In the weeks since being confined to home I’ve done a sound bath with Alighieri, Kundalini yoga with Prism London, watched an interview – courtesy of Prada – with the former museum curator, Pamela Golbin, dropped into Loewe’s studio and browsed through numerous other cultural and well-being activities – all via the medium of Instagram Live.
Thinking-on-their-feet, many fashion brands have taken the opportunity to engage with their locked-down consumers through the livestream function of the Instagram app with events, discussion and classes. And I, for one, am thoroughly enjoying it.
The point is not to sell to followers, it’s to communicate, engage and, to a point, PR their brand by keeping them brands live and relevant during a time of consumer slow-down. And to feel helpful.
One great example of a brand embracing the online social opportunity is the jewellery brand, Alighieri founded by Rosh Mahtani. She’s held live readings of Dante’s Divine Comedy, hosted Art Therapy classes with artist, Alexandria Coe and organised a sound bath live from Paris. “It’s Rosh’s way of offering people a place to escape to, while interacting with her global community in a way she has never been able to before” says Kelly Tanti, Alighieri’s PR, a senior account director at Purple.
She points out that it can a low cost activity to run. “You just need to find the right partners who align with your brand. Offering a donation to charity can be a great way to partner at the moment,” she suggests.
Tanti reaches out to press before the events to tell them what’s happening and when – one thing that I would strongly recommend PRs do if their brand has a live-stream schedule.
There are now so many Instagram Live programmes it can be hard to keep up…
