Joanna Williams’ Post

Breaking News! Olivia Rodrigo is releasing a tumbler line with Stanley 1913 She just announced it to fans w/ a link that redirects to HER website Fans can enter their email address to get updates - SHE gets the data Stanley also updated its website with an entire page dedicated to Rodrigo.... Now imagine if they did the same for all her superfans... The collab is 100% authentic... "Orbiting through the quencher h2.0 flowstate tumbler, a clear Sour grape lid and reusable straw debut for the first time, studded in vampire-red and silver stars, celestial art embodies the soft-grunge essence of Guts" All the trends!! #iykyk "WE ARE OBSESSED" in the comments says it all NOTE: this is a real time example of how to use celeb reach People ask why i give away so much value for free... The truth is I don't just write to get more followers, I have more lurkers on this platform than most loool I write to create social change Imagine a world where Olivia's most dedicated fans aren't just consumers, but active participants in her brand ecosystem What if Stanley and Olivia's team created a tiered rewards program for superfans? This approach transforms passive consumers into active brand ambassadors and more importantly micro-entrepreneurs Pay attention to this in case of a TikTok ban - this is the behavior set in cement It's not just about selling products; it's about building a community-driven economy around an artist, an athlete, a creator, brand, a service and yes even a single product By empowering obsessed superfans to earn from their passion, we create a self-sustaining ecosystem of engagement, loyalty, and authentic promotion This model doesn't just benefit the celebrity and brand – it democratizes the value creation process, allowing fans to turn their dedication into tangible rewards This is the future of fandom in the creator economy It's not just about consumption; it's about creation and shared success Imagine when it’s all creator to manufacturer (C2M) And that's how we'll drive real, lasting social change We ALL see the hollow buzzy words floating around from exec bros We ALL know the others leading the way to real impact beyond stuffing your greedy pockets Values are the new currency Can’t wait to see which brands take the leap #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

SHEIN has duped the entire American fashion industry Their "secret shops" are spreading like wildfire on TikTok Shops that #dupe the entire assortment and aesthetic of brands like: LoveShackFancy Aritzia J.Crew Anthropologie Free People FARM Rio House of CB Reformation lululemon Alo Yoga SKIMS Nike Please see my earlier posts about Lulu's and Nike's historic losses this quarter from last week... Why are we downright refusing to organize around social? TikTok is going bananas How do I know???? B/c 268M+ people have created a TikTok about it That would account for more than every woman in America lol Please re-read that.... To most women it's just smart + better value for your $ to find a cheaper alternative to a trend while maintaining signaling power Now let's consider we control 85% of all spending power I've been trying to warn the industry about it for years Please see my post from 1 1/2 yrs ago explaining how deep down the rabbit holes we'll go https://lnkd.in/dPZPypYZ Digital behavior coupled by direct to consumer from manufacturer (C2M) have directly led to market cap destruction An army of digital natives have incentivized manufacturers to improve their quality to meet what I will safely call soaring demand We're ALL blatantly celebrating our counterfeit products from Nike to Louis Vuitton acquired at a fraction of the cost of the originals This subgenre of CONTENT, if not a subculture in itself represents a continuous unrelenting disruption for an industry already grappling with the challenges our industry never addressed – namely the rise of social commerce on TikTok If America wants to compete, we need to be more like Reserved It’s a Polish brand They are a social first, always on trend brand with better quality than Inditex/Zara and slightly cheaper Walmart is going the wrong way – putting their entire assortment at $15 when they can’t compete on trend or entertainment is just a race to the bottom This behavior is set in cement because it taps into core values: affordability, trend-consciousness, and the thrill of feeling like they've outsmarted the system Traditional retail can't compete on price alone – that's a losing battle It's not just about the clothes anymore – it's about the experience, the story, and the tribe Brands that can nail this trifecta will build loyalty that transcends price points Western brands need to wake up We must create an entire ecosystem of content, connection, experiences, identity, and community And it all starts with deep investment in data, measurement, and optimization Because you have to find the communities that are driving culture in real time to engage with their content at volume and speed Oh and make the fakes better than the originals, something she can pass down for generations b/c if it's all trashion the world will be un-inhabitable for her grandkids #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #C2M #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

