andrew jay weir final thesis universitat ramon llull

Social media and consumer behavior: The Inditex and

Facebook relationship.

Social media and consumer behavior: the Inditex and Facebook relationship.

2

I. Abstract As social media usage is becoming of greater importance in everyday life, businesses

have caught onto the idea of taking advantage of social media as a communication

medium. The main purpose of this thesis is to see how companies harness social media

as a marketing tool, influencing consumer behavior.

Forming a pillar of this thesis is the Inditex and Facebook relationship. Inditex is known

for doing things different from its competitors and unconventional marketing activities.

Their relationship shall be observed and we shall see how they have entered the

irresistible world of social media. This study will take a look at how Inditex manages its

Facebook activities in order to reap the benefits of social media. An in-depth observation

is made in the understanding of the social media and consumer behavior. This is done to

see to what extent social media has in terms of influencing consumer behavior. Whether

social media has the ability to influence consumer behavior.


3

II. Table of contents

I. Abstract .......................................................................................................................... 2

II. Table of contents .......................................................................................................... 3

III. Table of figures ............................................................................................................ 4

IV. Glossary ...................................................................................................................... 5

V. Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................ 8

1. Executive Summary ...................................................................................................... 9

2. Introduction ................................................................................................................. 10

2.1 Research objectives .............................................................................................. 11

2.2 Research Questions ............................................................................................. 12

3. Methodology ............................................................................................................... 13

3.1 Secondary Research ............................................................................................ 13

3.2 Limitations ............................................................................................................. 15

2.Literature Review ......................................................................................................... 16

2.1.The invisible revolution ......................................................................................... 16

2.2 Social media and The Network Society ................................................................ 17

2.3. Marketing 2.0 ....................................................................................................... 19

2.4.Traditional consumer behavior theory ................................................................... 21

2.4.Customer engagement and e-CRM ...................................................................... 23

2.5. Inditex’s usage of Web 2.0 and social media ....................................................... 25

3.Data Analysis ............................................................................................................... 31

3.1 Zara ....................................................................................................................... 32

3.2 Pull and Bear ........................................................................................................ 37

3.3 Massimo Dutti ....................................................................................................... 44

3.4 Bershka ................................................................................................................. 46

3.5 Stradivarius ........................................................................................................... 51

3.6. Oysho ................................................................................................................... 55

3.7. Zara Home ........................................................................................................... 58

3.8.Uterque ................................................................................................................. 61

3.9. Inditex summary ................................................................................................... 63


4

4.Conclusion ................................................................................................................... 66

5.Bibliography ................................................................................................................. 70

III. Tables and figures Figure 1.0 word of mouth to world of mouth _________________________________ 20

Figure 1.0 Consumer buying process ______________________________________ 22

Figure 1.2: Screenshot Zara online store ____________________________________ 26

Figure 1.3: Screenshot iPhone application __________________________________ 27

Figure 1.4: Screenshot Shop Online _______________________________________ 27

Figure 1.5: Screenshot, Where online retailing is available ______________________ 28

Figure 1.6: Screenshot Online retailing video ________________________________ 29

Figure 1.7:Screenshots Inditex Websites ___________________________________ 30

Figure 1.8: Screenshot, Zara “PEOPLE” initiative _____________________________ 33

Figure 1.9: Photograph Zara “PEOPLE” initiative _____________________________ 34

Figure 2.0: Screenshot, Zara “LOOKBOOK” initiative _________________________ 35

Figure 2.1 Content usage by Zara _________________________________________ 36

Figure 2.2:Screenshot Pull and Bear blog initiative ____________________________ 38

Figure 2.3 Pull and Bear blog collaboration __________________________________ 38

Figure 2.4: Screenshot Pull and Bear iPhone application _______________________ 39

Figure 2.5 Thinking of Japan post _________________________________________ 40

Figure 2.6 XX contest __________________________________________________ 40

Figure 2.7: Screenshot Pull and Bear website, Social media links ________________ 41

Figure 2.8 Content usage by Pull and Bear __________________________________ 43

Figure 2.9: Screenshot, Massimo Dutti website _______________________________ 44

Figure 2.10 Massimo Dutti’s content usage __________________________________ 45

Figure 2.11 Bershka Facebook page _______________________________________ 46

Figure 2.12: Bershka community managers _________________________________ 47

Figure 2.13: community manager response _________________________________ 47

Figure 2.14 Bershka’s content usage ______________________________________ 50

Figure 2.15 Online retailing post __________________________________________ 51

Figure 2.16 Store demand post ___________________________________________ 52


5

Figure 2.17 Online retailing post for Stradivarius ______________________________ 52

Figure 2.18 Stradivarius’s content usage ____________________________________ 54

Figure 2.19 Oysho event related marketing __________________________________ 55

Figure 2.20 Oysho movie night ___________________________________________ 56

Figure 3.3 Oysho’s content usage _________________________________________ 57

Figure 3.4 Zara Home’s content usage _____________________________________ 60

Figure 3.5 Uterque’s content usage ________________________________________ 62

Figure 3.6 No. Of Fans in Facebook per division ______________________________ 63

Figure 3.7 Inditex’s content usage as a whole ________________________________ 64

Table 1.0 Zara summary of social media activities ____________________________ 35

Table 1.2 Summary of Pull and Bears social media activities ____________________ 42

Table 1.3 Summary of Massimo Duttis social media activities ___________________ 45

Table 1.4 Summary of Bershka’s social media activities ________________________ 48

Table 1.5 Summary od Stradivarius’s social media activities ____________________ 53

Table 1.6 Summary of Oysho’s social media activities _________________________ 56

Table 1.7 Summary of Zara Home’s social media activities _____________________ 59

Table 1.8 Summary of Uterque’s social media activities ________________________ 61

Word count: 15047


6

IV. Glossary

CRM Customer relationship management CROSSPOLINATE When marketing efforts are span across several types of media. CUSTOMER ENGAGEMAENT Repeated interactions that strengthen the emotional, philological or physical investment a consumer has in a brand. e-CRM Using digital communications technologies to maximize sales to existing customers and encourage continued usage of online services. IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication) combination of all promotional activities to produce a unified customer focused message. INDITEX Industria de Diseño Textil, S.A. translated into English as Textile Design Industries, Inc. LIKE An option on the Facebook Web site to provide feedback on the stories that appear in your friend's news feed. The Like option allows to acknowledge a friend's news feed item in a positive way without needing to add actual commentary. LOOKBOOK A printed showcase of still images of a fashion designer or fashion brand’s collection NETWORK SOCIETY Describes several different phenomena related to the social, political, economic and cultural changes caused by the spread of networked, digital information and communications technologies NEWS FEED A service by which news is provided on a regular or continuous basis for onward distribution or broadcasting POST A message published in an online forum or newsgroup SOCIAL MEDIA A group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of User Generated Content TAG A keyword or term associated with or assigned to a piece of information often used in Social Media TAG A non-hierarchical keyword or term assigned to a piece of information UGC (User Generated Content) the production of content by the general public rather than by paid professionals and experts in the field. WEB 1.0 A general reference to the World Wide Web during its first few years of operation. The term is mostly used to contrast the earlier days of the Web before blogs, wikis, social networking sites and Web-based applications became commonplace


7

WEB 2.0 Second generation of the World Wide Web that is focused on the ability for people to collaborate and share information online


8

V. Acknowledgments

First of all I would like to give an exceptional thanks to my parents and family that

have guided me and showed me the importance of education in life.

To the people that I have shared experiences with, my colleges at La Salle and

professors from whom I have learnt a lot and have shared many good experiences.

Thanks to everyone who has played a part in the construction of my education.

To my grandmother, who I have unfortunately lost during the process of my thesis, may

you rest in peace. You will always be remembered.

I would also like to thank Chris Kennett for his exceptional guidance and valued

criticisms, they sure helped me a lot.

Lastly I would like to give special thanks to my promoter German Aragon who has

helped me and has contributed to a great proportion of my studies at La Salle. You have

taught me great lessons in life and hope to find them helpful in the workplace.


9

1. Executive Summary

“Consumer behavior reflects the totality of customers’ decisions with respect to the

acquisition, consumption, and disposition of goods, services, activities, people and ideas

by (Human) decision making units (over time)” Wayne D Hoyer (2008) et al.

The main purpose of Social media and consumer behavior: an analysis of the Inditex

and Facebook relationship is to analyze the relationship between consumer behavior

and web 2.0, specifically the use of social media. Inditex (Industria de Diseño Textil,

S.A.) one of Spain’s most successful multinationals known for its wit and innovative

strategies will be analyzed. This is an attempt to see how they have integrated social

media into marketing and communication strategies in order to reap the benefits offered

there by. A two-month virtual observation was undertaken in order to gain an

understanding of how Inditex uses social media. Then by observing the interaction

between Inditex and its consumers. In other terms their consumer behavior.

The research was based on qualitative and quantitative data. Daily posts were analyzed

and recorded over the two-month period for each of the 8 different stores. These include

Zara, Pull and Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stradivarius, Oysho, Zara Home and

Uterque. Their Facebook pages were viewed daily and the data was categorized into

various types of content to determine the content usage of Inditex. A qualitative

approach highlighting the individual characteristics of each store’s Facebook page was

done in order to demonstrate instances of where social media and consumer behavior

relate. Website features and cases of innovation were also looked into as this

compliments the overall strategy for each store. Examples of these were Zara’s online

retailing initiative and Pull and Bear’s Store 2.0. Later an overall summary is given for

Inditex as a group. This is done in an attempt to see what changes have been made in

accordance to consumer behavior over time.


10

2. Introduction

“If you have questions go to the store, your customers have the answers”

Sam Walton

The main objective of Social media and consumer behavior: an analysis of the Inditex

and Facebook relationship is to study the changes that Inditex has undergone due to the

rise of social media. How this has influenced companies to change their marketing and

communication strategies accordingly. And of greatest importance the changes that

have taken place in terms of consumer behavior by the usage of social media.

Traditional consumer behavior theory is based on the physical principals of selling. This

selling environment has changed with a tendency of using online resources instead of

the physical environment. Now with the rise of the Internet, Web 2.0, social media and

online retailing the researcher raises questions based on this new online environment,

social media and consumer behavior.

