“Men I may not know, but shoes, shoes I know.” This iconic line spoken by Carrie Bradshaw, played by Sarah Jessica Parker, in the hit television show “Sex and the City” highlights the two focuses of the six season long show. A show revolving around the complexities of relationships and a passion for shoes has recently found a regained sense of relevance ten years after its series finale. In late February, Nordstrom released a shoe collection designed completely by Sarah Jessica Parker and Manolo Blahnik’s CEO George Malkemus, called the SJP collection. The collection features 25 stunning shoe styles, even one called “The Carrie.” This collection allows women to finally bring their “Sex and the City” shoe dreams to life for a price much lower than the Manolo Blahnik’s Carrie teetered around in for six seasons.
Although this line is breathtaking, the aspect that impressed me the most was the public relations tactics that were utilized to promote the line. The SJP collection has its own page on Nordstrom.com that includes a blog and stylebook featuring outfits paired with each style of shoe. Social media channels were also used to promote the line, such as: Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. In my opinion, the most effective channel used to promote the line is Instagram.
I found out about the collection on Instagram through a picture that Nordstrom’s Instagram account posted. The post tagged the SJP collection’s Instagram page, so I was able to follow that and learn more about the line. The SJP collection’s Instagram account currently has 152,000 followers and 198 posts. Most of the posts feature the shoes or show Sarah Jessica Parker pairing the shoes with her outfits, but they had a successful promotion where people could post photos of themselves in their SJP collection shoes. People who purchased shoes from the collection took to Instagram and posted their photos with the hashtag #SJPCollection and many of the photos were featured on the SJP collection blog on Nordstrom.com.
The SJP collection blog on Nordstrom.com is another effective tool utilized to continually promote the brand and keep their customers updated on current news regarding the line. So far there have been nine posts about a variety of different aspects of the line. Some of my favorite posts include: The SJP collection countdown because it had a personal message from Sarah Jessica about the line, the post about the collection’s appearance in O magazine because it informed the reader that the line would be featured in the publication, and the most recent post about the Met Gala because it is up to date with current fashion news and trends.
One of my favorite PR tactics the SJP collection utilized is their “Complete Looks” section on the collection’s webpage. It not only showcases the shoes, but also “suggestion sells” other Nordstrom merchandise. Each outfit compliments the shoes perfectly and allows for the online customer to picture their shoe purchase with specific outfits. Nordstrom was tactful in this decision because it ensures sales growth within the SJP collection and their women’s apparel department.
The public relations tactics utilized by the SJP collection expertly targeted their audience and laid the foundation for a continual conversation about the line. This collection is unique because the audience is a seamless combination between “Sex and the City” fanatics and designer shoe lovers. The SJP collection is a dream come true for many women, and seeing the products come to life through Instagram posts and the online blog makes the line accessible to everyone. Go check out the line and get inspired by the ladylike shoe designs that will make your inner Carrie Bradshaw swoon.
(Images are from Nordstrom and were taken as advertisements for the SJP collection)
http://blogs.nordstrom.com/fashion/category/sjp-sarah-jessica-parker/?origin=leftnav
http://shop.nordstrom.com/c/sjp-complete-looks?origin=leftnav
Effortlessly Elegant 