If these stats aren't the final wake up call to mass fashion, I'm not sure what else will do it In 2023, children aged 4-18 spent an average of 112 minutes daily on TikTok (Qustodio) And 79% of UK teens aged 13-17 use gen AI tools, with Snap Inc.'s My AI being their favorite tool (Researchlive) particularly among teenage girls, who represent 75% of its users 76% of Gen-Z want to work for themselves and 70% of Gen-Z who hold a full-time job also have a side-gig or side-hustle (@Airtracker) 65% of Gen Z identify as creators (YouTube) Please read that again Exec bros are full of smoke & mirrors, especially in the Gen Z digital girl realm Too many smooth talkers are peddling empty promises w/verbose vision statements, dripping w/buzzwords But without the mission cue cards - do they have a clue as to what they care about right now? Our historic losses in inventory distortion at $1.77 TRILLION suggest not Also if you can’t distill the core concept to monetization it's a red flag – it means they can't truly execute the essence of the proposition The path to monetization is commerce owning the entire end to end value chain means more profit And it ALLLLL starts w/data... If you know where the puck of popular culture is going, you can move there with confidence b4 anyone else And that's critical to Gen Z girls, b/c once the trend is saturated, they want to move on Mass fashion can't participate b/c their leadtimes are a year long I’d want to know why 3 ½ year old bootsrapped Edikted has just shot up out of nowhere in popularity See above... it’s Gen Z girls who spend their time on TikTok and have side hustles that use ai filters on snapchat lol Edikted knows it’s not one platform – you have to be on all platforms Their constantly on Let's Go Viral Campaign involves remixing content, challenges, + incentives that encourage users to share and interact with the brand They use thematic snap filters such as "FAR OUT COSMIC GIRLS" to make it even more fun to share content Ambassadors in the Ediktet College Ambassador Program earn commissions on purchases made through their unique referral links, gain access to exclusive merchandise, have early access to new collections, have the potential to be featured on the brand's website and social media platforms, and engage in community events A whole fleet of entertainment studios and retail doors for the price of commission The concept of work is being redefined - they can do what they love and maybe they will never have to work a day in their life And that sells more authentically than any #paidad Everyone wants to escape the shackles of job mediocrity... But no one more than Gen Z girls who grew up digital and can earn from what they already do naturally Gen Z will advocate for, celebrate + show loyalty towards the brands that make real progress on social change one TikTok at a time #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #C2M #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

Happy Sunday to the 5,000 pickleball players who created a TikTok this month And uncoincidentally the 5.4k people who searched for pickleball dresses in the last 30 days on Google OUT OF NOWHERE But we know exactly where it came from loool Social proof is reeeaaaal and connected by shared interests Oh look here 92k people bought the $32.95 #dupe of lululemon’s #1 and very expensive $148 Align dress on TikTok Shop This single sku generated nearly $2.5M in the last 90 days Hence it started the flywheel of ugc and search and more purchases Hmmm yet just $163,000 for the top pickleball dress on Amazon this month... feels like people really do like content with their commerce I'd be nervous if I were a legacy brand If I were creating a brand for a pickleball creator I would go send my super high quality version that doesn't DIRECTLY COPY Luluelemon to the CONSUMER who bought every single color of the align dress and posted about it 5 times this month And I'd fill the white space opportunities of the fashion colors with equal velocity selll-thru as core colors Lululemon can't chase back into because of their year long leadtime Not a single celebrity seen in any of the content btw Because the success on social no longer relies on follower count or other vanity metrics - the algorithm and TikTok’s army of 1.8B monthly users solely reward relevant & timely content from the consumers who actually bought the product The rapid rise of fast fashion giants like SHEIN, Amazon, and Temu selling countless user-generated trends that turn into "dupes" presents a stark parallel to the disruption faced by the music industry… Just as peer-to-peer file sharing decimated the music industry, the road ahead for the fashion industry is fraught with challenges but also opportunities for transformation For those with the vales and an automated end-to-end value chain driven by ugc at every touchpoint and connected to real-time high-quality suppliers I'd start asking for receipts from operators suddenly posting about the goldrush they have no pix and shovels for I'm obsessed with the Chicken n Pickle content in particular It sounds like an awesome way to take the joy from URL and spend my Sunday connecting through playful family experiences, delicious food, and shared celebrations in my super on trend dress IRL #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #c2m #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

