Group 1

Dr. Kristen Heflin

12/9/2011

Victoria’s Secret Comprehensive Social Media Analysis Project

Introduction

Victoria's Secret is the leading specialty retailer of lingerie operating more than 1,000

stores across the United States. Victoria's Secret has brought attention to the lingerie industry

perhaps more than any other brand. Victoria’s Secret was established by Roy Raymond, who felt

embarrassed purchasing lingerie for his wife in a department store. He started Victoria’s Secret

in the San Francisco area during the 1970s to provide a comfortable place for men to buy

lingerie. After he opened the first store a mail-order catalog and three other stores soon followed.

The stores were meant to create a comfortable shopping environment for men, with wood-

paneled walls, Victorian details and helpful sales staff. Raymond saw an opportunity to take the

“underwear” of the time and turn it into fashion. Products stood apart from the traditional white

cotton pieces, which department stores offered, with colors, patterns and style that gave them

more allure and sexiness.

In 1982, after 5 years of operation, Roy Raymond sold the Victoria's Secret company, its

six stores and 42-page catalogue, grossing $6 million per year, to Leslie Wexner, creator of The

Limited, for $4 million. By the early 1990s, Victoria's Secret had become the largest American

lingerie retailer, topping one billion dollars. Beginning in 1995, Victoria's Secret began holding

the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, which is broadcasted on primetime American

television. The show is a lavish event with elaborate costumed lingerie, varying music and set

design according to the different themes running within the show. The show attracts hundreds of
 celebrities and entertainers with special performers and/or acts every year.

Basic Store Facts*  

Net sales (millions)                                          $4,018

Comparable store sales                                    14%

Number of stores                                           1,028

Selling square feet                                            6,057,00

*As of January 29, 2011

By first developing a strong name in lingerie, Victoria’s Secret also entered the clothing

industry, offering customers choices in clothing, accessories, fragrances, personal care,

swimwear and athletic attire. In 2004 Victoria’s Secret founded its sub-brand, PINK, which sells

underwear, sleepwear, lounge wear, beauty products and accessories marketed towards teens and

young adult females.

Business for the Victoria’s Secret Brand is principally conducted from offices,

distribution and shipping facilities located in the Columbus, Ohio area. Additional facilities are

located in New York, New York, Kettering, Ohio, Rio Rancho, New Mexico, and Paramus, New

Jersey.
 Current Communication Initiatives

Victoria’s Secret has proven to be effective in defining beauty for consumers through

various marketing, advertising and public relations strategies. This company has united their

traditional and online marketing efforts successfully.

The $12 million Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is the key focus for the brand’s

advertising machine, used as a platform to promote and sell its goods in a high profile setting.

This event is able to reach an audience of over 1 billion people, including news coverage. The

brand also has nationwide retail presence and markets themselves through their store interiors.

About 390 million copies of the Victoria’s Secret catalogue are distributed in the United States

free of charge full of intimate apparel, women’s clothing, beauty products and accessories. To

reach the teen, college age and adult women audiences, Victoria’s Secret pays for advertising

space in popular women’s magazines. The company also pays for commercial spots on major

networks to announce sales or new collections. Occasionally, Victoria’s Secret also puts on

special events to heighten the publicity surrounding the release of a new line of lingerie. To

model their lingerie and clothing, Victoria’s Secret capitalizes on their elite group of

supermodels, “angels”, to represent their brand with beauty and class. Their international

supermodels receive major media attention and are of celebrity status, including: Miranda Kerr,

Alessandra Ambrosio and Adriana Lima.

 Victoria’s Secret has done a wonderful job reaching their target audience and primarily

using the online resources that their consumers use. Unlike many companies online, Victoria’s

Secret has followed their consumers to the place they spend the most time. When searching for

Victoria’s Secret on social media, they can be found on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. They

also have a mobile app for iPhone, iPad and Android devices. And finally, they offer an

exclusive email for people who want to sign up.   

