According to McKinsey’s State of Fashion 2023 report brands may lean into brand marketing to refine how they establish emotional connections with consumers and will likely collaborate across the fashion industry and adjacent sectors in a bid to build compelling brand stories.
Plus more executives expect to increase spending on brand marketing than performance marketing.
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“A convergence of factors, including pressures on discretionary spend, is sharpening consumer appetite for entertaining brand storytelling that captures their aspirations and interests, well beyond the products on offer,” reads the report.
“Spurring this change are the increasing costs of performance marketing alongside new data privacy regulations restricting customer targeting, forcing marketers to find different ways to engage with shoppers.”
Why is brand marketing becoming important?
Brand marketing can help brands stand out in an increasingly saturated media world when done effectively. Brand marketing is also proving to be pivotal in transforming a label’s market position, while often helping it capture entirely new customer bases.
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McKinsey says effective brand marketing needs to employ a multipronged strategy over time, rather than one-off moments. Sustained, holistic brand marketing can transform brand images.
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By GlobalDataAs consumers crave greater connection and authenticity from brands, marketing efforts will hone in on brand storytelling and emotional affinity through multiple avenues.
“Succeeding as a brand in 2024 may require a shift in priorities — selectively using brand-building tools to develop compelling brand stories, supported by a long-term strategy and underpinned by the right talent and channel investments.
“Chief marketing officers and their teams will need a laser-sharp focus on customer perception and cross-funnel strategy, working with creatives and brand specialists as well as data, finance and strategy leaders to form a cohesive brand story.”
McKinsey’s report says that CMOs are being forced to shift focus from years of performance marketing and must now invest in hiring and training teams to bolster brand marketing capabilities, ensuring that the marketing department contains both brand and performance marketing specialists who can work closely together.
“Consumers expect to see brand stories that are consistent and authentic; the success of purpose-led brands such as Patagonia are proof points. Brand marketing may need to be maintained with consistent storytelling throughout consumers’ day-to-day lives, from large-scale events to touchpoints on social media,” reads the report.
However, it adds: “2024 won’t be about generating more and more content, or perpetually refreshing brand identities. Now, the focus needs to be on “less is more,” with carefully crafted storytelling that amplifies a brand’s clear, coherent personality.”
What the data tells us
According to hiring data from GlobalData, between 29 December 2022 and 29 December 2023, roles in marketing and sales managers increased 2% while in market research analysts and specialists increased 11% year-on-year.
Within the fashion space, VF Corp saw a 20% year-on-year increase in hirings within the brand marketing space followed by Lululemon Athletica with a 9% increase and LVMH with a 2% increase. At adidas and Amazon, positions in brand marketing fell 43% and at NIKE they fell 25%.
Over the last year, the largest amount of hiring activity in the brand marketing space took place between February and August, with February seeing the highest number of active jobs in brand marketing during the period at 573. Activity was lower during December 2023 with just 352 active jobs.
Fashion brand marketing hiring between 29 December 2022 and 29 December 2023
However, when we look at the statistics during the same period for performance marketing hirings, the scale is substantially higher, peaking in June to 415,191 active jobs and falling between October 2023 and December 2023 to a low of 272,295 active jobs.
It is however important to note that the range of companies and industries that encompass performance marketing hirings during the period is much wider. Within the fashion space, the biggest gainers were Wolverine Worldwide which saw an 1116% increase in hirings in the performance marketing space and PVH Corp with an 893% year-on-year increase. G-III, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Express Inc and Farfetch were among those that saw decreases in hiring activity in the performance marketing space.
Fashion performance marketing hiring between 29 December 2022 and 29 December 2023
Our signals coverage is powered by GlobalData’s Thematic Engine, which tags millions of data items across six alternative datasets — patents, jobs, deals, company filings, social media mentions and news — to themes, sectors and companies. These signals enhance our predictive capabilities, helping us to identify the most disruptive threats across each of the sectors we cover and the companies best placed to succeed.