The researcher hopes to provide an insight on how the use of social media technologies

is influencing consumer behavior. Consumers now have endless possibilities to search

for information, an important part of the consumer buying process. Due to the great

increase of incorporating social media into marketing and communications strategies, it

came to the researcher’s attention that more research should be done to question

whether the use of traditional consumer behavior theory in contemporary business is still

valid. The researcher identifies that there is a substantial amount of information available

on each topic independently; however conjointly there is a lack of resources. The the

idea of whether social media has the capacity to influence or change consumer behavior

brings doubt as very literature has been found on consumer behavior and social media

relationship.

The Structure of this thesis will constitute a literature review to form a basis for a data

analysis and an online observation of the use of social media by Inditex. A focus will be

placed on the interaction between Inditex and its consumers. Lastly there will be a

conclusion of the main findings in an attempt to answer the research questions and to

see what the future holds for social media.


11

2.1 Research objectives

Due to the great shift towards online activities and the impact of the Internet on society

and business I have chosen to analyze the impact that social media has on consumer

behavior. Specifically how a firm uses social media and whether it has the ability to

influence its consumers. Where do online activities come into the picture with traditional

theories?

Inditex, one of Spain’s most successful multinational companies, has recently made

changes to their conventional marketing efforts. They have changed their strategy and

have discovered the importance of being involved online. Inditex has fostered a new kind

of relationship with the use of social media and has started the process of online retailing

as of 2nd of September 2010.The researcher will identify reasons for why Inditex has

followed this transformation.

It is with Social media and consumer behavior: an analysis of the Inditex and Facebook

relationship that I intend to demonstrate and provide an evidential basis whether the new

online environment and use of social media have the power to influence the consumer.

The researcher aims to see whether this is perhaps a reason for so many other

businesses having adopting the online way of doing business. Why are so many

businesses including the use of social media in their marketing and communication

strategies?


12

2.2 Research Questions The following questions have been formulated in order to guide the researcher in to the

research process.

• How is the rise of social media affecting consumer behavior in the case of Inditex

and the changing online environment?

• How may this change Inditex’s marketing and communication strategies?

• How is Inditex using social networking and Marketing 2.0?

• What does social networking provide Inditex?

• What is the future for Inditex and the changing online environment?


13

3. Methodology

3.1 Secondary Research Forming part of the literature review is the use of secondary research in the appropriate

areas of consumer behavior, social media and corresponding areas of interest. The

literature was focused on the rise of social media and how companies are adopting the

social media platform as part of their communication and marketing strategies.

Traditional consumer behavior literature was studied too to identify areas of where social

media and consumer behavior relate. The use of books, articles and online information

provided by Inditex and Facebook were used in order to gain a better understanding of

the topics and their relationship. This was done to highlight and understand the

underlying reasons why Inditex has entered the world of social media.

In order to satisfy the research objective of my thesis a qualitative research method was

undertaken. Ethnography has been chosen as the principle research method.

Ethnographies, studies the intact a cultural group in a natural setting over a prolonged

period of time by collecting, primarily, observational data (Creswell, 1998)

The research process is flexible and typically evolves contextually in response to the

lived realities encountered in the field setting (LeCompte & Schensul, 1999).

Likewise according to Martlyn Hammersley (2007) the purpose of ethnography is to

describe and explain the social world the research subjects inhabit in the way, which

they would describe and explain it. It is appropriate if you wish to gain insights about a

particular context and interpret it from the perspective of those involved. This takes place

over a time period.

Ethnography has the following features:

1.) People’s actions and account are studied in everyday context (Research takes

place in the field). In the case of the field would be considered the social media

environment. Not being physical this is known as virtual ethnography (Markham

1998; Mann and Stewart 2000)

2.) Data are gathered from a range of sources.

3.) Data collection for the most part is unstructured.

4.) The focus is usually on a few cases. Generally fairly small-scale, perhaps a

setting or a group of people. In the case of Social media and consumer behavior:

an analysis of the Inditex and Facebook relationship the online users on the

social media platform were considered the group.


14

5.) The analysis of data involves interpretation of the meanings, functions and

consequences of human actions. In the case of Social media and consumer

behavior: an analysis of the Inditex and Facebook relationship the interpretation

of how social media influences the human actions in terms of consumer

behavior.

According to Hammersley (2007) on of the methods used most frequently in

ethnography is the use of an observation. Saunders et al (2000) describes an

observation, as “the systematic observation, recording, description, analysis and

interpretation of people’s behavior” Thus being ideal for my research objective of

determining the various aspects of how social media influences consumer behavior. The

only limitation is that the observation is based on online activity and not in a physical

environment. This means that a focus on the consumer in context of the online

environment.

Justification for the use of ethnography follows the identification of the online user

environment as a culture, tribe or group of people and the information that is to be

obtained is in a informal manner over a observational period of time.

Due to time limitations it has been decided that the study would be conducted by an

“online” observation over a period of time (2 month period). The decision has been made

to concentrate on the main social media platform that Inditex uses.

The data once collected from these sources will provide the researcher with an

abundance of qualitative data. The data will be used to analyze the current situation of

Inditex and Facebook. We will also by this understand the presence of Inditex in the

online environment. We will see the actions taken by Inditex in order to keep up with the

changes that have been taking place in terms of the changing online environment. This

information will then be compared to the findings of the literature review. The researcher

will use a technique known as thick description by where the behavior is not only

explained but is explained in the context of the environment. This being the online

environment or social media platform used (Geertz 1973).


15

This will be done to draw conclusions to the research questions that have been raised.

The research approach implemented was to analyze content that was posted on

Facebook by Inditex for the two-month period (1st of February until 31st March).

First of all, the posts are to be categorized by its targeted division (Zara, Bershka, Pull

and Bear, Oyosho, and Uterque). There after they are categorized by type of post

(Video, Link, Photo or Other). Then an in-depth analysis of the content posted in reaction

to the material posted by Inditex. There after the researcher will analyze the content that

was posted and to view consumer reactions in accordance to the material posted. The

data is then divided into various categories of which we would then count the number of

occurrences, identifying patterns of consumer behavior. This was done in order to arrive

at whether social media affects consumer behavior and how. Certain instances are

identified, explained and related to the strategies that Inditex use.

3.2 Limitations The researcher identifies the limitations for the ethnography was to be with Inditex itself.

Inditex has various divisions that are directed to different markets, therefore, the content

needs to be broken down into each division and be analyzed individually. Each division

has a different target market and therefore these aspects need to be taken into

consideration accordingly. Due to the fact that each division has a different target market

the nature of content for each division may vary as each division has its own identity and

set of values. Factors such as demographics, age groups, gender and seasonal

changes are discussed. These differences will be taken into consideration as part of the

analysis in order to get unbiased results. The researcher points out the importance to

justify and define relevant data in order to maintain consistency throughout each division

Another limitation involved in the research is the aftersales dimension of consumer

behavior and not having access to this information. This is the word of mouth content

that will be shared among consumers and their personal network instead of on the

Inditex Facebook pages. An emphasis will be placed on how consumers interact among

each other and the direct relationship between Inditex and Facebook.


16

2.Literature Review

2.1.The invisible revolution “The changing presence of the internet from a medium of elite to a medium of common

use in our everyday lives raises questions about its impact on access to resources,

social interaction, and commitment to local community”

Barry Wellman Michael Lewis describes it as the invisible revolution. What he is referring to is how the

Internet it is changing society, business, and communication. In his book Next, The

future just happened, it is explained how the Internet has been the most important force

to have struck the global economy since the industrial revolution. Even the Chairman of

the US Federal Reserve, Alan Greenspan, said that the Internet was changing the

economy in ways that even he did not understand.

John Perry Barlow (1995) mentions that “with the development of the internet, and the

increasing pervasiveness of communication between networked computers we are in the

middle of the most transforming technological event since the capture of fire. I used to

think that it was just the biggest thing since Gutenberg, but now I think you have to go

back farther.”

We can see from the authors Lewis and Wellman that they both talk about the idea of

the Internet affecting our society and not only affecting it but changing it.

Lewis describes that the “Internet was far less interesting than the effects people were

allowing it to have on their lives”

Because of this the researcher recognizes that there is a need to look at whether these

changes have affected consumer behavior.

This shift however can be seen all around us with the most surprising up-rise having

been social media and social networks over the last few years.


17

2.2 Social media and The Network Society

In order to understand what social media is exactly, Kaplan & Haenlein (2009) explain

that it is first necessary to understand two related topics that are regularly named in

combination with social media; Web 2.0 and user-generated content, also known as

UGC. Web 2.0 refers to platforms on the World Wide Web where content and

applications are not created and published by individuals, but are modified on a

continuous basis by all users in a participatory manner. User-generated content refers to

the various types of media content that are publicly available and are generated by the

end users.

The OECD (Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development) highlights three

requirements for UGC to be considered UGC, which are:

• Being publicly accessible

• Shows a certain amount of creative effort

• Produced outside of professional practice and routine.

Kaplan & Haenlein (2009) explain that even though UGC has existed since the 1980’s,

before the term Web 2.0 had been introduced, it has been due to a combination of

forces, which include technology drivers such as increased broadband connectivity,

economic drivers, and social drivers from which we have seen the great increase of

usage over the last decade.

Finally by understanding these two concepts Kaplan and Haenlin define social media as

a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological

foundations of Web 2.0, and that allow the creation and exchange of user-generated

content.


18

“The technological simulation of consciousness, when the creative process of knowing

will be collectively and corporately extended to the whole human society, much as we

have already extended our senses and our nerves by the various media. Whether the

extension of consciousness, so long sought by advertisers for specific products will be “a

good thing” is a question that admits wide solution. There is little possibility of answering

such questions bout the extensions of man without considering all of them together. Any

extension whether skin, hand or foot affects the whole psychic and social complex”

-Marshall McLuhan-

Social media has gained a lot of attention over the past few years. It has

influenced our lives in various ways and in this chapter I would like to demonstrate some

aspects of how it has changed society by highlighting some of the benefits and reasons

why so many companies are using social media in their communication and marketing

strategies. By doing so is important to gain an understanding of a new term that is

known as the network society an up-to-date approach to the social sphere which Jürgen

Habermas was famously known for. One of the criticisms of Jürgen was that his theory

did not take into consideration the technological development over the past half-decade.

