This Week in Social Media & Style | January 2nd, 2017
Home & Style Trends
- CASE STUDY: Respect for the Maker is Back: Inside the Anti-Trendiness Design Movement out of Portugal. (Plus, click here for an interview with Carlos Joao Parreira, founder of Lusitano1143, a three-months-old direct-to-consumer site focused on bringing Lisbon designers to the global scene.)
“The changes in the high-end interior design space aren’t unlike those happening in fashion: There are shifts from the cult of the designer with a capital D to the creative collectives of makers, from fast fashion to slow making, and from chasing trends to purposeful anti-trendiness. On the interior design side, Portugal is a driving force. Due to the global financial crisis, 2008 was tough for Portugal. However, descendants of the Lusitanos, the ancient warrior tribe, the Portuguese — who pride themselves on their self-reliance, craftiness and entrepreneurship — are survivors. Those who lost their white-collar jobs fell back on their own hands and imagination, and today, they make up the Portuguese design scene. Inadvertently, these craftsmen created a new moment in interior design — one that’s dominated by unknown locals (rather than by Philippe Stark or Jonathan Adler) who work with sustainable materials and make everything limited-edition and one-of-a-kind. It seems the cult of the interior designer, rife with conceptual ideas, is giving way to a collective of creative experimenters obsessed with working with their hands. In the age where any Eames is replicated ad nauseam and interior design is accelerating to the fast-fashion speed (this summer is all about minimalism), it is refreshing to recognize a movement focused on “slow making.” Anti-trendiness is in, and the most coveted pieces are those connected with the personality and the story of the maker, not a curator or a critic. We are back in the era of social objects, where handmade things speak to their own history and reflect a deeply personal, human narrative back to us. For instance, the imperfection of wood makes each glass decanter that’s made in it unique; the way one’s grandmother made pillows from virgin wool scraps is different from how someone else’s grandmother went about it. No two things are the same, and no two ways of making them are alike.” — Via Gloss
- Moroccan-inspired accents are back in the home, especially when it comes to clever accents for food and drink. From glassware to serveware, and poufs upon which to sit as you eat your Moroccan-style tagine, Spring/Summer ’17 will see a return to these far-flung influences in the home. — Via Indie Home Collective
- Clever applications of marble — especially in the bathroom, are showing up everywhere. From luxe sinks to deep baths to all-encompassing wall cladding, this old-world material is modernized when used in creative and inventive design applications. — Via Desire to Inspire
- News flash: nesting is the new going out. From bedrooms to dining rooms, and bathrooms to kitchen, the coolest homes are all about embracing a sense of layered coziness and elevating the idea of personal time spent at home. With 2017’s meta-trend of overall wellness continuing in a big way across all consumer categories , the home is becoming home base for curating a space that promotes self-care. — Via MyDomaine
- Bathrooms that promote a sense of old-world glamour with a black and white color scheme, gold hardware, and oversize tile are back in a big way. Inventive vanities, like this custom piece with a mid-century modern feel, make the look feel fresh and relevant. — Via Design*Sponge
- Pantone’s color of the year may be Greenery, a bright take on lime, but the most relevant interior and apparel colors for the coming year are a bit more deep, subdued, and sophisticated. Sherwin-William’s ‘Poised Taupe’ is a warm take on a classic mushroomy beige, and the explosion of all manner of peach tones and deep khaki greens cannot be ignored. — Via Becki Owens
Social Media & Marketing Trends
- HGTV Will Never Upset You: How the Network Beat CNN in 2016 — Via AdAge
- What’s in and what’s out for consumer, fashion, and tech trends in 2017? Digiday’s sister publication Glossy seems to know. From early 00’s nostalgia, micro-influencers, instagram, and user-generated content, 2017 looks to be the year of consumerism fueled by ‘see now, buy now’ trends shared online. — Via Glossy
- The New York Times launched their new augmented reality app on Thursday, January 5th. The application; branded as ‘T Brand Studio’ will be available for download on both the Apple Store and Google Play, for Android users. — Via Digiday
- Maybelleine Cosmetics will be tapping digital video influencers for the launch of their latest product, Volum’ Express the Colossal Big Shot Mascara. The beauty giant will call upon two influencers — Manny Gutierrez (@Mannymua733)and Shayla Mitchell, (@MakeupbyShayla) who combined have a total of 5.1 million Instagram followers and 2.5 million Youtube subscribers. The influencers will appear in two Youtube videos airing on the L’Oreal-owned brand’s channel. The campaign’s theme is called ‘Lash Like a Boss.’ — Via WWD
- Gap’s ‘Dressing Room by Gap’ virtual reality app was released at CES 2017. The tool, created with 3D software firm Avametric, is the very first augmented reality tool to be developed for apparel retailers by Google’s Tango software platform. — Via WWD
- As live-streaming becomes the name of the game in social media, more brands are seeking agile and camera-ready staff to add to their team. While some companies have gone to TV personalities and agencies to coordinate, publish, and host their live broadcasts, other employees look to build their inernal team with social experts who can ramp up their live video content, giving them the ability to publish ad-hoc video content at a moment’s notice. Once such brand is Benefit Cosmetics, which recently sent its entire U.K. social team on a one-day media training course to ramp up its live content. Previously, video duties had fallen to head makeup artist Lisa Potter Dixon and her team, but the brand wanted the ability to be more nimble when it came to social video — Via Digiday
- A new study recently published by Deloitte found that over half of in-store consumer purchase decisions are shaped by digital interactions. More specifically, consumer behavior on digital devices influences 56 cents of every dollar spent in stores. The new Deloitte Consulting study issued Wednesday, reports that the digital influence is spreading, however the results vary across product categories. Furthermore, two-thirds of consumers now prefere a self-directed shopping journey. (Up from under 30% two years ago. ) Now. the number of consumers who claim they respond to traditional advertising has plummeted from 70% to just under 30%. — Via Retail Dive
- Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has called on users to submit new ideas on how to make the platform more useful in 2017. Could this mean that an ‘edit tweets’ function is coming soon? — Via Social Media Today.
