opinion
Shark Tank judge and CEO Sabri Saby paid tribute to Kim Kardashian by calling SKIMS one of the best e-commerce brands she's ever seen. Here, Saby explains how she did it and what marketers can learn from it.
15 minutes ago
Yes, yes, hats off to Kim Kardashian: SKIMS is one of the best e-commerce brands on the planet.
We get it. You're probably cringing at the premise of this article. As marketers, it's easy to discount the success of celebrities. Of course, Kim Kardashian sells. She has 364 million followers on Instagram, and her SKIMS brand page alone boasts more than 5.8 million followers.
The amount of attention SKIMS garners would make any digital marketer cry tears of joy. It's a level of recognition most brands can only dream of. From viral TikToks to Instagram Stories, SKIMS is everywhere, and for good reason.
But the questions are: how? why? and what can we learn from it?
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It's easy to keep whining about celebrity culture and the selfie craze, but the reality is that the only way to improve your own e-commerce marketing efforts is to take a hard look at the why and how of the world's largest retailer – even if that retailer is Kim Kardashian.
Developing a successful ecommerce marketing strategy takes blood, sweat, and tears. You need to commit to learning the tools, strategies, and tricks that will separate the winners from the losers. Because while the idea is simple, it's the execution that counts.
Going back to SKIMS, I'm a repeat customer and buy their products regularly for my wife. But all that for shapewear? The big beige thing your grandma wore under her Christmas dress? Yes, and Kim made it cool. She saw a gap in the market and filled it.
The key lesson here is: innovate or perish. SKIMS didn't just follow the crowd, they carved their own path and redefined the shapewear industry in the process. Don't be afraid to think outside the box. Innovate, iterate, and never stop pushing the boundaries of what's possible.
But I don't just sing SKIMS's praises for the products themselves. A careful analysis of SKIMS' e-commerce site shows exactly how a reality TV star turned her shapewear brand into a billion-dollar business.
From the moment you land on the homepage, you're greeted with a sleek interface that exudes sophistication, and as someone who values seamless navigation and appealing visuals, I can't help but admire SKIMS' attention to detail.
Looking at the actual product, Kim is learning how to turn her product pages into conversion machines by first enticing customers with compelling copy, then using quantity discounts, order increases, cross-selling, pre-purchase upselling, and anything else that can skyrocket AOV (average order value).
SKIMS has had success with cross-selling, which involves strategically suggesting complementary products on each product page to encourage customers to add more items to their cart. The brand hopes to increase AOV by enticing customers to cross-sell strapless bras, thongs, sculpting bodysuits, and more.
And let's not forget the checkout process: By strategically placing recommended products, SKIMS encourages customers to spend and makes every transaction as profitable as possible. It's a masterclass in efficiency and convenience, and it pays off big time.
So if your e-commerce strategy is stalling, don't waste your time whining and complaining. Instead, take a leaf out of Kim Kardashian's book and channel that energy into making it better, stronger, and relentless than ever before.
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