Jan van Dijk and Manuel Castells both identified the term the network society however

share different ideas for its terminology. Dijk describes the network society as “a form of

society increasingly organizing its relationships in media networks gradually replacing or

complementing the social networks of face-to-face communication. Personal

communication is replaced by digital technology.” Whereas Castells (2009) terminology

is more in depth and he describes it as “ a society where the key social structures and

activities are organized around electronically processed information networks.”

Castells argues that it is not purely the technology that defines modern societies, but

also cultural, economic and political factors that make up the network society. Influences

such as religion, cultural upbringing, political organizations, and social status all shape

the network society. Societies are shaped by these factors in many ways. It is important

to understand what a network is, as Castells (2009) defines it “ a network is made up of

nodes. Nodes increase their importance for the network by absorbing more relevant

information, and processing it more efficiently. The processes that take place in global

networks that constitute the social structure, the core activities that form and shape


19

human life, affect everybody”. Castells also explains that specific societies, as defined by

the current boundaries of nation states, are deeply fragmented by the double logic

inclusion and exclusion in the global network that structure production, consumption,

communication and power. This shows us the importance of the digital age and the

technological transformation that we as a society have undergone

2.3. Marketing 2.0 In this chapter I would like to highlight the emergence of Marketing 2.0, which refers to

the use of Web 2.0 in the marketing mix and strategies.

Glynn Mangold et al. (2009) in the study of Social media as the new hybrid element of

the promotion mix, explains the importance of social media and its impact on marketing.

He explains that consumer-to-consumer communication has been greatly magnified in

the market place and therefore social media is a hybrid element of the promotion mix.

Included in his study is his interpretation of IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication),

which is described as the combination of all promotional activities to produce a unified

customer focused message. Inditex uses social media on a common basis now and

Chris Treadway et al. (2009) explain some of the reasons why businesses such as

Inditex may be using social media. He mentions that in some cases businesses are

bypassing traditional marketing and advertising altogether in lieu of social media.”

Treadway et al. continue to explain that businesses get to know their customers on a

professional and personal level. He uses the example of Facebook and gives us the

following reasons of why this new paradigm of marketing is being used.

• Customer Interaction Facebook allows local businesses to share interesting

stories and anecdotes and respond to random status updates in an effort to be

more personable or human.

• Customer service Local businesses can use social media to respond to product

question concerns or feedback.

• Deals, coupons, and offers Facebook offers the opportunity to promote

standing or special offers and coupon codes through Facebook fan pages or

another part of the social network.

• Real time notifications Businesses can notify customers of important business

news updates, new items, sales and other relevant things that happen

• Personal recommendations Facebook provides a forum for encouraging

customers to talk about good experiences or make personal recommendations


20

about your company or your products. This can range from overt compliments

delivered via status updates to more subtle approval via your fan page.

Sarah Sorensen (2010) taken from an article from Forbes magazine

(www.forbes.com) mentions that social media allows companies to stay on top of

customer preferences and concerns.

Erik Qualman (2010) describes another important aspect known in marketing as

world of mouth. Erik describes a shift in the process of word of mouth to a term

“world of mouth” due to the influence of social media. He has developed a model

to explains this change with can be seen in the below figure 1.0

Figure 1.0 word of mouth to world of mouth (source: Qualman, 2010)


21

2.4.Traditional consumer behavior theory

In this chapter traditional consumer behavior is discussed in order to gain an

understanding thereof. It will also try to identify the relationship between social media

and consumer behavior in order to create the foundation and define the critical factors to

be taken into consideration in the content analysis part to the thesis.

Schiffman et al. (2008) describes consumer behavior as “the behavior that consumers

display in searching for, purchasing, using, evaluating and disposing of products and

services that they will expect to satisfy their needs.”

Similarly Wayne D Hoyer (2008) et al. explains, “Consumer behavior reflects the totality

of customers’ decisions with respect to the acquisition, consumption, and disposition of

goods, services, activities, people and ideas by (Human) decision making units (over

time)”

Lars Perner Ph.D. (1999) explains that the understanding of consumer behavior helps

firms and organizations improve their marketing strategies. He also mentions that

consumer behavior is “The study of individuals, groups, or organizations and the

processes they use to select, secure, use, and dispose of products, services,

experiences, or ideas to satisfy needs and the impacts that these processes have on the

consumer and society”

He includes four applications for the studying of consumer behavior, which include:

• Marketing Strategy

• Public Policy

• Social Marketing

• Making ourselves better consumers

In traditional consumer behavior theories it is know that consumers have a specific

process by which they arrive to the conclusion of buying a good or service. This is

known as the consumer buying process.

In the traditional buying process there are a set number of phases that a customer goes

through and it is my aim with Social media and consumer behavior: an analysis of the

Inditex and Facebook relationship to show in the changed environment, which I would

like to refer to as “invisible revolution”, whether this traditional consumer behavior

procedure is valid in the online environment. Another objective is to identify the areas in


22

the consumer buying decisions where social media may play a role in influencing or

providing the consumer with information regarding their needs.

Figure 1.0 Consumer buying process (Source: Schiffman, 2008)

Figure 1.0 is a simple version of the consumer buying process that demonstrates the

process that customers go through from the start until the end and post purchase phase.

The model consists of three major components described by schiffman as Input,

Process and Output

We can, from this table, identify a typical Inditex consumer and start evaluating factors

that could possibly influence consumers by looking at the factors of social media and the

traditional consumer behavior theory.

We could logically assume that the part of the buying process of greatest importance, in

which social media could have an effect, is the search for information where consumers

today have ample sources from which to search.


23

According to Foux (2006) taken from the case study of Social media: The new hybrid

element of the promotion mix social media is perceived by consumers as a more

trustworthy source of information regarding products and services. Likewise according to

Lampert (2006) “consumers are turning more and more frequently to various types of

social media to conduct their information searches to make their purchasing decisions.”

As seen in the graph above, information is considered an important part of the consumer

buying decision. This is particularly seen in the Pre-purchase search in which Shiffmann

et al. (2008) describe it as the engagement of and extensive search of the outside

environment for useful information on which to base choice.

From this we can see the delicate relationship of consumer behavior and the role of

social media therein.

2.4.Customer engagement and e-CRM Dave Chaffey et al. (2009) “ Customer engagement refers to the repeated interactions

that strengthen the emotional, philological or physical investment a consumer has in a

brand. Using engagement you get a more holistic appreciation of your customers’

actions, recognizing that value doesn’t only come from transactions but also from the

actions people take to influence others. Once engagement takes hold of marketing,

marketing messages will become communication and dollars will shift from media buying

to customer understanding”. Likewise, according to Grant Leboff (2011), “customer

engagement involves finding value for your prospects and your clients around the

service or product that you provide.” He adds that customer engagement is not based on

an immediate transaction- it is purely value led. By offering clients and customers

something worthwhile, on a frequent basis, a business builds trust and credibility with its

audience. When a customer is ready to buy, it is likely that at the very least you will be

one of the businesses to which they look as a potential supplier. Having had the

opportunity to demonstrate your expertise and give value to a prospect, they may very

well be predisposed to want to see you.”

Related to customer engagement is the term e-CRM according to Dave Chaffey et al.

(2009). This refers to electronic customer relationship management which uses

electronic communications to maximize sales to existing customers and encourage

continued usage of online services.


24

2.5. The future of social media In this chapter the future of social media will be covered. The researcher will

demonstrate authors in the field of Web 3.0 a relatively new concept also known as

semantic web. This is done in order to make further predictions of the usage of social

media and how this may possibly be related to the future of Inditex. According to David

Armario (2010) the social media trends for the future will include:

• Further integration

• Tablet wars

• Social media schizophrenia

• The return of the company website

• Innovative moves by Facebook and Google

Eric Schmidt (2007) describes us an important terms that will be very important for the

future of social media being the idea of Web 3.0. Schmidt describes this in a conference

as web applications that are pieced with a number of characteristics. He describes that

Web 3.0 involves:

• Applications that are fairly small

• Data is in the clouds, meaning that the exact physical location cannot be traced

• Applications can run on any device be it a computer or mobile device

• Applications are very fast

• Customizable

• Distributed virally through the use of social networks and email.


25

2.6. Inditex’s usage of Web 2.0 and social media This chapter is aimed to get an insight of the current activities of Inditex, their strategies

and their actions concerning social media marketing and Web 2.0 development. This is

done in order to gain an understanding and a foundation for content analysis. Features

of their current websites and social media content are explained in this chapter. Each

store is explained individually in order to highlight differences and clarifying their unique

features.

A number of press releases and online articles have been used in order to see what

Inditex is currently doing in terms of Web 2.0 and social media.

A case study called Zara: fast fashion done by the Harvard Business School was also

used.

Taken from the Inditex website the table below represents the divisional stores that

Inditex represents around the world.

Table1.1 Inditex stores around the world

Inditex 1(2011)

From the above table we can see that Inditex consists of several divisions of which Zara

is divided into Zara, Zara Kids and Zara home. Recently, on the 2nd of September 2010,


26

Zara initiated its first online retailing store available to customers in France, Germany,

Italy, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. Inditex later expanded into other

countries including Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Monaco and Switzerland. Zara now

serve 16 countries online. Deputy Chairman and CEO Pablo Isla published a press

release on the Inditex website he explaining the relationship between Inditex and the

importance of Web2.0 and social media. He does this by explaining "the strategic

significance of this new commercial initiative, which is in keeping with our ongoing effort:

to offer our customers the best service possible. Internet and the world of social

networking are indispensable tools and extraordinary channels for communication, and

fit perfectly with our Group's philosophy".

Figure 1.2: Screenshot Zara online store

Figure 1.2 is an example of the Zara online store. We can see from the image that social

media is integrated directly in their website with the Facebook icon which directs

consumers directly to the Facebook page of Zara (The black circle in the bottom right

hand corner). This is known as crosspollination when the marketing efforts are spread

across various medias. Below are two examples that demonstrate the usage of

crosspollination. Figure 1.3 linking to a iPhone application that can be downloaded from


27

their website and the second Figure 1.4 shows a photo to inform customers of the online

retailing that had started on the 2nd of September 2010. The post was posted on the 1st

of September as the screenshot reveals.

Figure 1.3: Screenshot iPhone application

Figure 1.4: Screenshot Shop Online


28

Both Facebook posts link directly to the website. The following screenshot reveals the

countries in which the consumer may purchase online. The Basket next to the countries

names indicates that online retailing is available in that country.

