SUMMARY

Target Audience
Fashion eyewear is a very broad market segment with many established brand names. To compete in selling a product as generic as eye glasses, I would need to target a smaller niche within the broader interest of fashion eyewear. With this in mind, I looked at the different fashion subcultures as potential audiences I could target and narrowed it down to ‘Asian fashion trends’ and ‘Street-wear fashion trends’. I chose this particular audience as I have some familiarity with the interests and behaviors of this group from previous project experience and personal interest. This audience also held plenty of small scale social media influencers which would later be useful in a low-cost influencer marketing strategy. A product for everyone is a product for no one. Keeping this in mind, I am able to focus my strategy on catering towards a certain audience.

Audience Research
As shown by Facebook Audience Insights, the target segment within United States interested in “Asian Fashion” and “Street Fashion” holds a younger age demographic and is largely interested in online shopping and social media platforms such as Instagram. As such, providing the convenience of shopping through an online store and marketing to the target audience through social media outlets is important. Looking into the personal pages that follow “Asian Fashion” and “Street Fashion” related communities, brands, and influencers on social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram show congruence with the data found on Audience Insights.

Affordability
The question of whether or not this segment can afford what is being sold is important to consider. We can see in the data provided by marketingcharts.com, price sensitivity and price consciousness is high among millennial shoppers. Knowing our age demographic lies largely within ages 18-34, affordability is a strong factor to consider. Along with some research on price comparison with competitors (Firmoo, Tijn Eyewear, EyeBuyDirect, etc.) and keeping affordability in mind, Moon Eyewear provides fashionable eyewear at a competitive price range of $19.99 - $29.99. This price range has resulted in an average order value of $24.34 over approximately 12 months.

Strategy
Traffic and sales are driven primarily through influencer marketing. An affiliate team of approximately 40 influencers each holding a reach of at least 1,000 was built over the course of this project. Influencers promoting for Moon Eyewear are eligible for free products to be used for promotion under certain conditions. A discount code is also provided for each affiliate to be shared to their social following. Influencer marketing was chosen as the primary marketing strategy for its low costs and ability to bypass the backing an established brand name provides. Building trust is crucial between a seller and a buyer. Influencer marketing bridges the gap of trust by delivering the marketing message through a trusted individual in a given community.

By researching the types of individuals in this subculture through online data, social media pages, and popular web content, I came to a general understanding of the interests, behaviors, and demographics of this audience. Documenting information such as the audience’s general age range, people of influence (followers on social media), popular brands and stores, and popular media outlets gave reason behind my decisions. This preparation lead to the knowledge needed to create the look and feel that would appeal to this particular audience. Understanding an audience and marketing environment before building a brand and its product offerings allows for a systematic approach to projects alike.