: A Critical Digital Analysis
Missguided use their online platforms to personify their brand. The language used to communicate is colloquial, referring to their consumers as ‘hun’ or ‘babe’, as a friend would. If you’ve got the Missguided app, you can probably vouch.
Missguided also recently noticed the buzz around the dating app ‘Tinder’ that was growing popular amongst millennials. They adopted the idea to develop their app further, creating a ‘Tinder for fashion’ interactive feature, where users can swipe right for clothes they like. This is another effective way for Missguided to engage with their audience, as they are innovating the notion of online shopping and, as Forbes suggested, are going ‘beyond blogging’ to build their online presence.
Another social media platform Missguided use is Instagram, which they have over 2.7 million followers. You heard that right! Missguided definitely know how to build up their followers, and key to this is regularly posting engaging and interactive content, including ‘tag your friend’ or competition posts like the ones shown below. Missguided also have a number of celebrity endorsers, because as Amelia mentioned in her post, we’re more likely to purchase an item we’ve seen styled by someone we have connections with, rather than one shown on a model. This means Missguided are reaching out to wider audiences and are drawing in followers from all corners of the internet.
Missguided are brilliant at sending messages to their customers, from their app to their email marketing campaigns. However, are they as good as listening? The majority of complaints on Twitter are about the service customers have received, usually their ‘next day’ delivery. This dampens their brand image of being a customer-orientated business. If Missguided bettered their online communication and customer replies, it’s likely this would improve their online presence — making them one of the best fashion online e-tailors, full of personality across all online platforms.
