Then there's the other approach — the one that focuses on what the customer wants, as opposed to what the business thinks they need. Lilly Pulitzer, a household name in the resort-wear category, is the quintessential customer-centric brand, building a playbook filled not only with innovative ideas, but also insight to support them. The brand says it stands by its original print designs above everything else, and it underscores this by reinforcing its iconic aesthetic across every department.

Lilly Pulitzer's 5x5 campaign is a great example of this undertaking. The initiative itself revolves around a series of original prints produced by a team of in-house artists. Each one is inspired by fashion, seasons, holidays, and so on. Lending to their charm, the images are published to the brand's social channels at 5 p.m., five days a week. This gives Lilly Pulitzer's fans something to look forward to every day.

On Instagram, images tagged with #Lilly5x5 have generated 4.4 million engagements since they were introduced, which accounts for 33% of Lilly Pulitzer's total Instagram engagement. They consistently rank among the retailer's top pins on Pinterest, too.

What sets Lilly Pulitzer's campaign above the rest, however, is how the brand has delved into this visual data to engage both social and nonsocial audiences. I've listed three of the company's most notable initiatives here:

1. Enriching the eCommerce Experience

Lilly Pulitzer uses a custom-built gallery to feature five-by-five images on its homepage. Each image drives to the brand's Pinterest page, where consumers can engage with more than 500 prints. Since images on Pinterest link to product pages, Lilly Pulitzer can easily tie Pinterest content to referral revenue. 

2. Design Intelligence

Lilly Pulitzer's design team identifies trends and learns which patterns, colors and themes are resonating with its audience. If a five-by-five print is a hit on social, the retailer can anticipate the pattern will be popular in its stores too.

3. Product Development 

Lilly Pulitzer launched a coffee table-style book on Thanksgiving dedicated to the five-by-five. The brand's Instagram fans were the first to get word. Curalate's Like2Buy solution enabled Lilly Pulitzer to drive fans from Instagram to a landing page on its website, where the book could be purchased. Within 24 hours of the announcement, Lilly Pulitzer measured more than a 400% increase in referral traffic from Instagram, compared to its daily average. Over the course of Thanksgiving weekend, which includes Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Instagram referral traffic topped Facebook by more than 50%.

While there's ultimately no definitive way to predict whether a campaign will thrive, Lilly Pulitzer demonstrates that, in practice, a customer-centric philosophy can mean the difference between a fleeting engagement and a lasting impression. With the right tools, you too can use social insights across dominant visual platforms to facilitate customer loyalty and revenue.

1. Alarm rings. What’s the first thing that goes through your mind before your toes touch the floor?

I always worry about how our Instagram posts did overnight, so I immediately reach for my phone and go on Instagram. I then check my calendar for the day to make sure I know exactly what commitments I have.

2. In what ways does your day start before you get to the office?

From the second I wake up. I think of some of my best social media ideas on the car ride into work, listening to music as I get ready or watching the news in the morning. You have to stay inspired and moving.

3. How do you fuel your morning?

The early bird catches the worm, so I opt for the activity that will boost my mental state – most of the times that is usually working out.

4. Do you have a social content calendar? How do you keep your content organized from day to day?

The social media world moves very fast, and things are constantly changing. Most companies are able to create a content calendar and are able to plan with their team months out; we're not like that. We plan about one to two weeks in advance in terms of exact content. Generally, we have our moments, themes, etc. all planned out three months in advance, but we like to stay flexible and open to change – so we can insert newness as it happens.

5. Which departments do you regularly communicate with throughout the day to make sure your content is both awesome but also timely and relevant?

I have a very small team with stellar execution skills. They are equally creative, cross-functional and results-oriented. It is important you have people on your team who treat this like it is their own business. I am very fortunate in that regard. In addition, we work very closely with the Marketing, Global Creative, International, Buying and Ecommerce teams.

6. What’s your creative process like? How do you decide what types of images to create – and which channel to share them on?

