What Urban Outfitters is Doing to Attract Millennials
During an afternoon session at the eTail East Social Commerce Summit in Philadelphia yesterday, Moira Gregonis, senior marketing manager for Urban Outfitters, a cross-channel apparel retailer, discussed how the company is effectively reaching millennial shoppers. Below are three of the ways Urban Outfitters is attracting and keeping its millennial audience:
1. The importance of Twitter: Gregonis mentioned how important Twitter is to help retailers not only reach out to their audience but recognize what trends will be popular in the near future. "Twitter is really how we keep up with our consumer," said Gregonis. However, as much as the the company uses Twitter to help create a community, Urban made a conscious decision not to have a separate customer service line for the social media platform. "We decided not to have one because why should our social customers be separate? We want to give the same quality of customer service to everyone," said Gregonis.
2. Dreamers and Doers: One of the biggest reasons for Urban Outfitters success is its company culture. The retailer recently introduced "Dreamers and Doers," a series of interviews on the company's blog highlighting emerging entrepreneurs, artists and "ones to watch." Just yesterday, the blog announced the UO Marketplace, which will "provide local college artists with a platform to sell and promote their own work." Urban Outfitters will then choose one student to sell their items in one of its storefronts.
3. Slowing down: "I think for the past few years, it feels like I've been running around for a tech-savvy experience and now we're [the retail industry] more focused on slowing down," said Gregonis. She went on to say that a great mobile experience is still critical, however, it's more about examining the proper channels and connecting with the customer.
- People:
- Moira Gregonis
- Places:
- Philadelphia