6 ways luxury brands can use social media to their advantage
More often than not, luxury brands have a hard time with the creative side of video-content - particularly TikTok. As social media literacy continues to evolve, here are some concrete examples of how to catch Gen Z attention, without losing the luxury brand positioning.
1. The archives
Create content that gives a glimpse into the history of a brand, and its objects, curiosities, and moments. Many brands are afraid of TikTok in particular. Candid, spontaneous and not always politically correct. It’s worth to think that for younger generations, many don’t know the brand, or if they’ve heard the name, they don’t know why or how it became what it is.
That journey, the investment in product development, photos, or videos from the past, is the perfect source of content — to give people perspective on how a brand became what it was. Get out the archives.
It is even better when presented by a fun personality, like Ira, the archivist from Amex or the staff at the Ritz Paris.
The perfect opportunity to hire a creator for a series.
2. The creation
Quality is non-negotiable when it comes to documenting the creation process of a luxury brand. Ideas might be great, but they require investment in excellent videography, using high-quality shots and documentation to show the craft of the process. For a luxury brand, properly executing this one is key because the end product informs the perception of the brand.
3. The experience (from the product)
Showcasing luxury products—whether a location, dinner plate, couch, or dress—in their real environments, with a documentary-style focus on the choices behind them, creates a blend of artful documentation and aspirational viewing.
Think of every moment in your purchase or use process. Serving a salad on a plate, picking where a couch goes in a room, fitting a suit or dress.
These are the moments an audience will follow along with.
4. The experience (told by its people)
Similar to our previous point, document the characters in your brand’s world in their natural environment. The people who have obsessively built and worked on a brand over time are often its best ambassadors, getting an opportunity to show their passions.
5. Luxury as art
If you execute it properly, you can also use social as purely as a “views and branding” play. Using branded items, motifs, or just pure artistic enjoyment, embracing the brand association with something masterfully beautiful.
6. Create a personality
Don’t want to do this on a brand account? Develop a personality with opinions on the founding team.
Contrary to popular opinion, this content isn’t always a creator-founders game. The Kreiss CEO talks to his audience all about taste from his personal platform.
These examples are for luxury brands; they assume you’re spending money on videography, and this will be money well spent.
Smart teams are batch-creating these 20 documented videos in a one-day shoot rather than continued approaches.
But most important: if you are not a luxury brand, all these same angles apply and do NOT need the same level of presentation to gain momentum — an iPhone will do.
It’s about real ideas with value and interest, and acting on them.
