What makes Balenciaga campaigns so successful?

Let's do a deep dive to see how Balenciaga creates successful campaigns. In this blog post, we discuss the usage of Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) for a successful campaign in solidarity with the displaced community of Ukraine upon the Russian invasion.

Integrated Marketing Communication Campaign for Ukrainian crisis by Balenciaga

Courtesy of NSS Magazine

Step 1: Clear understanding of their target audience

Balenciaga has a very specific target audience; that consist of upper-middle-class to upper-class audience, including high profiled models and celebrities that appreciate and rock the uniqueness of the brand.

Step 2: Choosing the Correct Channels

Balenciaga has a high number of followers on Instagram as well as Twitter which increases interaction and engagement for better dissemination of their message.

Step 3: Having a consistent look

Balenciaga has been one of the most consistent Fashion Houses when it comes to brand perception by the public. When Balenciaga first started their campaign they deleted all of their Instagram posts and uploaded only one picture and it was of the Ukrainian flag to show its support with the Ukrainian people.

Step 4: Create clear, consistent content

Balenciaga has a pattern of doing this when they would like to shine a spotlight on a specific matter, where they delete their posts from both Twitter as well as Instagram and only upload posts related to the issues they want to focus on. This creates a sense of deeper importance in their current discussion.

Balenciaga has also changed its headline on Instagram as well as Twitter to a link that leads to donations for the Ukrainian people. They work alongside The World Food Programme (WFP) in a further effort to show support to the victims.

Changing their Twitter and Instagram content in solidarity with Ukraine has made their audience excited to see what will they do next.

Courtesy of Twitter

Courtesy of Instagram

When the Ukrainian war started, Balenciaga instantly launched this Marketing Campaign in order to show support for the Ukrainian people; HOWEVER, Balenciaga did not just stop at social media campaigns. After it was clear to their audience that they have made it a mission to support the Ukrainian people through social media platforms, they decided to use other tools, such as;

1. Offline communication: Fashion Week! Their campaign on social media piqued the interest of enthusiasts as to what their fashion show would be like.

2. Online Partnership: Balenciaga partnering with The World Food Programme (WFP)

Then Fashion Week comes;

The support to the Ukrainian cause was shown clearly in the Fashion Show, Demna Gvasalia who is the creative director for Balenciaga created a Fashion Show solely to show Balenciagas solidarity with the Ukrainian people. Supported monetarily through the World Food Programme and symbolically with the use of Ukrainian flags and a personal note by Demna on the seats of the guests that read “fashion week feels like some kind of an absurdity”. To cancel the show would have meant “surrendering to the evil that has already hurt me so much for almost 30 years” referring to his experience as a refugee.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTXbCdS5hdY

Courtesy of YouTube

Many of the outfits shown on the fashion show are easily foldable and travel friendly; a fashion reference to a dystopian future and a direct reference to the refugee emergency caused by the Russian invasion.

What have we learnt from this campaign?

This has shown us how integrated marketing communication tools are used to achieve a successful campaign outcome online as well as offline. Balenciaga used their social media platform to create awareness and let their audience know where they stand in the Ukrainian War creating anticipation and hype for their annual Fashion Show.