Nike, the most successful sports brand in the world had the largest one-day drop in history, w/shares plunging 20% yesterday As UBS's Jay Sole wrote: “Fundamental trends at Nike are much worse than we realize...its lifestyle business needs a major reset” It’s b/c they’re not building communities You can't when 96% of your creator partnerships are short term They have 100's of millions of followers, but just 509 shares/month If you can't get people to spread your word, the algorithm will stop serving - you can't cut thru the noise of 202k years of content watched daily Plus creating 15 TikToks a month just isn’t sufficient when everyone is their own production studio and will soon scale themselves with ai They need more content that is personalized to each person And break them into communities of shared interests to engage w/them on the topics they care about b/c this is what powers everything online, including sales As Microsoft AI CEO said recently the economics of information are about to radically change The advent of AI + the democratization of content creation tools mean that every individual is now their own production studio Brands must keep pace, producing not just more content... but more personalized, relevant content that resonates with each segment of their audience When production becomes virtually costless, brands must position themselves as curators & facilitators of information flow within their communities This new paradigm requires a fundamental rethinking of marketing strategies And new data tools - not ones that track vanity metrics It's not about pushing products; it's about creating ecosystems where consumers can connect, share, and co-create with each other It can't be managed in a mass way, your consumers are not a monolith I'm tracking a super-user fashion community right now - they're ALL talking about a Fashion Nova "Darla Lace 2 Piece Set" right this second It happens to be about a product But yesterday it was about navigating emotional struggles in their personal &professional relationships... see screenshot below The narrative is primarily found on Instagram and has a saturation level of 100% Tapping into real time conversations is crucial to truly stay in tune w/their desires + interests It demands a deep understanding of community, constant engagement across multiple platforms, & the ability to navigate cultural nuances The future belongs to those who can master the art of fostering genuine connections, leveraging AI + other emerging technologies to create personalized experiences at scale, & positioning themselves as integral parts of their consumers' lives + identities Whoever has the real time data & empathy can help Nike thrive in this era they are the greatest sports brand in the world - they just need to find, segment, & empower the 100's of communities who adore them Since Tomorrow #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

I track product, content, creator, and community trends all day because social commerce is an $11.1T industry by 2030... Take the ballet flat that's had a staggering 9800% increase in search in the last 2 months Just a little different from the 1% spike WGSN reported for UK women's running sneakers over LAST YEAR Rothy's avg price for their ballet flat is $169 for what's essentially the most basic shoe on the planet In a Creator to Manufacturer (C2M) world, I'd want to identify the creators driving this trend and match them directly to one of my suppliers And cut the retail price down to $39 or less High-quality suppliers who have real-time data matched to the people driving commerce online will own the next era of retail This model allows for rapid response to trends, drastically reduced prices, and direct connections between creators and manufacturers and consumers By leveraging these insights and the MOST TRUSTED network connections we can capitalize on sudden trend spikes like this ballet flat surge, offering consumers trendy products at a fraction of the current retail cost This approach not only disrupts traditional retail models but also aligns production more closely with consumer demand, driven by social media trends and creator influence And when you share the upside we have a more equitable world By cutting out middlemen and excessive brand markups, we can offer consumers high-quality, trend-driven products at significantly lower prices But more importantly provide better compensation and recognition to the suppliers who actually manufacture the goods and reward creators and influencers who drive trends with a more direct stake in the products they promote This model creates a win-win-win-win scenario: consumers get affordable, on-trend items suppliers receive fairer compensation and more direct market feedback creators gain more influence and potential revenue streams And we stop the overproduction that sends our waste directly to landfill when 50% of it doesn’t sell By aligning incentives and removing inefficiencies, we're not just changing how products are made and sold – we're reshaping the entire ecosystem of fashion and retail to be more responsive, equitable, and sustainable In this new paradigm, the real value – suppliers, makers, and consumers turned creators – can finally receive their fair share (and there will be more of it when you control the entire end to end value chain) challenging the dominance of race to the bottom and out of touch overlords that have long exploited and profited from others' creativity and labor Values are the new currency in community commerce #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

