With the expansion of social networksbrands have been able to extend their brand imagewhich not only generates marvellous publicity, but also brings with it its share of bad buzz.
For some time now, some of the biggest names in fashion have been in the news for all the wrong reasons. Often unable to control what Internet users say, some brands have seen their image take a hit as a result. bad buzz. All it takes is one product, one Instagram post, or one fashion show to set the web ablaze... A look at the biggest... bad buzz of the last decade.
H&M and its tasteless sweet
In 2018, the major Swedish retailer published a photo in its children's section of a little black boy wearing a sweatshirt that read "coolest monkey in the jungle". Immediately after the photo appeared, Tweeter went wild.
More than two million Internet users strongly criticized the brand's choice. This bad buzz created a minor revolution within the brand. In the wake of this, the Swedish brand attempted to restore its image through advertising campaigns for its Conscious. Their website reads: "Looking good also means doing good around you. This is the role of H&M Conscious". A nice way to try and make people forget this fiasco.
When the bad buzz by Chanel sets social networks ablaze
The origin of this bad buzz comes to us from Instagram. In fact, in November 2017 the American model Jefree Star posted a photo on the social network. All you can see is her hand holding a black boomerang adorned with a big Chanel logo, captioned "having so much fun with my new Chanel boomerang".
While over one hundred and fifty thousand subscribers appreciated the irony of the post, others were outraged. Australia's indigenous communities were particularly vocal. They criticized the brand to make a mockery of their culture, by marketing a highly symbolic object for their culture, at over one thousand two hundred euros.
Dolce & Gabbana and its failed entry into the Chinese market
Like many luxury brandsDolce & Gabbana attempted to break into the Chinese market. The great luxury brand a series of advertisements for Chinese television. It shows a young Chinese woman trying to eat Italian food. A voice-over tells her how to eat her spaghetti or pizza with chopsticks.
This denigration of Chinese culture provoked a public outcry. The Chinese saw it as an act of contempt for their culture and traditions.
The latest bad buzz: Kim Kardashian and her brand Kimono" underwear
Cultural recuperation seems to be a common practice for many fashion designers. The latest is not really one of them. Better known as influencer world-famous, Kim Kardashian extends its empire by creating different brands.
So, in mid-2019, she's launching ¨Kimono", a brand of underwear that can fit all body types. The only problem: the kimono is a traditional Japanese garment, with a high traditional value for many Japanese. Faced with the outpouring of criticism on social networks, Kim Kardashian was forced to change her mind. So she renamed her collection Skims.
When the bad buzz marketing boost sales
Sometimes it's enough to get people talking. For example, certain controversies have enabled brands to significantly boost their sales.
Like Nike, which has made the strategic choice of teaming up with the American Football star Colin Kaepernick. He made a big splash at a match in 2016. He decided to kneel during the American anthem in protest against the violent and racist actions of the police.
So when in 2018 the famous sportswear brand released an advertising campaign with the sportsman, the web went wild. Controversy and debate swept through Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The result? Nike recorded an increase of over thirty percent in online sales in the days following this buzz. A great coup for brandtransforming what could have been a bad buzzinto a highly effective marketing strategy.
