Information Technology Reference
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thousands and, in some cases, millions of others as they go along. They hold
the cards and decide when and how to play the game; and if they decide to
play in favor of a brand, the results are positively rewarding but when they
decide to turn the tables, the consequences could be fatal. The result? Luxury
brands no longer control their existence in cyberspace. The control today is
limited only to each brand's own website, which unfortunately is one of mil-
lions of other websites existing in cyberspace. Beyond a luxury brand's own
website, the consumer is in control. Accept it or reject it, this is the new order.
The social web places the individual at the centre of its universe and finally
fulfills the online consumer's craving to be seen and heard.
Time
magazine rec-
ognized this in 2006 when it voted “You”, the consumer, as the
Person of the
Year
instead of the line-up of politicians, entertainers and other opinion leaders
in different fields. The consumer was recognized as the one that controls the
information age because when it comes to the Internet and new technologies,
they now decide, create, control, contribute and influence not only web con-
tent but also their web experiences and those of millions of others around the
world. They now have the key and the power, and possess the skills, tools and
know-how to navigate around the cyberworld and craft their place in it. This
opportunity has given the consumer an unprecedented level of confidence and
audacity, and they are no longer in an acquiescent position of accepting infor-
mation from luxury brands without questioning. The online luxury consumer
is the one who converges, connects, creates, edits, contributes, personalizes,
shares, controls, influences and interacts. They have turned the plate of content
from “downloads” to “uploads” and have ensured that online interaction has
moved from a “two-way” to a 360º web interaction.
What this means is that it's time for luxury brands to make a critical assess-
ment of the new opportunities brought about by the social web and how they may
be applied (or not) to the luxury business. This means approaching the relation-
ship with clients in a more intimate way and understanding that the online busi-
ness calls for flexibility in the way of thinking. More than that, luxury brands must
constantly observe, track and monitor the social web as a guide to understanding
the evolution of the consumer mind-set and how the social web is influencing its
shifts. Luxury brands must listen to the multiple voices and dialogues about not
only themselves, but also about competitors, collaborators and affiliates in multi-
product and services categories. It is not enough for a brand to breathe a sigh of
relief if they haven't yet been “attacked” on a blog, or for a brand to be jubilant
if they have been given kudos by the members of an online community. Luxury
brands will not get far by trying to influence bloggers through offering gifts and
other perks. It is as important for a luxury brand to monitor its path vigilantly on
the social web as well as those of its competitors. Why? Because luxury brands
share the same client base and these clients have collective experiences and assim-
ilate information on social forums on a collective basis. For example, a conversa-
tion on a social network on the topic “the death of the IT handbag” or “where can
I buy a Chloé bag?” will affect Chloe as much as Chanel, Gucci or Louis Vuitton.