Figure 1.5: Screenshot, Where online retailing is available Taken from Facebook’s factsheet, Facebook has more than 500 million active users of

which more than 50% of them log in daily, The average user has 130 friends and people

spend over 700 billion minutes per month using Facebook.

Facebook was founded in February in 2004. In only eight years it has easily become one

of the worlds greatest phenomena. Facebook1 (2011)

Facebook has become an important pillar of the Inditex marketing and communication

strategy and in the data analysis the researcher attempts to demonstrate some of the

key aspects of this new, yet important, relationship.

Incorporated into the website is a section which clearly defines all aspects of the online

retailing concept including a video explaining the process of an online purchase. Seen

below is a screenshot taken thereof. Once again using crosspollination as the features of

the ‘LOOKBOOK” and mobile application is included in the video.


29

Figure 1.6: Screenshot Online retailing video


30

Below are examples of Inditexs’s other websites that do not sell online including Pull and

Bear, Massimo Dutti, Bershka, Stadivarius, Oysho, and Uterque. The researcher points

out the idea that online retailing is very new for Inditex and perhaps would first like to

determine its success before investing in all stores simultaneously.

Figure 1.7:Screenshots Inditex Websites


31

3.Data Analysis This part of the thesis is to analyze the data collected from the primary research and

explain how the data will be used in the content analysis. The aim is to get an

understanding of Inditex and their marketing strategies. Data will reflect Inditex’s

development from the Web1.0 era until the present day. Examples of each division is

given and individually discussed according to the data that has been obtained from each

division. This is done in order to identify each division’s specific strategies and the way

that Inditex is interacting with each division differently.

For each division a data table is given in order to discus the findings and compare

divisions on an individual and conjoint basis.

Later a qualitative approach is used in order to see examples of how each division

specifically interacts with their customers using various tactics.

It is very important to remember the limitations of the content that can be extracted are

limited. In Facebook, users can do various things, which include sending personal

messages, making comments, saying whether they “like” something and posting content

that sometimes may be inaccessible. The researcher has identified areas where social

media plays an important part in the consumer buying process thus being the

information search after or before the recognition of a need or in the satisfaction of a

want. Each division is introduced individually and then a summary of the 2-month period

observation is given, followed by a qualitative approach on the content that was found on

each page. At the end of this chapter there is a summary of the content and results.

Some features that are not directly related to Facebook are described for the reasons of

crosspollination to see how they interrelate content.


32

3.1 Zara The first store was started by owner and founder of Inditex Amancio Ortega Gaona,

ranked by Forbes magazine as the richest man in Spain (Forbes1 2010). Ortega is

known for investing heavily in technology and innovation, which has formed an important

part of the success that Inditex has had. Zara operates 1516 stores in 77 different

countries [Inditex2]. Zara has a fast fashion strategy, the Harvard business case study

Zara: fast fashion, explains that part of the success of Zara is their fast fashion strategy.

The strategy includes short cycle times and displaying only few items in stores to make

the customer think that the product will not be there the next time they visit. They

therefore feel an urgency to buy the product because if they come back later they might

loose the opportunity to purchase it.

Another one of Zara’s key elements is its customer and sales associate relationships.

Workers are closely related to the production and design teams and feed them

information about customer preferences after having spoken to customers. This is also

known as QR or Quick Response, where the infrastructure allows for Zara to respond

rapidly to consumer and market preferences. [Zara: fast fashion case study]

“Zara is in tune with its customers, who help it give shape to the ideas, trends and tastes

developing in the world. This is the secret to its success among a wide range of people,

cultures and generations, who, despite their differences, all share a special fondness for

fashion” [www.inditex.com]

Zara uses social media in various ways. As previously discussed the study has been

based on using the Facebook fan page. Below is an example of the Facebook page.

Zara’s usage of Facebook in terms of interaction is very limited. Zara uses various forms

of material that are posted on the Facebook page which range from photos, videos,

events and two related concepts specifically to Zara known as “PEOPLE” and

“LOOKBOOK”

“PEOPLE” is a set of images that Zara posts of normal people that they have found in

the street wearing Zara clothes. This is done on an ongoing (monthly) basis. The

researcher finds this part of a strategic approach in making the consumer aware of the

kind of people that use Zara clothing. As seen in the literature review Treadway (2009)

explains this as customer interaction by which the researcher identifies this as a strategy


33

to be more personable or human. The ‘PEOPLE” content is posted as links which are

once again linked directly to the Zara website where the photos can be seen. This may

be part of a strategy to drive consumers towards the Zara webpage in order to increase

awareness of their online retailing initiative. Figure 1.8 is and example of the “PEOPLE”

initiative taken from the Zara website.

Figure 1.8: Screenshot, Zara “PEOPLE” initiative


34

The following photograph was taken from the Facebook page and in general explains

the rules of the “PEOPLE” initiative.

Figure 1.9: Photograph Zara “PEOPLE” initiative

A “ LOOKBOOK” on the other hand is a set of photos with a suggested style in order to

see how the clothes could work together. The researcher sees this, as a way of trying to

sell more as some people would buy the entire look instead of only one item.


35

Figure 2.0: Screenshot, Zara “LOOKBOOK” initiative From this many comments and likes are made which, from a logical point of view,

coincide with Zara’s strategy of maintaining a close relationship with their customers. In

Table 1.0 is a summary of the content posted by Zara on their Facebook page.

Table 1.0 Zara summary of social media activities

Date Name of campaign/post

Type of content

No. Of "likes"

No. Of comments

2/3/2011 Man Spring Summer Campaign Photo (12) 10,324 443 2/3/2011 Woman Spring Summer Campaign Photo (10) 12,845 705 2/4/2011 Kids Spring Summer Campaign Photos (15) 12,068 587 2/9/2011 Man New ZXM Collection Photos (7) 9,131 389 2/10/2011 Lookbook TRF Photos (8) 8,048 366 2/15/2011 TRF & New color pants lookbook Photos (6) 11,628 483 2/17/2011 Man Young lookbook-February Photos (5) 11,178 491 2/21/2011 People Link 4,742 284

2/25/2011 Coming Soon lookbook Woman & Man Photos (5) 11,316 445

3/4/2011 Woman lookbook-March Photos (5) 11,508 487 3/7/2011 Man lookbook-March Photos (5) 9,297 384 3/9/2011 The Street woman Video 6,256 279

TOTAL 12 118,341 5343

We can see from the results obtained that Zara post very few posts in comparison to

other Inditex divisions with only 12 posts in total over the two-month period. They


36

however have the largest number of fans on their Facebook page with 8,622,533 fans.

Zara does also not allow any of the fans to post information directly onto their wall. The

majority of posts were in the form of photos that are often directly linked to their

webpage where the merchandise can be purchased. Members’ comments on the photos

were mainly positive and for the least amount of posts made they had the largest

number of comments and “likes”. Bershka has a higher number of comments and “likes”

however they have many more posts and content on their Facebook page. (See Table

1.4).

This information could be key to Zara and the production facility as they are not able to

view customer preferences beforehand and accordingly plan production, complimentary

to their in-store strategy.

Figure 2.1 Content usage by Zara

Figure 2.1 represents media divided by type of content where the majority of Zara’s

content was photos.

83%

8% 8%

0%

Photo

link

video

other


37

3.2 Pull and Bear

Pull and Bear is Inditex’s third biggest division with 682 stores in 46 countries. Pull and

Bear target the youth market in the fashion industry. A quote taken from the Inditex

website sums up its target market.

“Young people’s spirit is our source of inspiration. Since its creation in 1991, Pull & Bear

has specialized in adapting to the needs of young shoppers, and is now a must-stop

destination for casual, laid-back fashion.” (Inditex3)

“We dress the world with a single product and speak a common language, as part of a

global youth culture” They also integrate a larger amount of social media including

accounts in YouTube, Vimeo, Flickr and Twitter.

Their Facebook posts differ very much from Zara. They too include “LOOKBOOKS”

however they are much more casual and the content that they post on their Facebook

page includes unrelated content. That means that the content does not directly relate to

their products or stores. An example would be a music video that has nothing to do with

the activities of the store. This may be used for several reasons including to associate

themselves with a “global youth culture” as mentioned in their website. Pull and Bear

post more often with 50 posts having been placed on their Facebook page over the 2-

month period. On the day of finalization they had 1,295,901 fans on their Facebook

page. There is also a lot more interaction between Pull and Bear with the customers

than that of Zara. Pull and Bear relate themselves to a blog called PULL THE METAL

[www.pullbear.com/pullthemetal], a collaboration with a magazine called Metal Magazine

and Pull and Bear. Below is a screenshot of the blog.


38

Figure 2.2:Screenshot Pull and Bear blog initiative

Below is an example of how Pull and Bear relate themselves to the blog and post links.

Figure 2.3 Pull and Bear blog collaboration

Pull and Bear also make use of crosspollination and an example would be their iPhone

application, which allows consumers to receive the latest style offers and new products

that arrive in stores. At the same time they are given the suggested styles in order to


39

show how their clothing could work for them. Figure 2.3 was taken from their website to

show the application that was developed for mobile devices.

Figure 2.4: Screenshot Pull and Bear iPhone application The application updates consumers on a weekly basis on various store activities and

offers.

Pull and Bear uses event and cause related marketing. It was very interesting to see

how Inditex, including all divisions, responded to the March 11th 2011 tsunami disaster

affecting Japan. On the 15th of March 2011, shortly after the disaster, Pull and Bear

posted the following post in response to the disaster.


40

Figure 2.5 Thinking of Japan post

Figure 2.6 XX contest


41

Figure 2.7: Screenshot Pull and Bear website, Social media links

Figure 2.4 has 3 particularly interesting points. From the menu bar there is a list of links

to the social media sites that Pull and Bear connect themselves to. The list includes:

• iPhone application

• YouTube

• Vimeo

• Facebook

• Twitter

• Flicker

• Sign up for emails

The second interesting point is that, when the website is opened, there is a large

announcement about the new concept store, an interactive store also known as 2.0

store.

Described by Pull and Bear a 2.0 store “ is a place for the customer to experiment

actively with the latest technological advancement and share their experiences on the

net. This store located near our central offices is the place we have chosen as the center


42

of operations to test our stores of the future. We have prepared various installations to

begin a new era in design at our points of sale. To celebrate this we have prepared an

event and look forward to you joining us” [www.pullandbear.com]

From this statement we can get an insight of what Inditex plans for the future. We can

see once again the importance of innovation and technology for the Inditex group.