Several months ago I said #Jorts would be crushing it this summer I like to circle back with receipts :) They are in fact killing it with the avg monthly selling price per sku generating $143k on Amazon alone And the search continues to soar at 1780% But the platforms have changed I guess because culture starts on TikTok and the zeitgeist moves on to the next thing quickly 100% of the volume was coming from TikTok when I first reported it... Now you've got to get on Instagram and Pinterest to sell your things And that's what you have to do every single day for every single customer for both product and content Oh and btw Trendalytics just declared a 20% increase for Ascots over LAST YEAR But i'm not sure to what - search, purchases, ugc or where Also not sure of price, fabric, pattern etc #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

Social commerce is a real time market It requires actionable data + speedy content I show real time news & data every day I don't plan my posts until I see what’s happening now This a.m. my data feeds were filled w/jewelry ironic b/c I’m working in this space atm 1st it started w/LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault buying a stake in Cartier's Richemont As a reminder Arnault also completed a $15.8B acquisition of Tiffany & Co. in 2021 Makes sense considering Jewelry is a key segment of the luxury market - why not dominate It's a super high-profit margin category Or maybe he tracks trends too & saw that jewelry was the single highest growth category on Douyin LY Up a staggering 92% The next closest was just 4% Regular people want to participate in beautiful jewelry too Unfortunately there are millions of TikToks showing SHEIN + Amazon products turning your skin green in the last month Hence the growth in anti-tarnish jewelry search Up to 7700%!!! See how UGC + search are related :) Since Social commerce is an $11.1T market by 2030 it’s vital to know what people want b/c they have infinite choice now Plus there’s this: The market for AI content creation tools is forecasted to reach $15.2B by the end of this year - there were none last year Video is THE preferred method of communication for most consumers 73% say they prefer to watch a short video when learning about a product That overindexes to 97% for Gen Z loool Vs just 11% of consumers who prefer text-based communication like a website Video converts too 83% of shoppers buy a product in REAL TIME after watching a video Cost + time were always the barrier to entry to create content There is a 5000% increase this month in people searching for text to video tools btw Not a small # TikTok transformed video production from the domain of Hollywood elite to a pastime & creative outlet for the 1.8B on TT And now they will ALL be powered by AI AI will deliver the next disruption to a mass fashion market that never organized around content to begin w/ The theory of the long tail is happening right b4 our eyes retail has shifted from the era where a few huge brands won all of the customers That's why we're seeing historic losses from them Consumers are flocking to the nearly personalized niche products in the tail of the demand curve Shares of H&M plunged more than 14% this morning after they reported a smaller-than-expected increase in 2nd qrt profits & cast doubt over June sales & full-year profit margin target (thank you for this Andy Cloyd!!!) See long tail above... Those that provide the processes that enable creators to produce more content will own the next decade of retail There are also tools to create instant versions of best selling jewelry All you need is the best manufacturer in the world to make it THIS is the last barrier to entry in the social commerce era #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #C2M #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

