Forbidden Hill is a homegrown start-up label that creates contemporary fashion and home accessories that are inspired by Southeast Asia. Being one of the only brands to do so, our marketing strategy is to take ownership of this modern Southeast Asian connection, while using an omni-channel approach to reach different audience profiles.
0: Prelude
As design and fashion-centric brand, it was important to ensure that each piece of communication – from the imagery to brand story – is aspirational and reflective of the brand’s Southeast Asian flair. Our photography for example, showcases the brand’s jewellery with heritage locations as backdrops – from Fort Canning Hill to the shophouses along Duxton and Telok Ayer.
1: Capture
Since the brand is a new name on the market, our main marketing focus was to build brand awareness. In terms of media, we ran print ads in targeted publications such ExpatLiving and SilverKris magazines as well as engaged in PR outreach to both online and offline publications.
On social media, we ran ads including regular brand campaigns, seasonal campaigns (eg. Christmas, Valentine’s Day) as well promotional campaigns (tied to events such as Great Singapore Sale, 11/11 etc). We also worked with local influencers to tap on their reach and reputation.
For SEO, we ensured that our e-commerce site is well-structured as well as worked with our SEO agency for offsite content submission. On our site, we also wrote blog articles around targeted keywords.
Other awareness building activities include having a presence in other retail platforms both online and offline such as KrisShop, DesignOrchard and the Raffles Boutique as well as showcasing the Brand in various events and popup spaces such as the annual Boutique Fairs, the Men’s Trunk Show by TaFF etc.
2. Convert
Another challenge for an emerging affordable luxury brand is building trust to enable conversion. Since it often takes multiple exposures to the brand for conversion, it was important for us to run retargeting ads targeted at users who have visited our website or seen our past ads. These ads can highlight auxillary benefits (such as free express shipping) or showcase different ways to style our products.
On our website, our ‘Treasures of South East Asia’ blog not only delves into the design and craftsmanship beind our products but also contains articles on fashion styling as well as arts and culture in South East Asia as the brand strives to become a thought-leader in the sphere. For our email newsletter, a series of welcome emails introduces the brand’s philosophy and creations to subscribers and also serves as a reminder to purchase.
3. Continue
To stay top-of-mind, we posted ongoing and engaging content on our social channels, from different ways to style our products to nuggets on Southeast Asian culture. Our newsletter also keeps customers updated on new launches and promotions. Separately, we also encouraged brand loyalty by identifying top customers and sending them gift cards which gave them free store credit.
