It’s the Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year for 2013, the hashtag that has by now been used almost 90 million times on Instagram. And the Oscars ceremony picture that got retweeted about 3.5 million times, favorited 2 million times and almost crashed Twitter.
And though Millennials are a main driving force behind the trend, the selfie is not reserved exclusively for them. The selfie has spread like wildfire, has raised some eyebrows and elicited some frowns, but has also been embraced wholeheartedly by brands and consumers alike. Here’s why it’s been so successful, and what it can do for private label supplement retailers.
Why Selfies are Such a Hit
Selfies are the ultimate embodiment of what social media is all about. As social creatures we have social needs. The ability to satisfy our need to disclose our thoughts, observations or immediate experiences is what makes social media so valuable.
Selfies are worth a thousand words and more. Such a human thing to do, the selfie can serve to reinforce our self-esteem or show our support of a cause or a brand. On a conscious level it may just be for the fun of it, to engage with other users or to demonstrate what we are currently doing or where we are. Research though shows that one of the reasons behind reaching out to others in such a way, is that it activates regions in the brain which are responsible for feelings of satisfaction and pleasure.
Ultimately, selfies are a visual representation of people’s online identity. And since the line between virtual and ‘real-world’ identity is increasingly blurred, a selfie effectively represents a part of who we think and feel we are.
This is what makes them so powerful – that they are representative of more than just a fictitious image but are perceived as the image of our ‘self’. This consideration offers invaluable data to marketers because through selfies they receive a lot of demographic data about their potential audience.
A Selfie a Day Keeps the Doctor Away
This business knows its clients!
The huge number of selfies posted on a daily basis hides a marketing potential that brands can make good use of, if approached carefully. And since selfies are their ‘territory’, consumers are quick and happy to respond. So what opportunities does this trend offer to private label supplement brands in particular?
‘A selfie a day keeps the doctor away’ – this could easily be the campaign slogan for a selfie contest you initiate. While selfies can hardly stand on their own as the purpose of a campaign, they are great in providing it with additional value. For example, your campaign’s focus might be to:
- promote a healthy and active lifestyle
- promote good and wholesome nutrition
- raise awareness about health risks
- promote a particular supplement (a skin product, for example)
Including a selfie contest as a part of the larger framework of your campaign is an effective way to engage your audience. It puts your community and brand advocates in the position of active participants, rather than just passive receivers of information.
Asking your followers to take selfies that are representative of an active lifestyle will stir their creativity, which is essential for them to want to participate. If executed well, your campaign will indirectly promote your brand as the initiator of the competition, without being openly self-promotional.
An additional benefit is that the selfie provides an opportunity for social media exposure and as such, it satisfies people’s desire to engage with other people. You could, as many brands already have, structure your campaign around a hashtag.
This will make it easier for participants to follow developments and will also create a buzz that will extend beyond your community and attract even more participants. It will also make it easier for people to identify with your competition and its goal, and make it a part of their digital identity.
(Don’t) Selfie Everything and Know Your Audience
Big business is now structuring entire marketing campaigns around the selfie trend.
When incorporating a selfie competition in your marketing campaign you have to be careful not to overdo it. Carefully consider what the implications of your competition are, what it is asking of people and whether it could leave someone feeling excluded or vulnerable.
The strength of selfie competitions lies in their potential to empower users by fostering healthy self-esteem, encouraging positive life changes, and bringing about actions aimed at the greater good. The Oscars selfie, for example, ended up creating so much buzz that Samsung, which had initially planned it, decided to donate $3 million for charity.
We’ve often stressed the important role of Millennials in the supplement market. Millennials are also some of the most active users on social media and according to Samsung about 30% of photos taken by people between 18-24 years are selfies. So it’s important to take note that Millennials are also supportive of brands which are concerned with issues that extend beyond their immediate business interests.
Keep this in mind when you plan your selfie competition. It is essential that you know your audience well and know what they will respond to. The selfie trend is here to stay, so don’t rush into it hastily. You may be surprised that selfies have become such a big deal, but as technology advances they will only be further embedded into our shared culture. And on top of that, more such trends will keep emerging.
Private Label Supplement‘s goal is to support supplement retailers in breaking into the supplement market. Through professional advice, timely coverage of industry trends as well our top-expertise in the field, we can help you grow your brand significantly. Call our sales team at 855-209-0225 ext. 2 or email us at sales@privatelabelsupplement.com to get started today.
All my best,
Stefani Thionnet
Stay focused and never give up!
