Kim Kardashian’s shapewear and clothing brand Skims started in 2019 as an over-hyped venture many people thought wouldn’t last long. Less than 5 years later, the brand is worth USD 4 billion and is one of the most widely recognized and sought-after fashion brands.
People may have extreme opinions where the Kardashians are concerned. But no one can deny the sheer size of their influence, star power, and commercial success.
The Kardashians are the original apex influencers who perfected the model of conquering social media with intriguing content and popularity. Skims’ content marketing strategy uses the same genius, leading to its top position.
This blog examines Skims’ social media strategy and how the brand leverages influencer and celebrity partnerships.
Analysis of Skims’ social media accounts
Kim Kardashian, Emma Grede, and Jens Grede co-founded Skims as an inclusive women’s shapewear brand.
YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok are filled with thousands of videos users have uploaded raving about and reviewing Skims products.
Here’s the total followers on Skims’ main social media accounts.
- Instagram: 5.7 million
- Facebook: 430K
- YouTube: 37.1K
- Twitter: 130.1K
- LinkedIn: 137K
- TikTok: 1.3 million
- Reddit: 5.3K
Also, Kim Kardashian actively shares and promotes Skims content on her social media accounts. So, her massive follower base factors in here as well:
- Instagram: 364 million
- Twitter: 75.1 million
- Facebook: 35 million
- YouTube: 2 million
These huge numbers are not surprising. With its size and shape inclusivity, high-quality materials, celebrity endorsements, and overall sensuous appeal, Skims is wildly popular with women worldwide.
Additionally, Skims does not limit itself to womenswear alone, which gives it more online reach. Recently, the brand became an official partner with the NBA, WNBA, and USA Basketball. So, with some market research and targeted campaigns, Skims is all set to make a mark in men’s sportswear.
Let’s examine the fashionable features behind Skims’ social media strategy.
The main features of Skims’ marketing strategy
A quick search on YouTube with the word ‘SKIMS’ will get thousands of results showing the same thing: enthusiastic people talking nonstop about the brand. You will also find many users engaging in discussions in the comments section.
Thanks to Kim Kardashian’s star power, the brand gained a massive following very soon after launch, with high visibility online. This is similar to how Rihanna’s Fenty was received when launched.
And in the same vein, Skims did not solely rely on Kardashian’s celebrity status. The brand instead put an uncompromising focus on inclusivity. It’s no wonder within its first 3 years, Skims was named one of Time’s 100 most influential companies (2022).
Here are some key features of Skims’ marketing strategy leading to this success.
1. Using celebrity and big brand collaborations
Kim Kardashian herself is one of the foremost brand ambassadors for Skims, helping shoot up its popularity and sales by posting product updates and launching new lines on her social media.
But apart from her, Skims has partnered with celebrities like Snoop Dogg, Lana Del Rey, Brooke Shields, Chelsea Handler, and Juliette Lewis. Collaborating with top-tier celebrities like Snoop Dogg helped propel Skims into public favor and appeal.
Skims also teamed up with big brands. A prominent example is Swarovski. Skims partnered with the luxury crystal glass giant to create body jewelry and shapewear.
The result was luxuriously iconic and immediately sought after. Swarovski also promoted this collab, adding to Skims’ marketing strategy.
The brand doesn’t only focus on these mega-celebs and brand partnerships. Skims also actively use other influencers, encouraging people to join the Skims community with its Influencer Program.
2. Being vocal about diversity and inclusion
One of the most central themes where Skims is concerned is inclusion. The brand is notable for having shapewear and products in sizes from XXS to 5X.
Skims provides shapewear and intimate wear options to people of all sizes and promotes body positivity actively. Skims’ social media strategy promotes this inclusivity online, leading to more people flocking to the brand.
Here is an example from Facebook featuring Skims’s ‘Fits Everybody’ tagline.
The products and the models are sexy and confident. Skims celebrates diverse bodies and aesthetics. Models include people of different ethnicities and genders, thus also being vocal about diversity.
Unsurprisingly, it’s well-received online, impacting social media popularity and product sales.
3. Creating content in diverse formats
Skims is a brand thriving in the age of the internet and social media. Skims’ content marketing strategy skillfully uses different platforms and formats available.
Skims creates and posts visually appealing, relevant content in image, text, and video formats. The brand uses static posts, reels, carousels, videos, shorts, stories, highlights, retweets, pins, and product ads.
The above is an example of a popular highlight from Skims’ Instagram account featuring Cardi B.
4. Posting interesting and exclusive content
Behind-the-scenes clips, exclusive interviews, and other trending content help draw people to a brand’s social media channels. Skims’ social media strategy uses market research to identify what content appeals best to target audiences.
The brand then addresses this need by creating and uploading exclusive content that intrigues users and leads to viral moments.
Fendi and Skims’ collaboration was very successful. To take this further, the brand launches marketing campaigns online. It also shares exclusive footage, photos, and clips.
Take this conversation between Kim Jones and Kim Kardashian, for example.
Proving the effectiveness of Skims’ content strategy, the video got 16K views, and the comments section has interactive and positive engagement.
5. Giving regular product updates
Actively posting about the brand, its products, and new releases is one of the best ways to hold the audience’s attention. It shows users the brand is hands-on, and there’s always something new to look forward to.
