Tuesday was Victoria Beckham’s 38th birthday — but it was also the same day she unveiled the launch of her brand’s Facebook page over Twitter. She tweeted the news to her more than 3.3 million followers at 9:43 a.m., encouraging them to follow her on the brand’s new Facebook timeline at Facebook.com/victoriabeckham, and within 24 hours (to the minute), the page went from just over 12,000 “likes” to 105,551 — a 780 percent increase.
Below, Beckham chats with WWD about social media, her Twitter strategy and her favorite style apps on her iPad.
WWD: You launched a Facebook page Tuesday. Why now?
Victoria Beckham: It’s something I’ve been talking about doing for the brand for a long time and so it wasn’t a question of a specific time — it just happened to be ready for launch now and I am really excited at the possibilities for my brand messaging that it opens up.
WWD: You’ve become quite the avid tweeter since joining Twitter last year. Now, you have more than 3.3 million fans. To what do you attribute such rapid fan growth?
V.B.: It’s been a really interesting experience. I would imagine some of the growth can be linked to the fact that I try to give some personal insights to my followers as well as keeping them abreast of the business. I also think that my fans and customers really get to know me and my sense of humor through my tweets. I think people see the real me.
WWD: How would you describe your Twitter strategy?
V.B.: It’s to build an engaged audience through both personal and brand messaging. I used Twitter a lot during last season and particularly during New York Fashion Week. It gave me the opportunity to share the experience of the show with everyone following me. That’s something I plan to continue.
WWD: Does this extend to all social media outlets, including Facebook?
V.B.: Facebook is definitely more brand focused although I hope to be able to bring my personality to the page. Twitter for me is more personally focused.
WWD: What type of content can we expect on your Facebook page?
V.B.: Through both Twitter and Facebook I’m looking to provide a sneak peek at the world of the Victoria Beckham brand with a global reach. You can expect to see exclusive photos, video and behind-the-scenes content. Also celebrity images, archive material relating to past collections and all up to the minute news — anything relevant pertaining to the brand and each of its categories. It’s also really important to me that the page is visually strong and I have spent a lot of time working on that aspect within the Facebook structure.
WWD: What is your favorite digital medium?
V.B.: I really don’t have one at the moment! I am really enjoying learning about each of them as I use them and engage with my followers. I must say, I do like using style apps on my iPad, and I also like to shop online. I love Net-a-porter in particular. Being a working mum with four children having the ability to shop online is wonderful.