Marketing bears zero resemblance to what it did b4 TikTok The days of lean-back tactics are over Attention is fragmented like never before Americans spend 10.6 hours online per day Retail has to compete for that attention like everyone else You need better content…. And a massive volume of it Nothing is predictable when you don’t need a single follower to go viral Execs are so scared they’re making things up Did you see the Nike lawsuit yesterday? Investors are saying CEO John Donahoe & CFO Matt Friend continually touted the strength of its strategy when in fact it was “unable to generate sustainable revenue growth" and currently facing a historic decline in sales ngl, starting to feel like 2008 The most valuable retail experiences now happen in layers beyond traditional channels They're social, immersive, interactive, & driven by UGC You can’t discount your way to relevancy like they tried to do LY when they were sitting on almost $10B in unsold inventory It’s about having an always-on(line) mentality Trends emerge, peak, & fade in seconds The problem of course are women Like these 3 who hold 3 of the top 5 videos today They've never had a brand deal, they don't get paid millions to post like the Kardashians Yet here we are - millions in GMV Why aren't we organizing around HER? Product that's still command + control w/out experiences, incentives, connection, entertainment will not make it TikTok decimated our market Apparel imports declined by 28% LY And now that TikTok Shop is a gateway to financial freedom we must arm her if we want to survive The secret sauce isn’t cheaper clothes like Walmart's new strategy We shouldn't try to compete w/SHEIN A top-down brand model is over in a real time 1:1 content driven world #contentistheproduct The default system of Gen Z's brain? fast, automatic, intuitive, emotional b/c they grew up in a world of infinite content/choices It's not that they have a short attention span, they just know how to cut through the BS I know for a fact one of the most successful media properties on the planet tracks, manages, & engages w/over 100 communities EVERY SINGLE HOUR B/c they know their audience is not a monolith They all have different needs & want them met in close to real time What communities are you engaging w/? The world runs on UGC That content serves as a proxy for broader community / sharing / commerce what resonates are themes around individuality, boosting confidence & emotional fulfillment, cultivating meaningful experiences, + finding simple pleasures And sometimes that's a product Marketing leaders need to know when & where to reach individuals when the time is right for both Because consumers have production studios and retail stores in their pockets now - you are competing with everyone online and that requires a radical transformation #thegreatefashionreset #creatoreconomy #c2m #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore

One of my favorite rules is to never just blindly follow along b/c of title or status I had a theory maaany years ago that TikTok would alter American commerce for good 1st they democratized content creation & now entrepreneurship TikTok boasts one of the largest social media populations globally But it’s their format of snack sized videos that provided an abundance of data for training AI models I like China’s approach in general of —"turning the crank" A term coined by Scale Ai's Alexandr Wang China's AI industry has a relenteless focus on refining existing tech & scaling them across various sectors "turning the crank" allows for continuous improvement You can’t predict trends in a crowd-up culture Trends come out of nowhere, from anywhere in the world, & peak at 14 days I think there has to be acceptance w/the fact that social commerce is fabulously unpredictable Relatability cannot be predicted Nor can you buy it with a $2M Kim Kardashian post any longer And certainly, you can't predict trends w/ 167M TikToks viewed per minute Brands must get comfortable w/ regular people being responsible for creating trends And the algorithm for controlling reach/distribution And therefore commerce The era of infinite content requires algorithms to filter what they show Content is shown to a small group who are most likely to participate You have 2 seconds & 100 people to impress or you're done! We're not even close to the ai-generated content tsunami coming It doesn't matter how good your product is if content is not tailored directly to user interests No one will see it Here’s a real time example of thousands of trends I see every day Myriam joined TikTok a month ago And today she has the #1 Tiktok out of 1.8B users generating $126.55K in 30 days But no marketing agency sees her b/c she has no history, no prior brand sponsorships Yet here we are Knowing which creators & what content resonates w/your consumers is important The goal isn’t to copy them, but to take the fundamental lessons & apply it to your niche Because AI video generators like OpenAI's Sora Ai, Luma AI's Dream Machine, & Runway Gen-3 Alpha will soon have instant accompanying audio from Google DeepMind Its video-to-audio tool uses a combo of pixels & text prompts to automatically generate soundtracks for gen-ai videos Just another massive step toward fully-automated movie quality content TikTok is not a sales channel; it’s an entertainment platform that competes with YouTube + Netflix for attention And as THE discovery engine for commerce In this era, authenticity & relatability trump status / title Brands need to be agile, data-savvy, & willing to embrace the unpredictable It's not about controlling the narrative or ever about selling a thing but being part of the entertaining action capitalizing on trends as they emerge #thegreatfashionreset #creatoreconomy #C2M #communitycommerce #contentistheproduct #tiktokisthestore