To answer the question on the creative process, I love having conversations with my team. They are so smart and in-tune with how social media is actually used. I constantly clip images out of Details or GQ, and am constantly saving posts from other brands for inspiration. We also get a ton of UGC, so I love filtering through and seeing how our customers wear our clothes. I am always so impressed by our customers; they inspire us and are very vocal as to what they want and expect from us as a brand.  

In terms of how we share content across platforms, we definitely do not have a copy and paste mentality. High level, Instagram is about the lifestyle of the brand; Twitter is about relevant, pop-culture moments, promotions and conversations with our customers; Facebook is about new arrivals and new store openings; and Pinterest is about mood boards and wish lists.

7. Social media doesn’t sleep – especially when you represent a major retail brand. How do you balance work and play, all while ensuring you get shut-eye too?

I genuinely love social media. I love it so much, I even teach Social Media for Business Marketing as a professor at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles on the weekend part-time. However, I balance my life out by disconnecting whenever possible. I spend a lot of time working out or hanging out with my best friends. Aside from school, my weekends are mine. I don’t feel guilty if I cheat on my diet or stay out too late. You have to have some fun! 

8. Name 3 aspects of your job that you absolutely love.

The creative freedom, the relevancy and newness of social media, and my team.

9. And, on that note, what are the 3 aspects you could probably live without?

Aggressive vendor follow-ups, last-minute changes and bandwidth limitations.

10. What are your favorite social tools of right now? 

Curalate is by far my favorite – and I am not just saying that. It is such an easy, beautiful tool that allows us to gather the insight we need and also to schedule and publish without any hiccups. Curalate’s Like2Buy tool helped us make Instagram, a visual based app with no outbound links, into a revenue driver in a matter of seconds.

11. What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a budding social/digital manager – or to someone who’s looking to break into the industry altogether?

Always do your research, and focus on optimizing performance. There are three areas of social media that will contribute to your success at any organization:

1. Revenue: Whether you use Omniture or Google Analytics or whatever, make sure you are tracking and aware of how much money you are driving through social media.

2. Visuals: Instagram is a huge focus for most brands right now, however, you always want to be proud of what you are posting, whether as an individual post or a collective piece of work. Your posts are your art and a visual representation of the brand.

3) Customers: You have to listen to your customers and understand what they want and like. There is no good in developing a strategy that your customers won’t react to. You need to really understand and become who they are.

Diligence, Dedication, and a Demand for Excellence

If you've ever thought about what it takes to excel as a social strategist, wonder no more. Here, Mario takes us through a typical day at the office, and then some.

Tools for Social Success

With Mario's insight, you too can master the job of Social Media Manager. If you're interested in learning more about Like2Buy (mentioned earlier), and how this simple tool can turn your Instagram channel into a driver of traffic and revenue, you can find our full case study below.

Experimenting with Something New

It all started back in college – spring of 2010. I was a young, budding marketer experimenting with equally green social channels. I wanted to understand how they could effectively be used for advertising. Because that’s what cool college kids were doing.

At any rate, I remember hearing about a new social network called Pinterest. From what I read, its infinite scrolling "pins" and “boards” were going to change the world. Not long after, I signed up. But then, reality set in.

The Cold Truth

Within a few weeks of joining, I started to receive automatic notifications from Pinterest; my Facebook friends were joining too. First, it was my sister. Then, my aunt, my high school girlfriend, and my mother.

Wait a second, my mother?! Maybe it was time to re-assess my decision.

As I looked around the site, I began to realize that Pinterest had effectively become my worst nightmare. It felt like I was trapped in a department store. Behind every door, I found women’s clothing, tummy toner workouts, and an endless supply of crafty ideas. Was this really for me?