The last point from figure 2.4 is the use of cause related marketing to inform the

consumer about responsible actions. In the top right hand corner we can see the red

circle saying “ WE ARE THINKING OF JAPAN” highlighting their efforts made in helping

Japan after the March 11th 2011 Tsunami.

Below is a summary of the Pull and Bears Facebook page activities.

Table 1.2 Summary of Pull and Bears social media activities

Date Name of campaign/post Type of content No of likes

No. Of comments

2/3/2011 Competition Link 481 68 2/11/2011 Winner of headphones Link 260 14 2/14/2011 SS 2011 campaign Video 503 32 2/14/2011 SS 2011 lookbook Photo 1978 62 2/16/2011 SS 2011 lookbook men Photo 1515 83 2/16/2011 SS 2011 campaign Photo (11) 1671 50 2/17/2011 SS 2011 campaign Video 644 37 2/18/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 512 31 2/18/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 1044 56 2/21/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 549 38 2/21/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 712 65 2/24/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 552 45 2/24/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 1096 58 2/25/2011 Men look Photo (1) 577 46

Woman look Photo (1) 1423 84

3/7/2011 Lookbook woman 3/9/2011 Emma Thom blog Photo (6) 796 27

3/9/2011 Emma Thom blog Link 305 6 3/9/2011 Emma Thom blog Link 316 4

3/10/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 503 46 3/10/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 1107 71 3/11/2011 ELLOS MISMOS Link 223 8 3/11/2011 mrjuancocco Photo (7) 778 19


43

3/11/2011 The blogger project Link 363 23 3/14/2011 RUBIK & CHUPA CHUPS Link 313 9 3/15/2011 We are thing of Japan Photo (1) 585 20 3/15/2011 We are thing of Japan Photo (1) 902 19 3/16/2011 KNOTAN Link 249 9 3/16/2011 Istanbul shopping fest Event 291 9 3/17/2011 Rocksmith Link 210 8 3/18/2011 Istanbul shopping fest Link 173 4 3/19/2011 Andrew Myers Link 267 8 3/21/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 512 29 3/21/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 1101 64 3/21/2011 LEI LEI Link 476 28 3/21/2011 BLINKY Link 170 1 3/23/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 649 53 3/23/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 1061 57 3/23/2011 Ukrainian Shopping Night Event 180 3 3/24/2011 Earth Hour Link 308 9 3/24/2011 INTERACTIVE STORE Photo (10) 579 17 3/25/2011 Istanbul shopping fest Event 156 8 3/25/2011 Pull the metal Link 274 17 3/28/2011 Tara Douglas Link 250 8 3/28/2011 Men’s look Photo (1) 447 45 3/28/2011 Woman’s look Photo (1) 847 40 3/29/2011 marista.co@pullandbear Photo (4) 900 26 3/30/2011 BLUKU Playlist Link 301 19 3/31/2011 The Londoner Photo (6) 979 30

Total 30088 1513

Figure 2.8 Content usage by Pull and Bear

57% 35%

4% 4%

photo

link

video

other


44

Figure 2.5 represents the media percentage of what media was used. Like Zara, Pull

and Bear also use photography as their number one content type however it is lower at

57% compared to 83% of Zara. The second highest is links. The researcher highlights

that it is important to remember that most of the links were for the blog with which they

associate themselves [www.pullthemetal.com].

3.3 Massimo Dutti

Massimo Dutti is the fifth largest division of the Inditex group. Its stores are considered

more sophisticated and offer high-end fashion of high-end quality. It is constituted of 530

stores in 50 different countries and is only a third of the size of Zara (Inditex4). Massimo

Dutti’s usage of Facebook is somewhat coherent to that of Zara and the use of photos

and styles are common practice. Massimo Dutti is a much smaller group with only

44,616 fans. This being for two reasons; the age group at which Massimo Dutti is

targeted is of a older age meaning that time spent on social media sites such as

Facebook is far less than that of younger markets and the second reason being that

Massimo Dutti is more elegant and upper class than Zara and Pull and Bear.

Figure 2.9: Screenshot, Massimo Dutti website


45

We can see that less emphasis is put on the use of their Facebook fan page. It is not

even mentioned on the front cover unlike Zara and Pull and Bear.

Table 1.3 Summary of Massimo Duttis social media activities

Date Name of campaign/ post Type of content

No. Of "likes"

No. Of comments

2/2/2011 Massimo Dutti's Must have Photos (1) 110 10 2/4/2011 Finally, it's Friday! Photos (1) 284 34 2/7/2011 Spring Summer Campaign 2011 by Magna Video 116 11 2/7/2011 SS '11 campaign by Photos (30) 338 18 2/9/2011 Men accessories Photos (1) 114 14

2/10/2011 Girl Spring/Summer '11 total look. Photos (1) 95 2 2/11/2011 Valentine's day Photos (1) 83 8 2/14/2011 Nautical Style Photos (1) 191 14 2/18/2011 Footwear Collection Photos (1) 164 10 2/21/2011 Lookbook March: behind the scenes Photos (20) 153 6 2/22/2011 The perfect combination Photos (1) 216 22 2/24/2011 Men collection // "the leather connection" Photos (1) 220 20 2/28/2011 What's your favorite accessory? Photos (1) 194 46

3/3/2011 Man // Accessories collection Photos (1) 139 7 3/4/2011 Women // Lookbook March Photos (14) 294 10 3/4/2011 Men // Lookbook March Photos (20) 218 13 3/9/2011 Men // Accessories collection Photos (1) 92 10

3/10/2011 Women collection // "Must have" Photos (1) 347 38 3/15/2011 BOY Total Look // Spring Summer '11 Photos (1) 94 0 3/17/2011 6 great gift ideas for father's day: Photos (1) 110 9 3/18/2011 Friday is finally here! Photos (1) 141 6 3/21/2011 INDITEX - JOIN FASHION! Link 88 10 3/24/2011 Women collection // "the trench" Photos (1) 318 30 3/30/2011 Incorporamos sección de Boys & Girls Photos (1) 150 15

3/31/2011 Selected fragrances by Massimo Dutti Photos (1) 111 4

TOTAL 4380 367

Figure 2.10 Massimo Dutti’s content usage

92%

4% 4% 0%

photo

link

video

other


46

3.4 Bershka

Bershka appeals to Inditexs’ youngest target market. It was founded in 1998 as a new

concept store and now is available in 50 countries having 720 stores. Their store

features cutting edge-design and combines the three elements of street fashion, music

and art (Inditex5). The Facebook page highlights these three elements by the nature of

the content that is posted on the Bershka page. Also, the website mentions that visitors

to Bershka shops can watch videos, listen to CDs and read magazines. Bershka often

posts music videos related to their target market as a form of entertainment that

compliments their image. From the results (See figure 3.0) we can see that the types of

content used is more spread out and that music videos make up for the biggest part of

the type of content used. Videos made up for 35% of the total number of posts

compared to 32% of photos. Figure 2.8 is an example of the Bershka Facebook page.

Figure 2.11 Bershka Facebook page

We can once again see that the use of cause related marketing is used throughout the

Bershka online medias. During the 2-month observation process Bershka introduced

community managers to the Facebook page. This was done in order for Bershka to


47

respond to consumer questions made on Facebook on a more personal level than

directly speaking to the consumers. Figure 2.9 represents the introduction of the

community managers that was posted on the 17th of March 2011. This can be seen as a

step towards increasing the quality of interaction between consumers and Bershka on

the Facebook page.

Figure 2.12: Bershka community managers

Unfortunately they were introduced into the later part of the 2-month observation period

and therefore not much interaction could be traced. An example of how they respond to

consumer concerns and questions can be seen below.

Figure 2.13: community manager response


48

The Bershka community manager responds to a consumer’s concern regarding the

introduction of the new iPhone application. This also allows for other consumers with

perhaps the same doubts to see the information. Logically this is a more efficient method

of communication as Bershka can save time responding to each person individually.

Bershka received more likes than Zara over the 2-month period however had more than

double the amount of content and it is important to remember that Bershka is aimed at

the youngest market segment. Younger people have more free time and tend to spend

more time on social networking sites than older people. Thus making social networking

sites such as Facebook an essential part of the communication channels and strategy.

Bershka introduced a competition where each community manager had to post one of

their favorite music videos on the Facebook page, users would then vote for each video

and at the end one of the community managers would have won according to the

number of votes each video got. The community manager that won received a kebab as

a reward. This is a really simple yet easy way of getting consumers engaged into the

Bershka Facebook page as well benefiting the Bershka brand as awareness for the

brand is created.

In total Bershka received 122425 “likes” and 5253 comments during the observation

period. Bershka have a total of 2,607,181 fans on their Facebook page. Below is a

summary of their activities over the observation period.

Table 1.4 Summary of Bershka’s social media activities

Date Name of campaign/post

Type of content

No. Of "like"

No. Of comments

2/1/2011 Lookbook Link 1474 41 2/3/2011 Girls top 10 shoes Photo (10) 5777 171 2/3/2011 Boys top 10 shoes Photo (10) 3470 122 2/3/2011 February playlist Word post 938 34 2/4/2011 Valentine outfits Link 1014 31 2/4/2011 Reapertura Event 416 14 2/4/2011 Reapertura Event 470 25 2/7/2011 Frida's blog Link 670 16 2/8/2011 Win a total look Link 963 43 2/8/2011 Be my valentine Photo (2) 4595 182

2/10/2011 Bimba Bose Word post 860 40 2/10/2011 Mirand Makaroff Photo (1) 1223 45


49

2/11/2011 Bimba Bose Word post 796 63 2/11/2011 Bimba Bose Word post 633 29 2/14/2011 Happy Valentines Word post 3100 76 2/14/2011 Last chance to win Link 477 34 2/15/2011 Lady Gaga in a egg Video 973 76 2/15/2011 Lady Gaga in a egg Video 1128 32 2/15/2011 Store opening Pereira Event 496 38 2/17/2011 Shooting our lookbook Link 2079 63 2/17/2011 Photographic session Link 64 0 2/18/2011 Britney Spears-Hold it against me Video 3776 217 2/20/2011 Beth Ditto-I wore the book Video 627 22 2/21/2011 Beth Ditto-I wore the book Video 760 36 2/21/2011 Opening in Pereira Photo (8) 3418 86 2/22/2011 Nate or Duck Video 1037 406 2/22/2011 Get one of our new purses Photo (4) 3135 84 2/24/2011 Soraya-Dreamer Video 535 17 2/24/2011 Spring boys bring it on! Photo (5) 2311 48 2/25/2011 Serena vs. Blair Video 1494 425 2/28/2011 Lookbook Link 569 33

