Last month, Urban Outfitters CEO Glen Senk gave the keynote address at the Shop.org conference in Dallas. During the speech Mr. Senk touched on three key topics: brand identity, channel management and social media. Multichannel Merchant ran a summary article about the speech.
I learned something interesting about Anthropologie’s channel management: specifically that when their direct channel was launched it was a separate entity from their retail side. I had no idea! This explains many things to me: why the catalog/website has separate item SKUs, why prices are sometimes different in-store and online, etc. The article says Anthropologie combined operations 5 (!!!) years ago, though it seems as though they’re still not quite operating seamlessly.
Companies often choose to keep their direct and retail channels separate. Among other things, the operations, marketing and strategy for each channel are completely different. For example, where a warehouse is built/rented is very important to the direct channel while retail is worried about where to build its next store. There are different criteria for success and different logistical challenges in each channel.
Why did the two channels get combined? From the article:
Some businesses that remain separate do a better job because they are experts in one channel, Senk admitted. “But then you don’t get the seamless cross-channel experience for the customer.”
It’s true — the seamless experience is very important. And to be fair, Anthropologie nails most of it. You can return items purchased from the catalogue or online in-store easily. You can order an item from the website or catalogue at a store. The direct channel can check store inventory every day except Sunday. To an average customer that’s seamless. It’s only we Anthro addicts that notice inconsistencies between the sides, and act as QA of sorts.
And how do the addicts get through to the company? Social media, of course. Mr. Senk touched on the topic in his speech, citing a successful campaign Urban Outfitters had last summer. They invited brand fans to upload YouTube videos of themselves in UO clothing. The results were increased conversion around back-to-school time. Free People has blogs written by its staff and designers, and allows customers to create and post outfits on its website. Anthropologie has certainly stepped up its social media presence in the last year. They have an active Twitter feed and Facebook page. They debuted a fantastic reviews feature as part of a website redesign earlier this year and recently added a comment feature to their outfits section.
Senk mentioned that on some days 20% of Urban Outfitters’ business comes in from social media. Twenty percent! That is of course among three brands (UO, Anthropologie and Free People.) I would love to know what percent of that Anthropologie represents. Especially since of the three brands above, Anthropologie is the only one without its own official blog. Not that I want them to start one! I’m curious for selfish reasons — I’d love to know the actual conversion rates that this and other blogs in the community provide. I have an idea of what EA does.
What else did Senk say about social media?
In addition to company blogs, customer ratings and reviews can essentially provide a free focus group for your business, Senk added. Reading customer reviews “is like being in the dressing room in the bricks-and-mortar channel,” he said.
Customer reviews are the exception to the rule on the internet. In most forums, internet users are much more likely to post if they have negative feelings. However, customer reviews represent a split closer to 50-50. People love to talk about how much they love their buys as much as they will tear something down if they don’t like it. That makes reviews a reliable resource for the marketing team.
It’s interesting to hear the company CEO acknowledge and credit social media, even if he only cited internal examples. I hope these results encourage the company to expand its outreach to blogs like EA. I’d love to do more with Anthropologie directly, and I think it would be great for the community too!