Victoria’s Secret uses social media impeccably. With more than 15 million fans, it is safe

to say that their Facebook approach has made an impression on their consumers. On their official

Facebook account, they offer everything from Victoria’s Secret themed wallpapers to gift card

information. Victoria’s Secret also has a great YouTube Channel. They consistently upload

content to their channel including commercials airing on television and exclusive behind-the-

scenes videos. On Twitter, Victoria’s Secret consistently updates their over 300,000 followers on

the deals they are having or the programs they are producing, such as the Victoria’s Secret

Fashion Show.

Besides the well-known social networking tools, Victoria’s Secret has expanded to

mobile communication efforts as well. They have mobile apps for iPad, iPhone and Android

devices that allow their customers to shop wherever they may be. Finally, Victoria’s Secret

offers an email and text service that will alert customers who have opted in on special deals and

events. Victoria’s Secret has created a model for women for how they should treat themselves

and they have also created a model for other companies demonstrating how to successfully be

present on the Web.

 Need for Social Media Monitoring

Victoria’s Secret seems to be everywhere in the online world. They have a strong

presence on every social media platform, and their website is strong as well, but it is still

important for Victoria’s Secret to monitor social media and all online presence for their business.

There are a lot of things being said on Twitter and blogs about their products which may or may

not have a negative impact on the company. The main thing Victoria’s Secret needs to be aware

of are the fake deals that people are putting on Twitter and Facebook. Recently, Facebook was

inundated by fraudulent coupon codes for free Victoria’s Secret panties and Victoria’s Secret has

yet to do anything to negate these coupons. Not only should they make their customers aware of

the discount fraud, they should also direct their customers to legitimate discounts. On Victoria’s

Secret Twitter they do a great job of re-tweeting fans and posting relevant comments but the

majority of their posts remain promotional.

By monitoring their online presence on social media and across the internet, Victoria’s

Secret would be able to see what people are saying about themselves as well as their competitors.

While monitoring the social media presence of the company, specifically when searching the

keyword “bras”, a lot of positive posts about Playtex were discovered. Victoria’s Secret could

use this information and comments to find ways to improve their products and advertising to

remain the frontrunner in the market ahead of Playtex. By monitoring the positive feedback on

its own brand, Victoria’s Secret will be able to replicate the things customers already like and

improve on things that aren’t working.

Methodology

During the two week span beginning October 24, 2011 and ending on November 7, 2011,

our group monitored Victoria’s Secret and their presence on social media. During this time
frame, the brand was most discussed on various blogs but also on Twitter, Facebook and

reputable websites. The keyword search terms we chose were Victoria’s Secret Pink, Victoria’s

Secret Fashion Show, Victoria’s Secret Angels, lingerie and bras. The keyword phrase Victoria’s

Secret Fashion Show was the most discussed among all the phrases we chose because the

monitoring period ended within days of the live event.

The blogs discussing Victoria’s Secret were found using social media monitoring sites

such as www.addictomatic.com and www.socialmention.com. These sites allowed us to search

each individual phrase and returned results from various social media platforms. These sites

provided a convenient way to find and read relevant blogs about each specific keyword. Twitter

Advanced Search was also used to follow the conversation about the brand on Twitter, however,

the keywords Pink, lingerie and bras mainly yielded results about sales and coupons many of

which did not seem like they were from legitimate sources. www.moniterr.com was another tool

we used to search for Twitter mentions about the brand. The Google Trends tool also provided us

with insight as to when certain keywords would spike in interest.

We used various factors to determine the credibility of our sources depending on the

social media platform. On Twitter, we looked at the number of followers and the quality of the

users’ previous tweets. We looked at blogs similarly, but also used Alexa to look at the blog’s

ranking and the number of sites linking in to provide additional support for credibility. The

Huffington Post and International Business Times were the most credible websites we

referenced. Both of these sites regularly provide their audience with business and entertainment

news and they have large followings.

 Results

Strengths

Advertising:

One of Victoria’s Secret’s strengths is their very successful advertising strategy.