3/1/2011 Lady Gaga-Born this way Video 1899 92 3/1/2011 Lookbook-March Link 1246 49 3/1/2011 boys top 10 shoes Photo (10) 3567 170 3/1/2011 girls top 10 shoes Photo (10) 7183 204 3/2/2011 Space Ibiza Video 764 47 3/4/2011 Jennifer Lopez- On the floor Video 3276 90 3/4/2011 Opening Japan Event 330 38 3/4/2011 Opening Japan Event 611 73 3/4/2011 Willow Smith Video 1077 69 3/4/2011 Rihanna- S&M Video 5076 134

3/14/2011 Denim preview Photo (1) 1233 53 3/14/2011 Alexis Jordan-Happiness Video 708 29 3/15/2011 Denim lookbook Link 1133 35 3/16/2011 ROCKUP! Photo (5) 1828 41 3/16/2011 HANDSUP! Photo (7) 2239 45 3/16/2011 DREAMUP! Photo (5) 3185 51 3/16/2011 COLORUP! Photo (5) 2813 80 3/17/2011 LMFAO Video 2006 91

3/17/2011 Introducing our community managers Photo (1) 457 47

3/18/2011 Rebecca-Black Friday Video 763 123 3/18/2011 New iPhone application Link 464 36 3/21/2011 Community managers video Photo (1) 277 19 3/21/2011 VIDEO1 Video 1725 85 3/22/2011 VIDEO2 Video 875 43


50

3/23/2011 VIDEO3 Video 1553 44 3/24/2011 VIDEO4 Video 2206 42 3/25/2011 VIDEO5 Video 1406 36 3/25/2011 And the winner is! Photo (1) 453 24 3/26/2011 iPhone fashion diary Link 978 47 1/27/1900 Justin Beiber-Baby Video 2102 174 3/28/2011 Leighton Meester-Summer girl Video 2341 79 3/28/2011 Color block for her Photo (12) 3598 84 3/28/2011 Shiny color for him Photo (4) 2176 79 3/29/2011 Shiny color for him Photo (9) 2176 79 3/29/2011 April lookbook Video 638 17 3/30/2011 Girls top 10 shoes Photo (10) 5825 149 3/30/2011 Boys top 10 shoes Photo (10) 2960 106

Total 122425 5253

Figure 2.14 Bershka’s content usage

32%

18% 35%

15% photo

link

video

other


51

3.5 Stradivarius Stradivarius is aimed at young women. The Inditex website describe Stradivarius as the

following: “Stradivarius takes a youthful approach to fashion with an original and

dynamic twist on the latest trends in design, fabrics and accessories.” Stradivarius

currently has 593 stores in 43 countries (Inditex6). One of the most surprising findings

from the two-month observation period was the number of consumers that asked for a

Stradivarius store in their location. Stradivarius has a different name for their Facebook

page called “StraDivas by Stradivarius”. On the day of finalization they had 257,479 fans

on their Facebook page. There were also various occasions of consumers asking for an

online store. Below are various examples of this.

Figure 2.15 Online retailing post


52

Figure 2.16 Store demand posts

Figure 2.17 Online retailing post for Stradivarius From Figure 2.17, made in Spanish, a comment is made asking Stradivarius when an

online store will be available. The following comments in response to the first comment

are as follow; yes because in Italy it is more difficult to find a store and the second

comment says: “yes yes that’s it an online store now!” and the last one says: “yes

please, I live in Sweden and here there isn’t even a Stradivarius store”

All these exhibits shows that there is more demand for their products and that the idea of

starting an online store may not be such a bad idea for Stradivarius as, for example, one

consumer showed that she would buy Stradivarius products without there even being a

store near her. Stradivarius can now look into the possibilities of realizing this and

meeting the consumers’ wants and needs. Offering an online store in countries where

there aren’t stores yet can be perceived as being a good opportunity as the cost of

online retailing is less than that of a mortar and brick store. Below is the summary of

Stradivarius’s activities over the two-month period.


53

Table 1.5 Summary of Stradivarius’s social media activities

Date Name of campaign /post Type of content No. Of "likes"

No. Of comments

2/1/2011 Happy valentines day coming soon Photo (1) 83 4 2/1/2011 080 Barcelona fashion Photo (1) 106 6 2/1/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 790 48 2/2/2011 We love fashion vibe Link 75 4 2/2/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 603 34 2/3/2011 Shoes of the week Photo (1) 108 12 2/3/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 790 64 2/4/2011 Sradiva competition Photo (1) 87 9 2/4/2011 We love fashion icons Dou Dillon Link 89 3 2/4/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 301 22 2/4/2011 Valentines day campaign Link 69 1 2/7/2011 We love the world Link 59 2 2/7/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 329 28 2/8/2011 Do you want to be our Stradiva? Event 69 3 2/8/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 370 47 2/9/2011 Valentines day Video 56 2

2/10/2011 Satin Ballerinas Photo (1) 573 29 2/11/2011 Store Milan coming soon Link 106

2/11/2011 Weekend outfit Photo (1) 578 48 2/12/2011 During this weekend Event 102 12 2/14/2011 Happy valentines day Photo (1) 47

2/14/2011 Be our Stradiva Link 96 5 2/14/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 282 17 2/15/2011 Cinema event Photo (1) 69

2/15/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 541 55 2/16/2011 Spring 2011 campaign Link 140 1 2/16/2011 The spring trends Link 95 1 2/16/2011 The lady addict blog Link 75 2 2/16/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 142 3 2/17/2011 Spring trends in shoes Link 142 9 2/17/2011 We love your talent Link 258 9 2/17/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 408 17 2/17/2011 Shoe discounts Photo (1) 387 68 2/18/2011 We love fashion icons Link 66 2 2/18/2011 Fashion fruit Photo (1) 78

2/18/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 275 26 2/21/2011 We love the world Link 75 1 2/22/2011 Vote for you Stradivari Link 51 2 2/22/2011 Fashion fruit Photo (19) 144 4 2/22/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 316 37


54

2/23/2011 New look book Link 108 1 2/23/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 353 26 2/24/2011 March look book Link 91 4 2/24/2011 Platform shoes Photo (1) 76 4 2/24/2011 Vote for you Stradiva look Link 39

2/24/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 287 76 2/25/2011 We love fashion icons Link 82 4 2/25/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 734 26 2/28/2011 New Stradivarius - Jakarta Link 171 26 2/28/2011 New Arrivals Photo (1) 113

3/29/2011 April lookbook Link 79 3/29/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 473 3/30/2011 Male style shirts Photo (1) 96 2

3/30/2011 Look of the day Photo (1) 435 38

Total 12167 844

Figure 2.18 Stradivarius’s content usage

From the above figure we can see the content used by Stradivarius. The majority of the

media content is photos with 57%, followed by links at 37%. Only 2% of media content

were videos. A total of 12163 “likes” and 844 comments were recorded from the

Facebook page over the observation period.

57%

2%

37%

4%

photo

video

link

other


55

3.6. Oysho

Oysho founded in 2001 has 432 stores in 25 countries and specialize in women’s

lingerie and intimate wear. Customers can find contemporary, urban and casual

outerwear, comfortable and informal loungewear and unique accessories (Inditex7). Over

the 2-month observation period only 11 posts were recorded of which 100% of those

posts were photograph related. On the day of finalization Oysho had a total of 77,216

fans on their Facebook page.

Figure 2.19 Oysho event related marketing Figure 3.2 shows us two instances of when Oysho used photos to communicate to their

consumers. The first one being for gift cards and the second an event created by Oysho

for the premiere of “Black Swan” (an Oscar nominated film and its premiere in Spain).

Oysho launched products in line with the premiere date and consumers that purchased

products had the chance of getting a ticket to go and see the movie premiere.

The premiere was postponed and Oysho posted the following photo.


56

Figure 2.20 Oysho movie night The text saying; Until Sunday the 27th of February, You can still obtain your ticket. Below

is the summary of Oysho’s activity over the two-month period.

Table 1.6 Summary of Oysho’s social media activities

Date Name of company/post Type of contents

No. Of "likes"

No. Of Comments

2/1/2011 Gym wear new collection Photo

(1) 143 7

2/4/2011 THE BLACK SWAN Fashion Photo

(1) 151 11

2/8/2011 OYSHO - Weekly look Photo

(1) 193 4

2/9/2011 MY DEAR VALENTINE Photo

(1) 83 1

2/15/2011 This week in the Oysho stores. I love my purse!

Photo (1) 184 19

2/25/2011 FRESH IN THE STORES! Photo

(1) 102 2

3/3/2011 OYSHO & NORIT Photo

(1) 42 8

3/8/2011 ¡Feliz Día de la Mujer! (Happy woman’s day) Photo

(1) 260 2

3/14/2011 FRESH IN THE STORES! Spring colors in Oysho…

Photo (1) 220 21

3/18/2011 Weekly Look: Soft Cashmere. Photo

(1) 181 12

3/25/2011 Weekly look: The Garden of Earthly Delights… Photo

(1) 78 8

TOAL

1637 95


57

Figure 2.21 Oysho’s content usage

100%

0% 0% 0%

Photo

video

link

other


58

3.7. Zara Home

Zara Home was founded in 2003 and specializes in home décor and linens. They

operate 284 stores in 27 countries. Their line includes bed, table and bath linens which

are complemented by dishware, cutlery and glassware (Inditex8). Zara Home was one of

the more interesting pages to be observing as consumers are allowed to post comments

directly on the wall and the interaction between the Facebook page and consumer was

high.

Zara Home also offers online shopping.

The Facebook page had 69,949 fans on the day of finalization (31st March 2011) Below

are some examples of a complaint made by a customer and how later Zara responds to

the situation. We can see that from this they are showing great care. This complaint is

public and therefore anyone can see the situation. This is bad publicity but we can see

that Zara home quickly turns it around buy showing that they are in control of the

situation, a great example of e-CRM.