- Wendy’s is cool — some may even say ‘frosty’ on Twitter. Earlier this week, the fastfood chain came back at a snarky user tweet with an ice-cold clapback that had the internet talking and the original commenter deleting their account. — Via USAToday
- Invest less in influencers (unless you’re a beauty company).
According to a recent article in Glossy, the value of the influencer is on the decline. Going forward, brands will continue incorporating user-generated content feeds where it matters — like on product pages — and using Instagram’s new click-to-shop feature both in feeds and in Stories. “We’ll still see the power and importance of influencers, because there’s nothing like scale,” said Chris Paradysz, CEO of PMX Agency. “But I do see a much more accelerated growth of the importance of the individual user — the human being that’s not known as a blogger. Because of the tools that exist, the power of one will become more influential.” — Via Glossy - Five new social media marketing options to consider in 2017 include Instagram stories, Facebook live and the lesser-used yet highly engaging ‘Moments’ function on Twitter. — Via Social Media Today
- Forbes is using Snapchat to reveal part of its “30 under 30” list of 600 influential entrepreneurs, marking the first time the publisher is releasing one of its major franchises on a social network ahead of its own property.Yesterday Forbes published about 15 of the 600 names (of 30 people in each of 20 categories), including Margot Robbie, Simone Biles and Von Miller, on a popup channel on Snapchat’s Discover section. The popup was set to live for 48 hours, with the full list to be published on Forbes.com today. As of Christmas, Forbes was working with Snapchat to sell advertising into the channel but hadn’t confirmed any deals yet. — Via Digiday
- Snapchat recently acquired augmented reality startup Cimagine. Cimagine is an Isreali-based company that developed patent-pending markerless technology that enables smartphone users to scan real-world products without the need of a reference marker, like some other solutions require, to embed a realistic 3-D image in a live video scene.The company’s technology is currently used by retailers and brands like Shop Direct and Coca-Cola to help customers visualize their products in specific locations, like a room or store. The acquisition hints at the new importance of virtual and augmented reality in regards to online engagement. — Via Marketing Dive
- Medium is making a move to lay off 1/3 of it’s current employee base. The publishing platform, which started in 2012 as publishing site, has seen uneven profits in it’s ad sales department, and will be shutting down it’s ad sales operation to focus instead on getting payments from readers. — Via Digiday
CASE STUDY: As social platforms continue to launch live video, several are upping the ante by integrating 360-degree viewing capability — and Twitter is the latest to follow suit
Twitter’s Launch of 360 Video Boasts Potential Big Impact for Fashion Retailers
“Last week, Twitter announced plans to offer 360-degree live video in collaboration with the video streaming app Periscope — so far, it has only been rolled out to select partners. The announcement comes on the heels of the debut of Facebook’s live 360-degree platform as well as Instagram Live, both of which launched last month and provide real-time, behind-the-scenes looks to followers. For fashion brands and publishers alike, the emerging bevy of accessible live video serves as a launchpad to experiment with digital strategies and better connect with consumers and readers. Ben Boskovitch, Esquire’s social media editor, said Twitter’s 360-degree live video will be useful for targeting diverse demographics with interests that may differ from those on other platforms. He anticipates that the men’s style publication will use the tool for upcoming events like New York Fashion Week in February and major film festivals.”
- “ Google is getting in on the influencer marketing game, linking up YouTube video production talent with brands and their agencies to produce branded content. This new effort moves Google into the realm of talent brokerage. Google makes no commission, royalties, or other fees from the deal; although the content creators do. Google benefits from paid advertising revent for placement of the videos on their site. Currerntly, there are no restrictions on brands using the videos elsewhere; such as on Facebook or via their own sites.Facebook, other publishers or their own sites.” — Via AdAge
