Having a social media presence is almost compulsory for retailers, but getting it right is something that takes time and money.
One retailer that has made this investment pay off is Urban Outfitters.
According to statistics from the latest UK Facebook Commerce Index, Urban Outfitters has grown its Facebook fans by 148% in September. The retailer added 490,579 fans last month, taking its total to 822,223.
This growth was thanks to a mixture of several initiatives the retailer carried out including streetwear bloggers writing and posting pictures on their Facebook wall, the ‘Five free songs on Mondays’ blog, and posted video content that introduces the Urban Outfitters Music Shop and a Halloween shop.
The retailer has developed a broad mix of content that will appeal to a wide audience and has driven traffic to this content from its other channels, creating a strong brand voice on Facebook.
ChannelAdvisor UK Facebook Commerce Index
| Top 25 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | Retailer | Fans | Previous Ranking |
| 1 | Topshop | 1,635,781 | 1 |
| 2 | New Look | 1,085,432 | 2 |
| 3 | ASOS | 1,062,858 | 4 |
| 4 | River Island | 1,042,812 | 3 |
| 5 | Urban Outfitters | 822,223 | 9 |
| 6 | Next | 659,638 | 5 |
| 7 | Net-a-porter.com | 533,647 | 6 |
| 8 | La Senza | 444,837 | 7 |
| 9 | Marks and Spencer | 379,449 | 8 |
| 10 | Tesco | 371,284 | 10 |
| 11 | Accessorize | 329,620 | 11 |
| 12 | Phones4U | 293,457 | 12 |
| 13 | Chain Reaction Cycles | 279,483 | 15 |
| 14 | JD Sports | 268,662 | 14 |
| 15 | Jack Wills | 264,347 | 13 |
| 16 | John Lewis | 222,624 | 21 |
| 17 | French Connection | 216,240 | 17 |
| 18 | Dorothy Perkins | 203,889 | 16 |
| 19 | Topman | 179,521 | 18 |
| 20 | Sainsbury’s | 175,705 | 19 |
| 21 | GAME | 171,300 | 20 |
| 22 | Harrods | 118,879 | 22 |
| 23 | Argos | 117,237 | 23 |
| 24 | House of Fraser | 91,371 | 27 |
| 25 | Play.com | 91,181 | 24 |
| Top 25 Growers (fans) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rank | Retailer | Fans |
| 1 | Urban Outfitters | 490,579 |
| 2 | John Lewis | 63,865 |
| 3 | Monsoon | 60,916 |
| 4 | Tesco | 49,950 |
| 5 | Topshop | 49,604 |
| 6 | ASOS | 47,796 |
| 7 | Chain Reaction Cycles | 36,894 |
| 8 | Dorothy Perkins | 28,746 |
| 9 | House of Fraser | 25,760 |
| 10 | Net-a-porter.com | 22,390 |
| 11 | Argos | 21,791 |
| 12 | Marks and Spencer | 20,130 |
| 13 | JD Sports | 18,072 |
| 14 | Molton Brown | 15,752 |
| 15 | Accessorize | 13,502 |
| 16 | vente-privee.com | 11,767 |
| 17 | New Look | 11,657 |
| 18 | Next | 11,236 |
| 19 | Asda | 11,188 |
| 20 | Sainsbury’s | 10,463 |
| 21 | River Island | 10,061 |
| 22 | Play.com | 9,891 |
| 23 | Harrods | 9,803 |
| 24 | Topman | 8,814 |
| 25 | GAME | 8,554 |
| Top 25 Growers (%) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Rank | Retailer | Fan Growth |
| 1 | Molton Brown | 165% |
| 2 | Urban Outfitters | 148% |
| 3 | Littlewoods Clearance | 49% |
| 4 | Asda | 49% |
| 5 | John Lewis | 40% |
| 6 | House of Fraser | 39% |
| 7 | vente-privee.com | 25% |
| 8 | WHSmith | 23% |
| 9 | Argos | 23% |
| 10 | Burton | 19% |
| 11 | Dorothy Perkins | 16% |
| 12 | Tesco | 16% |
| 13 | Berry Bros. & Rudd | 15% |
| 14 | Chain Reaction Cycles | 15% |
| 15 | Cdiscount.com | 14% |
| 16 | Home Retail Group | 14% |
| 17 | Net Pet Shop | 12% |
| 18 | Arcadia Group | 12% |
| 19 | Play.com | 12% |
| 20 | Halfords | 11% |
| 21 | The Range | 10% |
| 22 | boohoo.com | 10% |
| 23 | Monster Pet Supplies | 10% |
| 24 | GettingPersonal.co.uk | 10% |
| 25 | Isme | 10% |
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