Figure 2.22 Zara Home complain post


59

Figure 2.23 Zara Home store inquiry

Exhibit 2.0 shows a consumer inquiry about where the consumer can find a store. This

represents a consumer with the intention of buying and is a great example of how Zara

Home takes the opportunity to inform the consumer of the possibility of buying online of

which she was not even aware. We can also see from the comment that Zara Home is

thinking of opening a store in Germany.

Below is a summary of their activity. A total of 3344 “likes” and 188 comments were

made on content posted by Zara Home.

Table 1.7 Summary of Zara Home’s social media activities

Date Name of campaign/post Type of content

No. Of "likes"

No. Of. Comments

2/1/2011 Last day to enter draw Link 55 6

2/2/2011 Winner of the draw are! Link 32 23 2/9/2011 Newsletter Link 17 0

2/22/2011 Lookbook spring/summer Photo (23) 812 42 2/22/2011 Shower curtains Photo (8) 113 11 2/23/2011 Discover the Zara home lookbook Link 17 1

3/1/2011 Ginger Lily Photo (7) 218 10

3/2/2011 Gift baskets Photo (28) 216 9

3/3/2011 Newsletter Link 22 0

3/4/2011 Zara home wishes you a great weekend Word post 82 9

3/9/2011 New Style Link 40 4 3/10/2011 New proposals Word post 47 5 3/11/2011 New this week Photo (31) 269 5 3/15/2011 Trends Link 22 2


60

3/16/2011 We are thinking of Japan Word post 169 1 3/18/2011 Lookbook spring/summer 2011 Link 812 42 3/24/2011 Spring colors in bloom Link 18 1

3/25/2011 Earth Hour Photo (1) 61 4 3/28/2011 New this week Photo (25) 266 10 3/30/2011 Ethnic, Exotic, Exclusive Link 56 3

Total 3344 188

Figure 3.4 Zara Home’s content usage

35%

0%

50%

15% photo

video

link

other


61

3.8.Uterque

Uterque forms the smallest part of the Inditex group with only 80 stores. It is also the

youngest retailing concept having started in 2008 and is specialized at producing

accessories and top fashion items (Inditex9). The merchandise is considered to be

sophisticated and elegant. Below is a summary of its only usage of Facebook and

customer interaction.

Table 1.8 Summary of Uterque’s social media activities

Date Name of campaign / port Type of content No. Of "likes"

No. Of comments

2/7/2011 This is love, try it, know it Photo (1) 163 33 2/7/2011 San Valentine Link 72

2/24/2011 New products Link 114 11 3/11/2011 Summer men’s collection Link 72 9 3/18/2011 Summer new looks Photo (1) 94 8 3/21/2011 New opening Athens Photo (1) 67 13 3/22/2011 Free application for Iphone Photo (1) 37 2 3/23/2011 Earth hour Photo (1) 50 5 3/30/2011 New opening Mexico Photo (1) 35 10 3/31/2011 New opening Mexico Photo (1) 69 15

Total 773 106

We can see from the results that Uterque is one of the least active of the stores using

social media with only 773 “likes” and 106 comments made over the two-month period.

70% of the content posted was photograph related. The remaining 30% being links

which mostly link up to their website where more information can be obtained.

This shows us that Facebook plays an important role in the information search of the

consumer buying process.


62

Figure 3.5 Uterque’s content usage

70% 0%

30%

0% photo

video

link

other


63

3.9. Inditex summary In this part of the thesis the researcher adopts an overall summary of the 2-month study

for Inditex as a group. The researcher develops a critical perspective in order to see the

benefits and whether the inclusion of social media has been to their advantage. The

Below figure indicates the number of fans for each stores Facebook page.

Figure 3.6 No. Of Fans in Facebook per division Below is a table that has been formulated to summarize the information studied on an

individual basis and view the content as a group.

Video Photo Link Other Total no. Of "Likes" Total no. Of comments Zara 1 10 1 0 118,341 5343 Pull and Bear 2 28 17 2 30088 1513 Massimo Dutti 1 23 1 0 4380 367 Bershka 24 22 12 10 122425 5253 Stradivarius 1 31 20 2 12167 844 Oysho 0 11 0 0 1637 95 Zara Home 0 7 10 3 3344 188 Uterque 0 7 3 0 773 106 TOTALS 29 139 64 17 293,155 13709

From the above summary we can get an idea of the total type of content that was used

by the Inditex group. In total 249 posts were recorded over the 2-month observation

period. Over 293,155 “likes” and 13,709 comments were made.

0 2000000 4000000 6000000 8000000 10000000

Zara

Pull and Bear

Massimo Dutti

Bershka

Stradivarius

Oysho

Zara Home

Uterque

No. of Fans in Facebook

No. of Fans in Facebook


64

Figure 3.7 Inditex’s content usage as a whole

We can see that the majority of content was photos at 56% followed by links with 26%,

then video and other types of content.

Critical Analysis

In this part of the thesis the researcher adopts a critical overview of Inditex as a whole.

Pointing out the key points and concerns for the future and areas where Inditex could

improve their activities. The Inditex stores are very well known around the world and in

terms of awareness have a great percentage captured as their market. The have clearly

defined strategies for each store and the initiatives are coherent to each stores

objectives. The content posted by each store is very well adapted to each stores target

market. Zara is the clear leader in terms of the number of fans on their Facebook page.

One of the main concerns is that the target market for their clothing spans over a wide

age gap (Infant–45). The main concern being how to communicate to all of these age

groups as one target group and portray a unified message. This is very restrictive for

Zara, as we have seen. Comparing Zara to Bershka we can see that Bershka is much

more comfortable with their position in the Facebook environment. Bershka has a young

female market (13-23). In this way they are able to have a clear message and know how

to treat all consumer in a similar manner. They therefore have a more diversed content

usage (flexible) and the communication message is uniform and concrete. Pull and Bear

are in a similar position having a clearly defined target market of young men and women

(14-28). Pull and bear have the most diverse usage of content with a consistent

message. Their page is in the same way entertaining and in this way more engagement

is likely to take place.

12%

56%

26%

7% Video

Photo

Link

Other


65

Stradivarius has the fourth greatest number of fans on its Facebook page. However the

difference between Zara and Stradivarius is substantial and the rest of the stores have

an almost insignificant amount of Facebook fans compared to that of Zara. The

researcher identifies that Stradivarius is not taking full advantage of their Facebook page

as their target market is clearly defined as being women between (15-25). They can

clearly be more productive in harnessing the benefits of social media. Stradivarius

should be using all the social media tools earlier discussed in the literature review in

order to increase their presence in the social media world.

The rest of the Inditex stores have an almost insignificant number of Facebook fans. Due

to the fact that they are small Inditex should place a greater focus on these stores as

their markets are small and can be considered niche targets. This makes it easier for

those stores to manage the content and online Facebook activities. They are also able to

make themselves more personable to their customers.

Zara home does a great job at this as seen in the data they allow for users to post

directly onto their wall. Zara then respond to them directly in a very short amount of time.

This is unlike Zara where users aren’t permitted to post directly onto the Facebook wall.

One of the main challenges seen for the Inditex group is in terms of the response from

the online users. One important factor to consider is that Inditex should try to avoid as

much negative responses as this quickly can cause problems in terms of brand image.

Additionally stands the challenge of quality feedback. When Zara posts a photo for

example the majority of comments is a “like” or a comment related to something that is

of no relevance. Inditex needs to work on harnessing quality responses. It may be very

good to increase activity as much as possible; however doing this does not guarantee

the benefits that come along with the use of social media. The important part would be to

make sure that the message arrives at the right target and that the message is of quality

and value to the consumer or Facebook user.

To conclude with the critical analysis the researcher will highlight concerns over the

future of social media. Many critics mention that social media and the Internet will keep

changing. That consumers are being bombarded with messages that they do not have

any interest in. The key point being that Inditex needs to be cautious when using social

media. We have learn from the past that bombarding the consumer with information

ends up in the consumer ignoring and creating a ever greater avoidance of the

communicated messages, substantial decreasing the effectiveness of the intended

message.


66

4.Conclusion

The previous section of the thesis was aimed at explaining and bringing light to

the observation period and content analysis. The researcher now aims to answer the set

research questions of the thesis. This is done buy comparing the key findings from the

observation and content analysis with the literature review and personal insight that was

gained through the thesis process.

The first question asked was how is the rise of social media affecting consumer

behavior in the case of Inditex?

From the key findings we can clearly see that social media has various effects on

consumer behavior. We have seen that Inditex has included social media into their

communication and marketing strategies for several reasons. These reasons have the

absolute objective to sell more. Consumers are constantly showed new images on a

regular basis. They are showed the latest trends and influenced into buying more.

Consumers are engaged by content and the various results of engaging the consumer

have been shown earlier as an attempt to sell more. Social media offers the consumer a

new way of searching for information. Social media allows consumers to comment and

view how other consumers feel about a particular product or aspect of a product. They

are also allowed to share their personal experiences to friends or related people on a

much more regular basis. Consumers are empowered and with the use UGC their word

is spread around. This empowerment allows consumer behavior to be more dependent

on personal opinions than the messages that they would receive from firms. They,

therefore, have the power in the communication process and firms need to act

accordingly. The researcher concludes that the rise of social media has changed

consumer behavior in the case of Inditex in a series of instances. The researcher has

created the following bullet points that highlight these changes.

• Consumers have changed, or at least included, social media into their

information searches.

• Consumers have used social media to interact with the firm and to make inquiries

about Inditex’s products.

• Consumers have seen products and other consumer comments on products.

These opinions about the products may persuade other consumers to purchase

or not purchase the product


67

• Consumer may have changed where they search for information. From traditional

theory we have seen that consumer uses their friends, family, work colleagues

for opinions and information about products. Social media however gives

consumers an endless number of people to connect with.

The second question was how may this change a firms marketing and

communication strategies? We can see from the findings an evidential basis from

where Inditex has incorporated social media into their marketing and communication

strategies. We can also see the importance of incorporating social media into today’s

business environment and the possible losses that we can experience without the use of

social media. These losses are the benefits that one will not gain by choosing not to

incorporate social media into your communication and marketing strategy. We have

seen that incorporating social media compliments overall objectives of the company and

amplifies the possible conversations the people may have about your products or brand.