Victoria’s Secret spends $66 million annually on advertising, essentially defining beauty and

packaging it for consumers. Thousands of newspaper ads, catalogues and televised fashion

shows convince women that buying Victoria’s Secret products will boost their confidence and

enhance their appeal. A Victoria’s Secret product represents fun, romance, fantasy, desire and

love all in one.

Print Ads in Magazines and Newspapers:

What Victoria’s Secret doesn’t spend on Internet, television ads, fashion shows, or

catalogues they spend on newspaper and magazine ads. Newspaper and magazine ads are

effective for reaching a specific audience. In particular, Victoria’s Secret targets magazines it

expects its consumer base to read, which include Cosmopolitan, In Style, Glamour and Allure.

Catalogues:

A person simply has to go to the Victoria’s Secret website, enter a mailing address, and a

few weeks later a Victoria’s Secret catalogue is delivered to their doorstep, free of charge. Over

390 million copies of the Victoria’s Secret catalogue are distributed in the U.S. alone.

Annual Fashion Show:

The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is a centerpiece for the brands intricately designed

and elegantly functioning advertising machine. With this event, Victoria’s Secret reaches an

audience of over 1 billion. Victoria’s Secret obtains one hour of nationwide advertising and CBS

is granted the exclusive rights to one of the most popular annual programs on TV.
Facebook:

Victoria’s Secret official Facebook page has 15,987,963 “likes”. Their Facebook page

offers specials, such as giving away 100,000 reward cards worth anywhere from $10-$500,

various ways to stay connected to Victoria’s Secret, videos/photos, events tab and other helpful

links for those interested.

The Supermodels/Angels:

Victoria’s Secret holds one of the most important input supplies in the lingerie industry:

supermodels. Advertisements capitalize on this association and cement in consumer minds that

Victoria’s Secret represents beauty and class.

Store Front:

Store interiors are also consistent with Victoria’s Secret’s brand image. Wallpaper hues

of soft pink promote a soft, feminine environment. Victoria’s Secret stores are meant to evoke

images of class.

Sweepstakes & Contests:

Victoria’s Secret website has contests and sweepstakes year round that offer prizes

ranging from $10 gift cards to $10,000.

Victoria’s Secret further reinforces positive shopping experiences with customer service.

At its Direct Client Contact Centers, trained call center personnel not only assist callers with

sizing and other concerns, but also talk about products in a manner that communicates the

romance of the brand. They recommend complementary items or alternatives to products that are

out of stock.
Weaknesses

As Victoria’s Secret is a very well-established company, there are only a few weaknesses

this organization reveals. First, Victoria’s Secret is not interested in expanding their target

market. Some people believe this limits them by keeping their products targeted to younger girls

and not older, married women. Also, Victoria’s Secret could take some more time with their

online presence, including responding more to their consumers on Twitter and blogs monitoring

the internet for discussions about the brand.

Opportunities

Victoria’s Secret is a strong company with a prominent online presence and is extremely

active on social media world. The one opportunity Victoria’s Secret could take advantage of is

the promotion of the annual fashion show. There is always a lot of hype about the show.

Victoria’s Secret does a good job of advertising on its website and social media platforms for this

fashion show. However, if they created official Facebook and Twitter accounts dedicated to

specifically promoting the event, the already impressive viewership ratings could be increased.

They could include information such as the model’s bios, pictures and other interactive

information sources for the fashion show’s audience. Victoria’s Secret could also create a smart

phone app with a countdown to the event and run specials in their store the whole week leading

up to the show. Although the fashion show is advertised, it blends in with the rest of the website

and advertisements. It needs to stand out as its own entity and not be grouped in with the general

function of the company.

Threats

The public and the media have often criticized Victoria’s Secret for promoting incredibly

thin models, creating a negative idea of the brand. These “angels” are required to be at least 5
feet, 8 inches tall and meet specific measurement requirements in order to model the clothing.