Trying to Quit

Finding little value in the platform, I decided it might be time to call it quits. But not before finding a replacement. Hoping to fill the void—after all, I liked the concept!—I took to sites like Gentlemint, Manteresting, and others that proclaimed to be “Pinterest for Men.” The problem? Their audiences were undeveloped and their features unimpressive. So, while I abandoned Pinterest for the moment, I didn’t quit cold turkey. I left my account open but stagnant: a stake in the ground to come back to and build something, someday.

Social Pressure

For me, Pinterest never died. It wasn't spam or ads or functionality that drove me away. It was the perception that it wasn't for me. As women continued to join and use the channel, DIY crafts and nail art photos became dominant. It made it increasingly harder for me to find content that was interesting or relevant to me.

Now, that's changing.

A Friendlier Pinterest for Men

Today, 70% of U.S. Pinterest users are women. But with the introduction of gender filters, the channel is more welcoming than ever to men.

Beyond that, the utility of Pinterest cannot be denied. I already use apps like Feedly and Pocket to read content. Why not bookmark the best pieces by pinning them onto Pinterest boards? I'm always seeking creative inspiration for my blog and music. Why not create digital mood boards with discovered images across the web?

The usefulness of Pinterest is drawing men like me to the social channel. In fact, according to Pew Research, 13% of all U.S. men used Pinterest in 2014, up from 8% in 2013.

The Rise of the Male Pinner

While the millennial mother may be the most coveted demographic, young men like myself are still valuable to brands. We are joining Pinterest in droves – just not to find "the cutest holiday baby outfits," as lovely as that may sound. If you’re looking to impress me, here are a few examples of pins that fit my lifestyle.

1. Fashion and style. This is especially relevant to retailers: The stylish man is on the lookout for dress and grooming tips. I might also devote a Pinterest board to facial hair, as I aspire to someday rock the most badass beard.

2. Home and design. Home goods folks should listen up too. As a young professional with a steady income, I may be looking to furnish a home soon. I can already imagine the brownie points I'll get when I share a "For the Home" board with my girlfriend. To make sure your brand capitalizes on the young urban male demographic, start pinning cool ideas for sprucing up a small city space that we can explore and discover together.

3. Travel. Like many my age, travel is a big part of my life. It’s the ideal time to explore, so if you are a hotelier, shots of your immaculate views would be very enticing. You could repurpose your best Instagram content here for a one-two punch. Double points if it's UGC.

4. Food and beverage. I know I’m not alone here, but I'm also a food porn addict. I want tastes I can see, and ideas for cooking meals that will make me look like an Iron Chef on date night. And knife skills! Dudes always need more knife skills.

Pinterest is for Everyone

Maybe it was the social stigma that initially turned me away; maybe it was the content of the platform. Regardless, I'm happy to say that I have begun using my Pinterest account again. Sometimes it takes the second time around to get it right. Maybe I'll add that to my “inspirational quotes” board.

So, what’s the deal with Generation Y?

Millennials (aka Generation Y and Echo Boomers) are defined as those who fall between the ages of 18 and 34. To understand their characteristics more deeply, Stephanie walked us through 12 subsets of millennial consumers, as determined by digital ad and analytics firm Exponential Interactive. To complete their study, Exponential Interactive surveyed data pertaining to 4 million young adults. I’ve provided a quick snapshot of these segments below, and you can find more in-depth profiles (along with celeb proxies) in this article from Adweek.

1. The Boss Babe: Your typical female go-getter. She’s assertive. She’s focused. She definitely leans in. And her purchase power is on fire. To me, Sophia Amoruso is the first Boss Babe that comes to mind, though Adweek likens this character to Scandal’s leading lady, Olivia Pope.

2. The Brogrammer: “Hard-partying male tech pros.” Yep, that just about sums this one up. He’s career-oriented, loves sports, and has spent years honing his killer flip cup technique.

3. The Underemployed: The overeducated grad who floats from job to job without the faintest idea of how to get promoted or secure better pay. “Home” is a shoebox in an up-and-coming urban area – but have you seen how gentrified it’s become? The tragically self-unaware Hannah Horvath, of HBO’s Girls, seems to suit this character swimmingly.