Skims’ marketing strategy excels at diligently putting up new updates and promotional material for fresh launches.
Skims’ Twitter account, for example, has 8,513 posts. And many of them, like the one above, are updates on new drops, sales, or launches.
6. Having a strong and consistent branding
One of the most iconic things about Skims is how easily recognizable the brand is. It’s not just the unique logo, but the overall classy and minimal design aesthetic.
And whichever social media platform Skims is on, the brand’s account/channel has the same look and feel. The many hues of different beige and nude colors are one of the brand’s most distinctive features.
Apart from this, products are available in pink, black, and other pastel colors. However, all stick to the minimal, single-hued aesthetic showcased in posts and videos.
This embeds its striking uniqueness and branding in the audience’s minds.
7. Using hashtags and promoting the buzz
Skims’ social media strategy is adept at creating and promoting the buzz around products. The brand can achieve this due to its smart use of hashtags.
User-generated content and partner influencer uploads carry these hashtags. The more they are used, the more they pervade across social platforms.
For example, the hashtag #skimshaul has 1.6K videos on YouTube.
The frequency of use increases as more audiences search for the brand using hashtags. Skims gain a lot of traction with influencer marketing coupled with hashtag use.
Examining Skims’ social media strategy
The millions of followers Skims has means the brand is doing many things right. Skims’ marketing strategy online is active and engaging, leveraging the power of influencers.
Let’s see what this means in terms of user engagement.
1. Skims on Instagram
With 5.7 million followers, Skims’ Instagram account is a flourishing space. Skims’ content strategy here focuses on sharing beautiful and sensuous product photographs modeled professionally or by celebrities.
With 329 posts in the last 3 months, Skims’ Instagram is thoroughly engaging thanks to the diverse content.
As a testament to what users respond best to, the SKIMS Valentine post featuring Lana Del Ray has 488,120 engagements, the highest.
Kim Kardashian’s Instagram account, which features a lot of posts related to Skims, also helps draw in audiences to the brand.
Kardashian’s post featuring Neymar Jr. for Skims’ menswear line is the third most engaged post, with 4,374,779 engagements.
2. Skims on Twitter
Skims uses Twitter primarily to deliver product launches and new updates to audiences.
The brand has only 130,213 followers here. This is much less compared to Instagram. However, Skims has posted 231 tweets in the last 3 months, showing the brand is not taking Twitter lightly.
Tweets are the most frequent post type, while Combination media is posted most frequently. Here too, another Valentine’s post featuring Lana Del Ray is the most popular, with 262.8K views and 10,783 engagements.
3. Skims on Facebook
Skims posts regularly on Facebook. The brand has 228 posts in the last 3 months, 314,387 followers, and thousands of engagements.
Thousands of users tag Skims in their posts and comment on Skims’ posts, making this a very interaction-filled platform for the brand.
Note that while photos are the most frequent post types, videos make up only 8% of posts. However, videos are the most engaging for Skims on Facebook.
This makes sense as the video featuring Neymar Jr. is the most popular here, with 41,110 engagements.
4. Skims on YouTube
Apart from major promotional updates or brand news, Skims does not actively post on YouTube. The brand’s marketing strategy focuses more on letting influencers and hashtags work in its favor on YouTube.
In the last 3 months, Skims has posted 2 videos, though those videos have thousands of views. And subscribers have grown over the past few weeks despite no new videos posted.
The video announcing Skims’ menswear line is the most popular with 20,159 engagements, thanks again to the NBA and celebrity athlete collaborations.
Leverage influencer marketing and market research to ace social media
Skims’ social media marketing runs successfully with the help of celebrity collaborations, big brand tie-ups, and inclusive, appealing content. The brand has a strong presence online with a thriving business.
While Skims has a formidable advantage and authenticity thanks to its direct association with Kim Kardashian, the brand doesn’t rely on this alone.
Here are the main ways in which Skims’ social media strategy works:
- Strategic collaborations with celebrities, influencers, and the user community to propel the brand and products into everyday public view and popularity.
- Inclusive and diverse content crafted to be engaging, intriguing, and appealing to connoisseurs of trendy fashion and sensual attire.
- Clear and catchy hashtags increase likes and followers and make Skims content more shareable and findable.
For your social media strategies to work, you need the right tools with influencer tracking, profile analytics, and market research to know what’s trending and what would work for your brand.
With Keyhole, you can do all this and more.
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Frequently Asked Questions
1. How does SKIMS leverage social media to increase brand awareness and reach?
SKIMS leverages social media by creating compelling content that resonates with their target audience. They consistently post visually appealing images and videos, showcasing their products and using influential influencers to increase brand awareness and reach.
2. What platforms does SKIMS prioritize for their social media marketing efforts?
SKIMS prioritizes platforms like Instagram and TikTok for their social media marketing efforts. These platforms allow them to showcase their products creatively and engage with their target audience effectively.
3. How does SKIMS engage with their audience and build a community on social media?
SKIMS engages with their audience on social media by actively responding to comments and direct messages. They also encourage user-generated content by running contests and featuring customer photos on their official accounts. This helps to build a sense of community and loyalty among their followers.
