Research on the Use of Social Media to Grasp Consumers’ Psychology and Create Traffic: A Case Study of Brandy Melville

University of Southampton, Southampton Hampshire, UK

^* Corresponding author: liuzheransoton@163.com

Abstract

In recent years, Brandy Melville (Hereinafter referred to as BM), an Italian clothing brand, has gained popularity in mainland China because of the style of its slim tops and skirts, which echos the “freedom to dress” speech that has been popular in recent years. However, BM only produces one size and only girls who are thin enough can wear it. This makes other girls feel that their bodies are not recognized. Therefore, BM is also known as the “creator of body anxiety”. Nevertheless, wearing BM has become a hint to prove one’s “good figure”, and BM’s marketing strategy also cleverly utilizes consumers’ vanity to achieve the purpose of marketing itself. So even though there are a lot of critical comments, BM is still gaining popularity from the public. The purpose of this case study is to explore how Brandy Melville grasps consumers’ psychology and controls their emotions, and how it takes advantage of hot comments and critical comments to build its own image and drive consumers to buy. Through the case study of Brandy Melville and the interview with its audience and Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs), this paper aims to find out how social media is used to influence and guide the public’s psychology and emotions. Results show that social media can be used to build the brand image, lead the fashion trend, echo hot topics, and create public sentiment to grasp consumer’s psychology and create traffic.