Objectives

The Background

From an inclusive size offering (XXS - 4X) to our nationally acclaimed employee modeled swimsuit campaign, our community takes notice when we show who we are and what we stand for - a retro-inspired fashion brand that is deeply rooted in inclusivity and community. For our Black Friday campaign this year, we wanted to go back to our roots as a brand that stands for something important - and go way beyond pushing the traditional mega sale.

The Goal
To reignite the love by doing something big on Black Friday to give her the feels, instead of the steals.

The Objectives

• Drive engagement with our community around giving back to those in need.
• Create a spike in positive sentiment and buzz.
• Energize our internal employee base to help give back during the holiday season.
• Change the world a little bit at a time.

Strategy and Execution

The Insight

At ModCloth, we were so over what the worst of Black Friday stands for. You know the kind. And we suspect our customers were, too. So we created a plan to disrupt her newsfeed (in a good way) by shutting down our site on the biggest shopping holiday of the year and give back.

How We Did It
By breaking up with Black Friday and asking our community to join us in celebrating something bigger - giving back to those in need and recognizing those who serve the community all year round.

What We Did

• Shut down our site and officially broke up with Black Friday - a tradition we will be celebrating and standing by from here on out.
• Donated $5MM in apparel to our friends at Dress for Success, a nonprofit dedicated empowering women with career skills, mentorship, attire, and opportunities to get back into the workforce.
• Launched our first-ever #ModClothGiving contest asking our followers to nominate one deserving do-gooder for a community grant of $4500.
• Gave #TeamModCloth a day away from work on Cyber Monday to give back to our local communities across our locations in Austin, Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, and San Francisco. Another tradition we are proud to continue.

Results

• 200M media impressions the week of Black Friday to Cyber Monday
• 600+ entries on the first ever #ModClothGiving contest on Instagram and Twitter, driving 7.5M earned impressions generated by the community
• Nearly 80K engagements (views, likes, comments, shares) on ModCloth brand social posts
• Spike in direct and organic traffic. 61% of traffic was organic or direct on Black Friday vs. the week avg. of 41%
• Exceeded our Cyber Monday sales target over +35%

Media