Models with a 34-inch bust, a 24-inch waist and 34-inch hips are the most desired. Because

Victoria’s Secret angels are the most prestigious models in the industry, this creates an almost

physically impossible body standard to live up to. The brand also provokes numerous Federal

Communications Commission (FCC) complaints every year following the annual fashion show.

The FCC has yet to impose a fine against Victoria’s Secret but could in the future. Groups like

the American Family Association annually flood the FCC with criticisms about how the

Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show is indecent or obscene.

Conclusion

Overall, Victoria’s Secret is consistent with their appearance across all communication

outlets including traditional and online media. They reach their customers through almost every

source available and update their audience frequently. Victoria’s Secret controls the majority of

the lingerie market with little to no competition. The success of the brand name and their

products is a result of their overall communication efforts.

As a nationwide retailer they market themselves through their store interior, packaging

and event through the name of the Pink product line. Customers are promised quality service

when they walk into a Victoria’s Secret store. Employees are knowledgeable about all of their

products and make sure customers are comfortable throughout their shopping experience. These

are some of the strengths attributed to the Victoria’s Secret company.

Since Victoria’s Secret is such a well established company, they aren’t open to expanding

their market. Even though their status as a company is a strength, the weakness is they may be

too comfortable with the brand’s identity. Victoria’s Secret has a prominent online presence but

they don’t use it to their advantage and actively join in the conversation with their customers.
 The annual fashion show is a strong part of Victoria’s Secret’s marketing efforts but it

tends to blend into the company’s general marketing. They should exclusively use the official

Twitter account for the annual fashion show to promote the event and make it stand out rather

than blend in to Victoria’s Secret’s everyday promotions. This missed opportunity could increase

the already impressive viewership of the show.

Victoria’s Secret provokes numerous FCC complaints every year following the fashion

show. Prominent groups like the American Family Association regularly complain that the show

is indecent or obscene and should be televised during late night television rather than during

primetime. Victoria’s Secret is also criticized by the media and the public for promoting

impossibly thin models that could potentially create a negative image for the brand. The “angels”

are the most prestigious women in the modeling world and are considered celebrities. This

creates an almost physically impossible body standard for girls to live up to. These all create a

negative brand image threatening the Victoria’s Secret company.

We recommend Victoria’s Secret implement the following in their overall

communication efforts:

 Edit their company information page on Facebook. It is text heavy and consists mainly of

legal notices about copyright and use of information. Even though this is important

information, it should appear elsewhere and not under the mission section of their

information page.

 Redesign Victoria’s Secret home page to make the Facebook link more prominent and

visible, rather than in the bottom right hand corner.

 Add icons with links to the Twitter page and YouTube channel, Flickr group and blog.

 Create a group on Flickr to share pictures from recent photo shoots and events.
 Use the fashion show’s Twitter account more effectively. As of the day after the 2011

show aired, the account only had only 22 tweets and less than 1,000 followers. Twitter

could be a major help behind the fashion show if used properly.

 Vary what their posts are about on both Facebook and Twitter. Currently their tweets and

posts are almost all promotional.

 Give fans and followers an incentive to visit the store, like a code for a discount or a free

item at least once a week.

 Focus on creating deals on gift set items and share those gift ideas on both Facebook and

Twitter around the holiday season.

 Respond to customers’ feedback more on social networking sites such as Twitter and

Facebook.

 Create a blog dedicated to directly communicating with customers to answer questions,

solve issues in store and online, etc.

 Create a blog for Victoria’s Secret employees to encourage communication between

employees in the corporate offices along with the retail stores.

 Participate in the conversation with influential bloggers who talk about Victoria’s Secret.

 Inform customers about coupon scams that spread through social media and how they can

spot fake discounts.

 Reach out to the American Family Association to generate feedback about the annual

fashion show.

 Involve models in organizations that promote healthy lifestyles and a positive body

image.
 Monitor potential competitors like Playtex as their presence on social media has started to

increase.
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