With the shift of the power of communication from firm to consumer it is of utmost

importance to change your communication initiatives accordingly. We have seen that

Inditex has changed their communication strategy by allowing consumers to interact,

participate and engage in issues that they are concerned about. Good or bad marketing

that can come from consumers on social media platforms play an important part in the

success and launch of new products which Inditex does on an ongoing basis. It is

therefore important for Inditex to be aware of what consumers are saying about them as

an overall firm and make sure that they honor and respect consumer preferences in

terms of the marketing mix. Including factors such as place (many consumers having

asked for online stores and the opening of stores in their regions) price, quality and, in

the specific case of Inditex, consumer preferences in terms of styles and colors. The

researcher has developed the following points to conclude the second question.

• That the use of social media has become an important pillar in the marketing and

communication strategy of Inditex.

• That the use of social media in today’s online environment is essential as a

marketing tool and for interacting with consumers.

• That the power of communication has shifted towards the consumer as opposed

to the traditional way by which the firm was in control of all communication.

The third question was how is Inditex using social networking and marketing 2.0?


68

From the findings we have seen various ways of how Inditex uses social media. Inditex

uses social media to get information from customers and view comments about certain

products. They use it in order to build their brand image; they have used it to

communicate efforts and responsible actions taken, for example when Japan was hit by

the tsunami. Other ways in which they have used it include communicating events,

sales, and the arrival of new products. They have influenced consumers to participate in

activities and engaged consumers in order to keep consumers coming back to their

website, social media platforms and stores.

The researcher highlights the following ways in which Inditex uses social media:

• Customer Interaction, Inditex allows customers to share interesting information

and stories and respond to status updates and posts in an effort to be more

personable and human.

• Customer Service, Inditex uses social media to respond to product questions

and concerns.

• Deal, Coupons and Offers, Inditex has made use of social media to promote

special offers through the use of posts highlighting promotional material.

• Real Time Notifications, Inditex has notified customers of important updates

and relevant information that may be useful to their consumers.

• Personal Recommendations, through the use of social media Inditex can

recommend styles and products to customers; they can also recommend to

customers how to deal with certain problems in their region.

The fourth research question asked was what does social networking provide

Inditex? From the research that has been done we can see that social media offers

Inditex many things. The most important for Inditex being communication of new

products to consumers, consumers then comment on the products and say whether they

like it. This provides Inditex with customer preferences from which they can later predict

future products, preferences and tastes. From this they can better plan production levels

and contribute to the overall efficiency of Inditex. Social media provides a platform where

consumers are free to have conversations about Inditex stores and products and to

engage and be aware of events and actions that have been taken by Inditex. Consumers

now can ask Inditex stores questions about certain concerns instead of having to go to

the store to find out. This offers more value for their consumers. This enhancement of

their strategies benefits Inditex in a great way because all of the information that has


69

been produced and publicity gained from social media efforts are practically free. The

researcher summarizes with the following points of what social media provides Inditex

with:

• Provides Inditex with a platform from where customer interaction can be

analyzed.

• Provides direct interaction and communication to its consumers.

• Information on consumer behavior and consumer preferences.

• A measuring tool to see the effectiveness of marketing activities.

The final research question asked was what is the future for Inditex and the

changing online environment? From the findings and the evolution of the Inditex

stores such as Zara, which now offers online retailing, and Pull and Bear, which has a

2.0 store, we can assume that there will be a tendency for all divisions to enter the online

retailing market. Many comments were found in order to show that there is more

demand for online retailing especially in countries where Inditex stores are not present

and products are hard to find. Inditex has used the use of technology and applications to

enhance their business and stay in the lead amongst their competitors. Inditex has

shown us the importance of staying up to date with technology and using it to our

advantage. According to the researcher the following points are made in consideration of

the data collected and analyzed:

• Social media has become of paramount importance to the firm’s communication

strategy. The researcher suggests that this will become of greater importance in

the future due to the increase of mobile phone usage and mobile applications

that have been created by Inditex.

• There will be an increased use of cross-pollination of their social media and

communication efforts, as there is a tendency to cross-promote information on

various platforms.

• Inditex will continue to innovate and embrace new technologies in order to stay

up-to-date and provide their customers with the best environment from where

customer and firm both benefit from their initiatives.

• An example of this will be growth of the online environment and online retailing

segment of their market.


70

5.Bibliography

Armario (2011) Six Social Media Trends for 2011, Harvard Business Review, March 2011 (p. 22) Barry Wellman (2002) The Internet in everyday life Blackwell publishers Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=oyZm5UoO3tYC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Barry+Wellman&hl=en&ei=uvudTda1LYGWOqvD-NME&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed April 2 2011)

Borges B. (2009) Marketing 2.0 Bridging the Gap Between Seller and Buyer Through Social Media, Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=x3xDRmh1i_kC&printsec=frontcover&dq=marketing+2.0+bridging+the+gap&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=02OpTYiAOovysgb2vI2FBw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDEQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed April 4 2011)

Babbie Earl (2008) The basics of social research, Fourth Edition Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=1_lSEh6AAfYC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Earl+R.+Babbie&hl=en&ei=BTisTcyIDtO38QPKtIy5Ag&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=2&ved=0CDYQ6wEwAQ#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed March 23 2011) Chaffey .D (2009) Internet Marketing; strategy, implementation and practice Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=HcoRl2EZXiwC&pg=PA340&dq=customer+engagement&hl=en&ei=6hu0TavsOorAswbjvaHgDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDcQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q=customer%20engagement&f=false( Accessed March 26 2011) Clara S. (2009) The Facebook era, tapping online social networks to build better products, Reach new audiences and sell more stuff. Creswell J.W (1998) Research design: qualitative, quantitative, and mixed method approaches Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=nSVxmN2KWeYC&pg=PA14&dq=a+cultural+group+in+a+natural+setting+over+a+prolonged+period+of+time+by+collecting,+primarily,+observational+data&hl=en&ei=D0reTbzqOYPE8QPgybCLCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=5&ved=0CEMQ6wEwBA#v=onepage&q=a%20cultural%20group%20in%20a%20natural%20setting%20over%20a%20prolonged%20period%20of%20time%20by%20collecting%2C%20primarily%2C%20observational%20data&f=false (Accessed April 3rd 2011)


71

Facebook1 (2011) Facebook factsheet Retrieved on March 14th 2011 from: http://www.facebook.com/press/info.php?factsheet Geertz (1973) The interpretation of cultures Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=BZ1BmKEHti0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=(Geertz+1973).&hl=en&ei=F1HeTfiNO5Gw8QPuwJCeCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CCsQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed April 3 2011) Ghemawat .P (2006) Zara: Fast Fashion Harvard Business School Case Study Grant L. (2011) Sticky Marketing: Why everything in marketing has changed and what to do about it Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=FK_rmlxf4OoC&pg=PA38&dq=customer+engagement&hl=en&ei=3bm9TcPbHMiN5Aa96LTDBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=4&ved=0CDwQ6wEwAw#v=onepage&q=customer%20engagement&f=false (Accessed March 31st 2011) Hammersley M. (2007) Ethnography: principles in practice Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=3WRQ0Pl0mPAC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Martyn+Hammersley+(2007)&hl=en&ei=V0_eTZ-cHMW18QOazYGWCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDIQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed April 3rd 2011) Inditex 1 (2011) Stores around the world Retrieved on March 23rd 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/stores

Inditex 2 (2011) Zara facts Retrieved on March 12th 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/zara

Inditex3 Pull and Bear Retrieved on March 20th 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/pull_and_bear

Inditex4 Massimo Dutti Retrieved on March 22nd 2011 from: http: _are/concepts/massimo_dutti //www.inditex.com/en/who_we


72

Inditex5 Bershka Retrieved on March 22nd 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/bershka

Inditex6 Stradivarius Retrieved on March 30th 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/stradivarius

Inditex7 Oysho Retrieved on April 1st 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/oysho

Inditex8 Zara Home Retrieved on April 1st 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/zara_home

Inditex9 Uterque Retrieved on April 1st 2011 from: http://www.inditex.com/en/who_we_are/concepts/uterque Treadway .C (2010) Facebook Marketing: An hour a day Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=wn2jTDtNOdEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=facebook+marketin+an+hour+a+day&hl=en&ei=iWKpTZaQBp-J4gbkwNWICg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDMQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed: March 23 2011) Mangold W.G. (2009) Social media: The new hybrid element of the promotion mix Available at: http://www.itu.dk/~rkva/2011-Spring-EB22/readings/Mangold-SocialMedia.pdf (Accessed March 28 2011) Marshall M. (2003) Understanding Media The Extensions of Man Critical Edition Gingko Press Michael Lewis (2001), Next, The future just happened Perner L. (1999) Consumer behavior: the phycology of marketing Available at: http://www.consumerpsychologist.com/ (Accessed March 31 2011) Qualman E. (2010) Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way We Live and Do Business Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=yAqD19i2U0UC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Erik+Qualman+(2010)&hl=en&ei=RVXeTZSqIIuz8QObrZWMCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=Erik%20Qualman%20(2010)&f=false (Accessed 15 April 2011)


73

Saunders (2000) Research Methods for Business Students Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=u-txtfaCFiEC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Saunders&hl=en&ei=flDeTe7wMYm08QPP-qioCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CC0Q6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed April 4 2011) Schiffman L.G. (2008) Consumer Behavior A European Outlook, FT Prentice Hall

Schmidt E. (2007) Eric Schmidt, Web 2.0 vs. Web 3.0 Available at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T0QJmmdw3b0 (Accessed May 3 2011) Sorensen S. (2010) Marketing 2.0: Less Spin, More Value Available at: http://www.forbes.com/2010/04/22/twitter-starbucks-comcast-technology-breakthroughs-marketing.html (Accessed 10 April 2011) Tracy L. Advertising 2.0 Social Media Marketing in a Web 2.0 world Available at: http://books.google.com/books?id=ScdF1-vHvHwC&printsec=frontcover&dq=Tracy+L.+Tuten+Advertising+2.0+Social+Media+Marketing+in+a+Web+2.0+world&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=hHHeTZLkEYOr-QavgpDrCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CDwQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed: April 20 2011) Wayne D Hoyer (2008) Consumer Behavior, Edition 5 http://books.google.com/books?id=fk1rTxRYtY0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=consumer+behavior&hl=en&ei=wd2lTYbeMY_q4waKwJjDCg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=book-thumbnail&resnum=1&ved=0CCoQ6wEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false (Accessed March 31 2011)

andrew jay weir final thesis universitat ramon llull

Documents