Do You "Keep Up?"
We all know who the Kardashians are. They are not only a name, but a brand, that has been drilled into our heads from their reality show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians, as well as through controversies, business ventures, and of course, their social media endeavors.
To some people, the powerful Kardashian and Jenner brands stem from a leaked video in 2007 of Kim, and her then-boyfriend, Ray J. And that’s it. There is nothing more. However, I think that the Kardashians are more than just social media and television personalities. They are smart, creative, like-minded, and professional individuals that know how to leverage themselves among other people and create a brand for their name, but also the companies that they endorse and the ones that they found.
Even though all of the sisters have had major success in their industries, one sister stands out among the rest. Kylie Jenner, at just 22-years-old, has created an empire that goes way beyond her celebrity status. In this blog, Hollywood Branded discusses how Kylie Jenner is able to keep herself, along with her company, trending with her unique and creative marketing strategies.
Recap Of All Of The Kardashian/Jenner Businesses
The Kardashian and Jenners have spread out to other businesses beyond their hit reality show, Keeping Up With The Kardashians. They, along with E! Network, have created spin-off shows such as Life Of Kylie, Kourtney and Khloe Take The Hamptons, DASH Dolls, among others.
In addition to their TV programming, the sisters have been able to open DASH boutique, which first opened in Calabasas in 2006 and later spread to Miami, Manhattan, and Southampton. After 12 years in business, the sisters decided to close all of the boutiques.
At an individual level, the sisters have also created their own businesses. Kim created Skims, a Hollywood App, KKW Beauty, and wrote her own book, Selfish.
Kylie is the founder of Kylie Skin and Kylie Cosmetics, which we will go into further later on.
Khloé is the founder of Good American, a clothing line, and starred in her own show, Revenge Body.
Finally, Kourtney owns POOSH, a wellness company for all things lifestyle and beauty.
Photo Credit: Cosmopolitan
Social Media Presence
For brands, social media advertising is something that is becoming more and more powerful, engaging, and leveraging to get awareness to their brand. The Kardashians have been able to capitalize on their social media presence to create their marketing strategies. All of the sisters (Kourtney, Kim, Khloé, Kendall, and Kylie) are in the top 50 of “Most-followed Instagram Accounts.” In total, the sisters are able to reach a whopping 701 million accounts on Instagram alone; that is over two times the population of the United States. They truly are recognizable names, world-wide.
As for their target market, the Kardashians seem to be targeting people who are teens, young adults, and adults. 79% of people in the age range of 18-49 use social media.
Kylie Jenner has been able to truly understand and analyze her social media demographics in order to better enhance her brands and their reputation.
When Kylie Jenner started her cosmetic company, Kylie Cosmetics, she made the risky business decision to advertise and market without any paid traffic. Kylie relied on her social media presence and her celebrity status to spread awareness to her brand. Her followers were able to keep up with her latest releases and colors by following her Instagram and Snapchat stories.
Most recently, on June 20th, Kylie and Kendall Jenner went live on Kylie’s Instagram account to announce their new collaboration, KENDALL X KYLIE. In just a few minutes, the sisters were able to announce their collaboration to millions of people and did not spend a single penny.
Photo Credit: Google Images
The Self-Made Billionaire?
In March 2019, Forbes announced that Kylie was the world’s youngest self-made billionaire. Kylie first made it onto the billionaire list when she sold 51% of her cosmetic company, Kylie Cosmetics, to Coty Inc. for $600 million. With that sale, the business was valued at $1.2 billion dollars. Since then, Forbes has actually revoked Kylie’s billionaire-status due to inflation of the actual value of her company. Even though controversy has emerged into this business, the marketing strategy and campaigns that Kylie did, and still continue to do, must be recognized.
What Kylie really focuses on is organic content. She personalizes her posts so that users are able to truly see what her product does, what it looks like, and the different colors/palettes that it comes in. Of course, now with the companies continued, yet controversial success, she has stepped up her marketing game by starting to use paid advertising such as billboards, photo shoots, and even a remodeled food truck. Yes, a food truck.
Photo Credit: Google Images
Kylie Cosmetics Truck
Back in 2017, Kylie hopped on another trend that would pave way for even more success. The popularity of food trucks has been increasing, especially with younger consumers. The truck which was parked outside The Grove in Los Angeles to sell the beauty moguls new holiday collection. And yes, the truck was sold out by the end.
However, the truck did not stop there. Throughout the month of December, the truck was traveling throughout Los Angeles to give consumers a chance to buy product no matter where they were based in Southern California. The truck even had its own Instagram account for fans to follow and track where it was going to park next.
This genius marketing strategy by Kylie developed from the idea of buying ice-cream from an ice-cream truck; easy, accessible, and fun. Hey, if you can do it for ice-cream, why not do it for make-up and skin care? Companies can learn from this by thinking outside of the box about what is easy, makes people happy, and will spread awareness to the brand.
What I also think makes Kylie and her truck so successful is the fact that her truck is more than just a mobile store. On December 14th, 2019 Kylie posted a video to her YouTube Channel where she took her Kylie Truck to the San Fernando Valley Rescue Mission to provide meals to families.
Photo Credit: Instagram
Rise And Shine
Kylie Cosmetics has also paved way for another business venture for the 22-year-old. On October 10th, 2019 Kylie posted to her YouTube Channel a video titled, “Official Kylie Jenner Office Tour.” In this video, Kylie again is being real and transparent, just like she is in her marketing campaigns.
In this video, Kylie took her followers on a tour of her headquarters. Towards the end of the video, Kylie wakes up her daughter Stormi with the then-trending words, “Rise and Shine.” When this part of the video started to go viral and people were making memes, videos, and posts about it, Kylie being the marketing powerhouse that she is, capitalized on this opportunity. How? Well, she made Rise and Shine merchandise for fans to buy for $65. I did not splurge on this opportunity, but I do know people who did, and let me tell you, they say it is one comfortable hoodie.
Photo Credit: Google Images
Time To Wrap It Up With The Keeping Up
The Kardashian and Jenner empire would not be what it is today with the unique marketing strategies that the sisters (and Kris) have created. The reason that they are always in the news is because of the strategies that they create that have people wanting and craving more. Even if it is bad press, the Kardashian/Jenners know how to turn that into a positive and continue to market themselves in a better light.
I am a Kardashian fan, but not for their products. I enjoy watching how they are able to change, adapt, and create new marketing strategies for their businesses. They are smart people, and I admire them for that.
It is important for brands to learn from not just Kylie, but the rest of the family. They are more than just celebrities. They are entrepreneurs with a determination like no other. If brands want to learn how to create fun, unique, and personable content, look no further than their Instagram accounts.
Check out other blogs written by our team about social influencers and celebrities:
- Why Brands Should Partner With YouTube Stars, Like David Dobrik
- How To #18: The 3 Key Steps to Leveraging Celebrity Gifting
- Marketing From An Influencer’s Perspective
- The Brand Partnership Powerhouses Of YouTube Influencer Couples
Want to learn more about how Celebrities can help your brand? Check out our awesome guide!