4. The Shutout: Unemployed, in debt, and dependent on mom and dad’s dime. Typically male, this millennial subset lives at home – and likes it. Now, if they could only figure out what to do with that degree in sociology. (It seemed like a good idea at the time, anyway.)

5. The Nostalgic: The quintessential blue-collar hipster who relishes in what was. If you’re still struggling to picture this character, just turn on an episode of Portlandia. I recommend the “Is It Local?” skit, personally.

6. The World Traveler: Adventurous yet frugal, this travel enthusiast is willing to wander the world with little more than a backpack and a dream. And Google Maps. They’d never leave home without Google Maps.

7. The Culinary Explorer: This hometown foodie is on a mission to find the best artisanal meal in town. Kale infused kale? Count them in. One thing to note is that, while they revel in both local and exotic cuisine, they value authentic experiences above all. To them, food isn’t just food; it’s an experience.

8. The Exuberant: Social savvy content creators, this group of millennials is constantly seeking to show off just how awesome they are. Adweek’s portrayal of Tom Haverford (the overzealous Parks and Recreation character played by Aziz Ansari) is spot on.

9. The Collector: While these “digital listeners” soak up social content like a sponge, they are unlikely to go out of their way to create conversations of their own. They are typically introverts who live vicariously through others’ experiences.

10. The Quarter-Life Crisis Millennial: Simply put, this group is paralyzed by the thought of who they are and where they’re going. Common fears range from “who do I want to be” to “when will I get married.”

Estee Lauder’s Origins is tapping into this sect rather overtly with its current #QuarterLifeCrisis campaign, a digital execution—developed by the company’s own millennial employees—that aims to help this demographic address the early signs of skin aging. I actually discovered this campaign while thumbing through my daily Digiday email blast earlier today, but I think we can agree that it’s certainly timely. Says Origins’ VP of Global Consumer Engagement, “...We’re playing in all the places we need to be – entering conversations that are already authentic.” The brand’s VP of Global Communications and Strategic Alliances, Trenesa Danuser, adds that the goal of the campaign is to move beyond their products to address a real issue faced by women today – whether related to work or life. Indeed, this campaign could have been even stronger if it lived on Instagram or had a more visual component (more on why below).

11. Millennial Martha: So. Freaking. Perfect. Millennial Marthas are the Martha Stewarts of today: content creators whose creativity has landed them among social's elite. Their influence can be found on channels like YouTube, Pinterest, Tumblr and Instagram in the form of tutorials and DIY.

12. The Millennial Mom: Socially active moms with a focus on healthy living. “Having it all” is a concern they can’t seem to shake, but not to the point that they would sacrifice their own or their family’s well-being. Their purchase power is like none other.

But wait, there’s more!

After giving us a thorough overview of the 12 most common themes, Stephanie pointed out one more character type that she felt is missing from the bunch: The Activist. This person is fueled by social issues and a larger cause. To find other like-minded people to engage with, activists tends to gravitate toward Tumblr. 

What do these individuals have in common?

There’s no question that the personas outlined above are diverse. You might even be asking what, if anything, they have in common. To bridge this gap, Stephanie detailed some of the similarities that are consistent across each buyer type.

Their digital habits: 85% of millennials own smartphones, and they check them an average of 43 times per day.

Their purchase drivers: Millennials value “experiences” over “things,” a sentiment that’s likely driven by a fear of missing out (i.e. FOMO). This is perpetuated by social platforms like Instagram.

Their love of Instagram: In fact, if they could use just one app for the rest of their lives, Instagram is it. Moreover, it’s the No. 1 platform that inspires them to make a purchase.

How they communicate: As evidenced by the last point, millennials—and today’s consumer in general—engage with each other and with brands using pictures, not words. This has resulted in a far more globally connected consumer, as language is less of a barrier than ever.

