U.S. label Michael Kors and watchmaker Movado ranked in the top five financially promising pure-play brands in the United States, according to a new report by Vision Critical.
Michael Kors is ranked third and Movado is ranked fifth out of approximately 4,000 brands in the U.S. Brands that ranked high are expected to have future financial success that is driven by creating long-term relationships with consumers.
"The biggest thing that we find with luxury brands is the creation of this two-way communication with the consumer," said Ryan Barker, executive vice president of marketing and decision analytics at Vision Critical, New York.
" Two-way dialogue and two-way communication can foster a long-term relationship with consumers more than a short-term promotion can," he said.
"Promotions aren’t the kiss of death, but they do make it hard to revitalize customers."
The Top 10 Most Financially Promising Pure Play Brands measured 4,000 brands across a sample of 20,000 U.S. respondents that were surveyed Feb. 25 through March 1.
Moving on up
Michael Kors and Movado are the only luxury brands to make the top 10 list of most financially promising brands.
Movado watches
The report ranked the top 10 brands and analyzed consumers’ reactions to estimate which brands are likely to have a strong future.
Twenty-six percent of consumers expect Movado to have a financially stronger future and 21 percent said that Michael Kors will have a stronger future.
In addition, the report analyzed consumers’ feelings toward the top 10 brands. The brands were placed in categories ranging from new, dating, love, boredom and divorce.
Both Michael Kors and Movado scored in the dating category. The results showed that U.S. consumers are intrigued by their brands, but are also shopping around and comparing them to their competitors.
Michael Kors fall 2013 collection
However, the report found that both Michael Kors and Movado are succeeding because of marketing intiatives to build relationships with consumers.
"With Michael Kors, consumers are willing to pay a premium for the products," Mr. Barker said.
"For Movado, its greatest piece was the emotional concept and that the brand forms strategic partnerships with brand ambassadors," he said. "The brand chooses ambassadors properly and accurately."
Building the relationship
Micheal Kors and Movado have both been working to enhance their relationship with customers and improve the shopping experience, which is directly related to how consumers feel about a brand.
For instance, Michael Kors is propelling ecommerce through a new fan-inspired digital campaign titled “What’s in your Kors?” that focuses on fashion accessories for certain holidays and allows consumers to shop selected items.
The millennial-focused initiative incorporates DestinationKors.com, Instagram and Twitter, and will show off items that consumers can immediately purchase from the brand’s Web site and stores. Michael Kors seems to be aiming for a boost in ecommerce with the click-to-purchase option (see story).
Furthermore, watchmaker Movado increased its mobile presence with an optimized site that allows consumers to buy products, find a store, sign up for brand emails and connect via social media.
Launched in fall 2012, the platform-agnostic site allows users to shop and connect with the brand on-the-go. This is a tactic that many brands use rather than developing mobile applications, since sites work on all devices with Web browsers (see story).
Overall, the new Vision Critical report found that fostering a relationship with a two-way dialogue boosts consumers' feelings for a brand.
"Two-way communication doesn't have to be costly and time-consuming," Mr. Barker said. "By recruiting people in a virtual, ongoing framework that is right at their fingertips serves as constant feedback and an input area."
Final take
Erin Shea, editorial assistant on Luxury Daily, New York