Is the customer always right? Putting the power of brand communities to the test

In retail, it’s generally understood that “the customer is always right,” and businesses that can effectively tap into this advice, regardless of their product or service offering, are said to be best placed for success.

Investing in customer service channels and technology can be a costly practice, but to quote another popular phrase, “You have to spend money to make money.” Counter to the ‘doom scroll’, social media can be used to not only facilitate productive conversations with customers but also to generate ideas for products that are all but guaranteed to be best-sellers.

Here’s a look at how three brands have harnessed the power of their communities on social media to drive sales.

For the babes

Resort and swimwear brand Bydee has always been a customer-led brand but its recent ‘Carvoeiro – The Babes Collection’ took that to a new level. 

Inspired by the brand collaborations she had seen with influencers, celebrities and public figures, Bydee’s founder and creative directorDessy Hairis launched a worldwide competition last year to design the brand’s Summer ‘23 collection in collaboration with customers.

“For us, there was no influence that spoke to the brand like our customers did and being so customer-centric, it was a no-brainer. I knew that our first collaborative collection had to be with our customers,” Hairis told Inside Retail.

“I hadn’t seen a brand do that before and I knew that we wanted to do a collaborative collection but again, I really wanted to ensure that our customers felt really heard,” Hairis added.

Carvoeiro was brought to life in collaboration with the Bydee community, which Hairis calls the Bydee Babes.

“‘Designed by you’ was the messaging,” Hairis said.

The community could enter the competition by submitting a video detailing why they wanted to be part of the collection, and from the hundreds of entries submitted three winners were selected.

The winners were involved in the entire journey from the first mood boards, to picking the models, photoshoot location and even the TikTok trends the brand tapped into at the photoshoot, Hairis explained.

“It was amazing to see it come to life because the designs were ones that we wouldn’t have necessarily done prior, and the collection sold so well,” she added.

“I felt like they each represented a different Bydee customer which was important and they each had really different priorities when it came to their bikinis.

“They represented a range of women and it was really nice to see them come together, collaborate and build out a range that spoke to all of them.

“That was a really exciting milestone for the business.”

Back to basics

Ethical and vegan underwear brand Nat’V Basics’ ‘Moss’ drop is a testament to how customer-curated collections are great for business. 

“We took to social media to gauge interest in the ‘Moss’ collection with our followers, and had an amazing response with the community getting involved,” Sandy Ronalds, founder of Nat’V Basics, told Inside Retail.

In January, the brand polled its almost 100,000 followers asking which colourways they wanted, and with 15,ooo consumers getting involved, ‘Moss’ was the most in demand.

When the collection launched on May 30, one unit sold every 30 seconds, and within 24 hours, the small, medium and large SKUs were sold out, “which is unreal,” Ronalds said.

“The stats speak for themselves, in the power of listening to a brand community and we cannot wait to be able to involve them more in future collections and launches.” 

Matildas’ score

As the CommBank Matildas continue to make history, their captive audience is growing too, and Rachael Wilde, CMO of York St Brands and co-founder of Tbh Skincare, is not exempt from ‘Tillies fever’.

A video posted to social media of Wilde’s pitch for a Matilda’s pimple patch to the brand’s CEO and team went viral, clocking up over 100,000 views on TikTok.

The result was Tbh Skincare’s quickest product turnaround to date. It went live in just four weeks in time for the Matildas’ match in Adelaide on May 31.

“It’s not possible, it can’t be done,” Craig Schweighoffer the CEO of York St Brands, the parent company of Tbh, initially said.

“With over 100 comments pushing for the collaboration, we managed to bring the co-branded product to market within just four weeks, which is unheard of,” Wilde told Inside Retail.

Despite York St Brands’ COO Raj Ghatge questioning the feasibility of getting the product on retailers’ shelves within such a time crunch, the team went into overtime, to make Wilde’s and the consumers’ pitch a reality.  

And it’s safe to say they scored a goal, in getting the product to market online and exclusively stocked in Priceline with time to spare.

“We knew how obsessed people are with the Tillies (because we are too), but the response and demand exceeded our expectations,”  Wilde said.

The collaboration reflects a significant shift in how consumers interact with brands in the social media landscape, Wilde added.

“Their voices have become so powerful in determining product launches and what we develop next as a brand,” she said.

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