They keep it real: Millennial consumers are more receptive to authentic imagery, which also speaks to their attraction to Instagram as a social channel of choice.

Why should you care?

This, of course, is a great question – and one that’s on a lot of marketers’ minds these days. If you’re driven by numbers, consider these. The millennial generation is growing rapidly. By the end of 2015, millennials will supersede Baby Boomers as the largest living generation. Millennials will also outspend Boomers by 2017.

The problem? Up until now, we’ve yet to see brands show that they are listening to these buyers. If we can take anything away from our Lunch ‘n’ Learn, it’s that brands need to consider the purchasing power of this influential demographic. Those that don’t will risk becoming irrelevant to an entire generation.

And why is this so important? 75% of posts on Tumblr are images with no associated text or hashtags, making them completely invisible to other analytics tools. By applying our image matching technology to Tumblr, we’re able to discover and track your brand’s images across the entire platform--no hashtag, keyword tracking, or referral URLs necessary. We’re making the invisible visible.

Below are 5 ways you can start leveraging your Tumblr data today:

1. Measure the performance of any and all images belonging to your brand.

With access to Tumblr’s firehose, in addition to tracking your brand-page activity, Curalate monitors users’ Tumblr posts that include your brand’s products and images, regardless if your brand’s name is mentioned.As a result, you’ll be much smarter about the specific content engaging your fanbase. Use these social cues to drive business-wide efforts, like email marketing and ecommerce optimization. Use Case: Share the most popular Tumblr images from the previous week with your email marketing team to arm them with content that’s already been proven. Compare the click-through rate of this email with previous campaigns to track effectiveness.

2. Determine which content and products matter most now.

Filter between “Trending” and “Popular” in the Tumblr summary screen and reveal what’s currently “hot” as opposed to what’s been historically popular. Why is this important? Well, just like we’ve seen with Pinterest, content that gets popular on Tumblr tends to stay popular.

Use Case: Each week, create a “Top Picks from Tumblr” post and feature content and products that are labeled as Trending within Curalate.

3. Understand how a given image travels across social.

Access Tumblr data in the cross-platform view for a holistic view and see how engagement on Tumblr compares to Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.

Use Case: Hover over one of your top performing Tumblr images to identify if that image has been shared cross-network. If not, use our universal share feature to send your content to Twitter or Pinterest and share content that’s already been proven.

4. Engage with your brand’s Tumblr influencers and advocates.

There are specific Tumblr users that are sharing your content on a regular basis and driving impressions, clicks, and community. Easily identify who these users are to build relationships and leverage them for influencer/advocate campaigns.

Use Case: Launching a new product? Curalate can help you identify the users that are driving the most reblogs of your content and offer them exclusive content to share to their Tumblr blog(s). This could be product photography, behind the scenes footage, or even the actual product.

5. Not on Tumblr yet? No problem.

On image-driven platforms like Pinterest and Instagram, your fans are driving the conversation. This is no different for Tumblr. As a result, consumers are spreading your brand’s content across Tumblr regardless if you have an official brand page. Leveraging Curalate’s Tumblr integration, you can finally understand and tap into visual engagement with your content.

As a result, brands that aren’t even on Tumblr yet, like Lilly Pulitzer, are using Curalate’s Tumblr insights to make smarter marketing decisions and plan to make the image-driven platform a larger part of their digital marketing strategy in 2014.

Contact [email protected] now to enable Tumblr within your dashboard or visit the Curalate Knowledge Base for more detailed information on this new integration.

Press

TechCrunch: Curalate Adds Tumblr Support To Its Visual Platform

Social News Daily: Curalate Introduces Tumblr Analytics

Philadelphia Business Journal: Tech Startup Takes Visual Analytics to Tumblr

Destination CRM: Curalate Extends Its Visual Analytics Platform to Tumblr

Marketing Land: Curalate Adds Tumblr to Visual Analytics Platform