Although my role as Marketing Assistant for L’Oréal Paris was mostly concerned with the creation of Point Of Sales (POS) such as magazine ads, a very different field peaked my interest the most; trend analysis. Thankfully, my Online Brand Manager, who was in charge of all E-commerce related activities, involved me in this process. In my case, performing trend analyses meant having a look at how our competitors perform. As I worked in marketing, the online marketing strategies of our competitors were of the most interest.
Christmas
My biggest trend analysis investigated the Christmas offers of competitors. Basically, we wanted to know how other cosmetic companies market potential Christmas presents. What products do they sell, and in what price range? Moreover, how do companies ensure that these offers relate to Christmas? My analysis involved over 15 companies, and multiple trends were established.
Firstly, it became clear that the Christmas-themed products of choice are advent calendars, as opposed to special editions of individual products. Secondly, social media rarely advertised Christmas themed make-up products, which is particularly true for luxurious brands. Based on these findings, L’Oréal Paris has decided to follow a similar approach next Christmas. In this manner, the behaviour of others is used to design our own strategy.
Interest
I find trend analysis very interesting, as I myself am an analytical person. Performing such analyses allows me to have a look into the future. Afterall, the purpose of a trend analysis is to establish a commonality and jump onto this bandwagon. It is strategically wise to emulate the behaviour of others, as a collective success ensures a personal minimized risk. In other words, there is no need to always reinvent the wheel. Instead, have a look at others to determine your next move.
Theory Of Trends
The rhetoric of trend analysis is similar to that of Social Comparison Theory. This theory states that humans are social creatures, that asses their own behaviour and performance based on that of others. Essentially, we don’t want to be social outcasts, and thus imitate what others do. This school of thinking is present in trend analysis as well. In such an analysis, we take a look at the behaviour of others to determine how we should proceed ourselves. Said differently, we base our own behaviour upon the behaviour of competitors. We thus socially compare ourselves to others.
Future
Personally, I see a future for myself within this domain. Although I enjoyed working in the cosmetics industry, I ultimately envision myself working in the luxury industry. This field, in particular the luxury fashion industry, is very concerned with trends. Commercially successful fashion needs to be contemporary and currently in style. Thus, fashion houses rely on trends to determine what styles are in right now. One day, I would like to perform these trend analysis within the luxury fashion industry to help decide what clothing item will be the next must-have.