my scoop on goop

     Happy New Year! It’s been quite some time since my last post, so it feels great to write something new. As you can see from my previous posts, I love to choose one brand and focus on what it’s doing in the digital world. For today’s post, I chose goop.

     I first discovered goop on the J.Crew website over a year ago when J.Crew sponsored it. Gwyneth Paltrow founded this “digital media and e-commerce company” back in 2008. I instantly subscribed to the weekly issue – who doesn’t love Gwyneth? goop delivers creative lifestyle content and features exquisite – yet very expensive – apparel, accessories, home décor, recipes and more. I always look forward to a goop email each Thursday.

Cheese Puffs. I made some myself, and they were too good to eat just one.
Click here for the recipe.

     goop is present on all major social media platforms, but I’m only writing about the brand on Instagram. goop is fairly new to this platform (it joined late November 2013), and so far has created interesting work. The following is what it should change or add to this platform to make it even better:

1) Cut back on the captions. This does not apply to every photo, but to some photos of food. The recipe should not be in the caption. Instagram is a place of little words, so having caption too long reduces the chance followers will actually read the caption.
     Instead, a caption should be short and sweet including a link or reference to where more information can be found. This way the audience is not overwhelmed with text, and it leads the followers to goop’s website or other platforms.

2) Be more hashtag trendy. Many photos on Instagram include #goopsee (in addition to 1 photo with #goopgo), which follows the theme on goop’s website. “goop see” is not the only category on its main website though; other categories are: make, go, get, do, and be – each of these should have its own hashtag.
     To be more engaging on Instagram, goop should promote followers to post their own photos using a hashtag. goop could learn more about the lifestyle of its audience as well as increase its strength (likelihood of being talked about online) in digital media. A trend is used to see what other people are saying. No hashtag is helpful without other people using it along with a brand. For example, goop shares recipes. Followers should be encouraged to follow a goop recipe and then Instagram a photo of the final product using a hashtag, such as #goopmake. This would create more activity and engagement between the brand and its audience.
     goop’s website content in each of the categories is so unique and appealing. goop’s Instagram photos should be a goop-glimpse of what the website’s categories feature. This keeps the Instagram platform interesting and leads the followers to the main website.

3) Oops – Don’t forget to add the Instagram link and icon on goop.com! A brand should have links to ALL social media presence on the main website. In goop’s case, if there was a link to its Instagram account on the main website, it could have more followers and higher engagement.

     Again, goop is new to Instagram, so the company is still learning. I am excited to see its future posts and will still eagerly wait every week for Gwyneth’s goop issue (with hope that I may be able to one day afford her timeless style).

Check out goop here, and subscribe for weekly issues – you'll love it.
Follow @goop on Instagram here.

Wishing everyone joy in 2014.
Lynley

A BHLDN Wedding

You already know I love Anthropologie, but did anyone know about its wedding/special event sister brand, BHLDN? I always receive Anthropologie emails, but yesterday I received an email about BHLDN via Anthropologie. I immediately got excited (what hopeless romantic girl doesn’t love weddings?), and I clicked on the email to BHLDN.com. I browsed through the wedding gowns, accessories, and decorations – they also offer more for bridesmaids, mothers, and “party goers.”

I already follow Anthropologie on most of its social media platforms, so I wanted to see if BHLDN has its own platforms. It does! It has Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter. On its main website, there is a “B-Inspired” section of wedding ideas and advice. There are Pinterest, Facebook and email icons displayed on the right side, which makes it easy for brides-to-be, MOBs, MOHs, and other planners to easily organize and arrange for the big day. I am far from planning a wedding any time soon, but this didn’t stop me from following the company on every social media platform – I am so interested in how creative it will continue to be. I’m also interested in BHLDN email content, so of course I joined the email list.

BHLDN currently has a Pinterest contest that the company is promoting via its platforms. Anyone can register through its Facebook Page’s promotion app (here).The contest is simple and creative AND you could win a $5000 BHLDN gift card. After you complete the submission form, follow @BHLDN on Pinterest and start pinning your wedding look. It's fun and easy. For all you brides-to-be, I suggest you participate because you have nothing to lose. The contest ends this Thursday, November 7, so pin away!

Lynley

Because when you look good, you feel better.

“It is remarkable what a woman can do with just a little ambition.” 

– Elizabeth Arden

I wanted to write about another Breast Cancer Awareness campaign since this is my last post for the month of October. I was browsing the Elizabeth Arden website when I came across its campaign benefiting the Look Good Feel Better, an organization “helping women with cancer” and providing beauty classes for these women dealing with the physical side effects of treatments.  

Elizabeth Arden’s social media campaign is called #PinItToGiveIt. All you have to do is go to the company's Pinterest board, “#PinItToGiveIt.” You repin any of the pins with the hashtag, and Elizabeth Arden will donate a lipstick to Look Good Feel Better for the organization’s beauty programs.

1 repin = 1 lipstick.

I love how simple, quick, and easy this is. Elizabeth Arden isn’t asking for monetary donations but creating a campaign that enables anyone to participate. The campaign is not obnoxious nor is it demanding. You may think, It’s just a lipstick, but it’s not. It’s beauty. Beauty gives a woman confidence and fearlessness. One woman commented on a pin saying she had completed the Look Good Feel Better program before starting her chemo: “Having a beauty day with a bunch of other fun women, who just happened to be going through the same thing as me, and receiving the bag of new makeup was very helpful in my accepting my diagnosis and treatment.”

Elizabeth Arden achieves being a selfless brand. They stand by the Founder Elizabeth Arden’s continuous belief and statement: “To be beautiful is the birthright of every woman.” Partnering with Look Good Feel Better is a perfect organization for the cosmetics company. The company can continue to celebrate beauty of every type of woman, and in this case it’s women with cancer.

When you feel beautiful, you feel like you can conquer the world. I challenge YOU to make a woman with cancer feel beautiful and hopeful, so she can win the battle. Help a sista out and repin HERE.

To see what other companies have been doing for Look Good Feel Better this month, click here.

A little Anthro bloglovin'

I am a HUGE fan of Anthropologie. I love every item – clothing or home décor – they sell. I could seriously spend hours upon hours in the store. After loving the retail company for years and following them on Instagram, I finally took a look at its blog.

I give praise to Anthro’s blog. It is awesome! The content is so entertaining, and the variety of it keeps it so interesting. The layout appearance is somewhat similar to Pinterest but has that Anthro coolness. Each “pin” is a short blog post. The posts vary; they consist of: outfit ideas, Instagram trends, recipes, music, interviews and more. The posts direct the viewer to its other platforms, which is a smart move on Anthropologie’s part. A neat and creative thing is its Spotify playlists. Each has its own theme: road trip, Paris, summertime, and other ones. I’ve already followed a couple playlists on my Spotify. I suggest everyone check out the blog.  If you love Anthropologie, there is no way you won’t love this.

I wanted this post to mainly be about Anthropologie’s blog, but I have to also say the brand keeps it entertaining on Instagram. In addition to new products, food & drinks, hashtag trends (such as #SitStayLove and #AnthroHomeOffice), and outside events, there are always pictures of in-store events at different locations. These pictures really give the brand a fun, creative image aside from the beautiful products it sells. The company is smart to use social media to bring the consumers to the actual store. I’d definitely be there, if we had one in Athens! If you’re an Instagram user, follow them @anthropologie.

I blogged this summer when I interned for Linda Mason, but I never knew blogs were so popular until I began taking my social media class. I now notice that SO many brands have their own blogs. What are some blogs of brands you love?