Wednesday, July 16, 2008

Twitter for fun & Customers' attention

Everyday, more and more discussions about the power and impact of new social media outlets are penetrating PR publications. Alexandra Bruell, writer from PR Week, recently recounted the story of Lane Bryant. Lane Bryant is a plus-sized clothing retailer who utilizes popular social outlets such as Twitter, to build brand recognition.

To engage consumers, Lane Bryant created a wardrobe giveaway contest in which the winner won a trip to London with tickets to the premiere of the movie Mamma Mia! Kristyn Wilson, the media relations manager of Lane Bryant’s PR team (MediaSource) felt “that the media doesn't cover who won contests, unless you won the power ball, it was not a story angle.”

To overcome that obstacle, the contest winner used Twitter to “tweet” her journey overseas and build interest in the movie and clothing brand. Amy Vogt, VP of marketing, PR and Communications for Lane Bryant said, “This is the first time it was used purely for fun…We believe this is the first time Twitter was used in this fashion and our feedback has been nothing but positive.”

Lane Bryant and the PR team both agree “now that we have our customer’s attention, we want to keep their attention.” For more on developing media strategies and online networks through new social outlets, read Alexandra Bruell’s article Lane Bryant builds online strategy with Twitter, MySpace.

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