Discussions about the fashion industry thread

[smittycl]

Well before my time here as well.

 

[ter1413]

Very interesting video!

Worth 45 min of your time.

 

[cb200]

Fairly sobering read about online ads.

The new dot com bubble is here: it’s called online advertising

In 2018 $273bn was spent on digital ads globally. We delve into the world of clicks, banners and keywords to find out if any of it is real. What do we really know about the effectiveness of digital advertising?

thecorrespondent.com

 

[UrbanComposition]

Okay, maybe time to call shenanigans, or just straight bullshit, on the Ralph Lauren-Hickey Freeman thing. Seems like RL had HF do the blazers for the last Olympics. Nice move, I liked it. After visiting my local RL store (it’s a Ralph Lauren store but carries only Polo as calling it Polo is too outlet? It is in Georgetown I guess...)

View attachment 1281299

Anyway, was just looking through RL website and see no suits or sport coats made in USA which might indicate HF. Lots of “tailored in Italy,” “crafted in Italy” (whatever the hell that means), “crafted with Italian fabric” and such. Lower end stuff listed as Made in Portugal or “Imported” which is of course a placeholder for Made in China or other Asian countries. Not a comment on that, just looking for HF. Weasel-words seem to predominate. I see some really awful RRL items made in USA. Western-themed tux stuff?

Am I missing something obvious? Any help out there? Still looking here.

EDIT: interesting to see TR Pescod, the Attolini and BB model, now on RL apparently.

There’s at least one made in USA sport coat at the RL store here in SF. Seems modeled after the Garrison cut, which is really nice.

 

[LA Guy]

Fairly sobering read about online ads.

The new dot com bubble is here: it’s called online advertising

In 2018 $273bn was spent on digital ads globally. We delve into the world of clicks, banners and keywords to find out if any of it is real. What do we really know about the effectiveness of digital advertising?

thecorrespondent.com

I think the problem with data analysis is that, in the minds of many, it replaces a priori reasoning. Or at very least, we put much more weight on the one than the other, the merits notwithstanding. Models are questioned way less than they ought to be. We looooove quantifiable things.

 

[smittycl]

There’s at least one made in USA sport coat at the RL store here in SF. Seems modeled after the Garrison cut, which is really nice.

Couldn’t find it at our store. Will have to check out the actual RL store next time I’m at the swanky Mall.

 

[cb200]

I've been disappointed in digital ad consultants and marketers who I've worked with. Very limited scope of consideration. 100% sure they didn't look at product or merchandising and honestly just believed that advertising was a black box where there was a simple put in "$X" at whatever CPM and get ($X* conversion rate) back forever.

One consultant suggested that we bid on the search term for the brand name for the brand I worked for. So, we'd pay to place an ad in search for the person who was already looking for us- Who benefits there? Customer's already looking for the name. We'd be bidding up the cost for the brand as a term and competing with vendors who we supplied who might be bidding on the brand name. Google search was a disaster for us.

 

[LA Guy]

I've been disappointed in digital ad consultants and marketers who I've worked with. Very limited scope of consideration. 100% sure they didn't look at product or merchandising and honestly just believed that advertising was a black box where there was a simple put in "$X" at whatever CPM and get ($X* conversion rate) back forever.

One consultant suggested that we bid on the search term for the brand name for the brand I worked for. So, we'd pay to place an ad in search for the person who was already looking for us- Who benefits there? Customer's already looking for the name. We'd be bidding up the cost for the brand as a term and competing with vendors who we supplied who might be bidding on the brand name. Google search was a disaster for us.

Yeah, capitalizing on long tail searches might have been a better use of your money. The unfortunate truth is that in internet marketing, as in pretty much all fields, there are more incompetent people than competent. Also, there is this weird association of success with intelligence. My observation is that it's often blind luck.

 

[DLester]

do you remember au pied du cochon...

He's 18 years too late. There use to be some awesome shops on the main strip.

 

[Mariokartfever]

I think the problem with data analysis is that, in the minds of many, it replaces a priori reasoning. Or at very least, we put much more weight on the one than the other, the merits notwithstanding. Models are questioned way less than they ought to be. We looooove quantifiable things.

Been in the digital/print ad space for 10+ years. For the longest time advertising was "magic." It was hard to connect success to any specific campaign or budget.

As soon as the internet allowed us to quantify everything, brands rushed to track every metric they good. For the last ten years or so the "goldne metric" has changed every year or two (click through rate, interaction rate, viewability, etc). I think most of this is driven to marketing directors/CMOs at brands who feel a strong desire to quantify their success and prove their worth, thus secure more budgets for the next fiscal. Ad agencies pass this demand onto publishers and vendors, who rejigger their entire ad serving and content strategies around hitting those golden metrics.

This has resulted in some weird under/overvaluations in advertising. I sincerely believe that print is highly undervalued right now, especially when compared to digital. But there's no market for it. OOH billboards like the ones you see in trendy downtown areas are weirdly overvalued.

 

[lordsuperb]

do you remember au pied du cochon...

I don’t.

 

[LA Guy]

Been in the digital/print ad space for 10+ years. For the longest time advertising was "magic." It was hard to connect success to any specific campaign or budget.

As soon as the internet allowed us to quantify everything, brands rushed to track every metric they good. For the last ten years or so the "goldne metric" has changed every year or two (click through rate, interaction rate, viewability, etc). I think most of this is driven to marketing directors/CMOs at brands who feel a strong desire to quantify their success and prove their worth, thus secure more budgets for the next fiscal. Ad agencies pass this demand onto publishers and vendors, who rejigger their entire ad serving and content strategies around hitting those golden metrics.

This has resulted in some weird under/overvaluations in advertising. I sincerely believe that print is highly undervalued right now, especially when compared to digital. But there's no market for it. OOH billboards like the ones you see in trendy downtown areas are weirdly overvalued.

I never worked at an advertising firm, but I did work with very large datasets and very complex systems, and having spoken with numerous data analysts (they are by and large not scientists) and marketing executives, I can say with a high degree of certainty that most of them don't really understand the very limited nature of statistics and data analysis and the very human element of interpreting the results.

I help run the ads for several sites other than this, and yeah, as a publisher, you have to play the game when it comes to display advertising. The apparatus is simply too strong. You can't risk your own add other people's money out of some intellectual principle. I talk to those who will listen, but it's mostly just that, talking.

 

[London]

I never worked at an advertising firm, but I did work with very large datasets and very complex systems, and having spoken with numerous data analysts (they are by and large not scientists) and marketing executives, I can say with a high degree of certainty that most of them don't really understand the very limited nature of statistics and data analysis and the very human element of interpreting the results.

I help run the ads for several sites other than this, and yeah, as a publisher, you have to play the game when it comes to display advertising. The apparatus is simply too strong. You can't risk your own add other people's money out of some intellectual principle. I talk to those who will listen, but it's mostly just that, talking.

I spent a career in agencies and now consult. There’s a lot snake oil salesmen pushing digital exhaust as if it’s gas.

 

[London]

A lot of clients are starting to bring this stuff in house. There was a big shake out a few years ago of media agencies ginning up the numbers. The platforms do it as well.

 

[Mariokartfever]

I spent a career in agencies and now consult. There’s a lot snake oil salesmen pushing digital exhaust as if it’s gas.

How did this transition go for you? Something I've been considering for a few years down the road.