Tadashi Yanai, Fast Retailing’s founder and CEO, wants to take over the clothing market; UNIQLO will open two to three hundred new shops per year, all over the world, in order to oust H&M, Topshop and the other current main players by 2020.
Uniqlo is getting very muscular in the social media ring, too - along with several regional Facebook pages, they also have a “Worldwide fanpage”, described as ‘A page by UNIQLO fans for UNIQLO fans. Your comments, pics, links and videos about your experience with UNIQLO are welcomed. Respect & diversity is our motto. Have you ever been to UNIQLO? Do you have a UNIQLO store in your town? Do you know what UNIQLO is?’
The page counts almost 250k fans - or “UNIQLOvers” like they have been cleverly nicknamed – many of which are actively spreading the word, acting like ministers of the UNIQLOnfession. In general, the page mirrors the philosophy of the brand: ‘"Simple", "Casual" and "Fun": this is what UNIQLO is all about. From Tokyo to all over the world, UNIQLO is delivering the coolest lifestyle in fashion where quality is not a matter of price.’
According to a WaveMetrix research, “Around half of buzz on the UNIQLO fanpage is positive in sentiment as consumers discuss the brand, clothes and stores”. When it comes to neutral or negative discussion, the tension is very low, and there is almost no poison on the page.
This is the result of a smart strategy, based on four pivotal traits:
• This is a page for the fans by the fans, therefore not a place for trolls, bad feedback, mythomaniacs or customer service (the “normal” brand page will deal with your complaint about the shrunk jumper)
• It is a “people’s page”, in which UNIQLOvers, bloggers, youngsters, and the rest of the UNIQLO Army – should I call them UNIQLOmmando? – share the love for a brand, and their personal stories
• The BUY BUY BUY attitude, with a spoonful of sugar and a seventy-four-teeth smile, that too often defines a Facebook page is not present here (although the purpose is to sell, bien sûr)
• The focus is not always the brand – about 50% of the conversation is about other topics, from music to fashion blogs, even if many times the use of smart puns and wordplays helps the name of the brand getting mentioned anyway: “Hi UNIQLOvers, what’s your favourite song?” or “UNIQuestion of the week: ****** or ******?”
Considering the way the UNIQLOmmunity successfully developed and reached a great level of engagement, the question is: should brands have two pages, one for “for the fans by the fans” and a “regular” one?
By looking at the lack of energy, life and engagement of many brand pages, the answer should be ‘Yes, please’.
