How Daniel Wellington Sold A Million Watches In A Year

Just a few years back, no one heard of the name Daniel Wellington, or their classic “Nato” striped watchstraps which has been all the rage for some time now.

Today, Daniel Wellington watches have received a warm reception worldwide. Daniel Wellington’s popularity is evident: their watches are being donned by Hollywood stars such as Selena Gomez and Korean heartthrob Lee Jong Suk. Nothing spells hipster more than a Daniel Wellington watch, paired perhaps with a Fjallraven Kanken backpack.

This article will show you how Daniel Wellington has gone a long way from being set up with $15,000 back in 2011, to being the market leader for watches in the mid-range market. Daniel Wellington has sold over a million timepieces in 2014, and earned a revenue of $220 million in 2015.

1. Direct engagement through social media channels

Daniel Wellington’s Instagram is well maintained and professional-looking, consisting of a chronology of tasteful and visually appealing images.

Pictures on their account vary from close-ups of their watches to people (or animals) wearing the watches.

Whatever it is, it is undeniable that their watches look great on screen, and the emphasis is on how potential customers could easily recreate their “minimalistic and elegant” look.

Instagram has turned out to be the company’s main outreach platform, with more than 2 million followers as of date. Staff often take time to respond to reviews and feedback, positive or otherwise, creating a form of brand engagement with followers.

2. Actively encouraging quality user-generated content

A little late for a Mother's Day post but well, it's never too late for anything. Thank you for each and everything you've done for me. Especially since the last couple of months. You give me strength, Mum ❤ Had a fun-filled photoshoot with mum for a beautiful and elegant wrist watch the sweet people from @danielwellington sent me :) . . So, if planning to gift/buy a DW watch, use the discount code 'Tulikadw' for the purchase on the official website www.danielwellington.com. The discount code will give you 15% off on the purchase until 30th of June! So hurry ???? P.S. Thank you @overrated_outcast for capturing this moment :") . . . . #TimeToThankMom #DanielWellington . #jj_Emotional #jj_Humanedge #jj_Sombre #jj_Bodybeautiful #jj_portraits #rsa_mystery #rsa_portraits #portraitpage #portrait_perfection #makeportraits #ftwotw #jj_allportraits #remarkableportraits #discoverportrait #indiapictures #blackandwhite #bnw #bnw_captures #dwpickoftheday

A photo posted by Tulika Bhattacharya (@billie_jean_07) on May 10, 2016 at 10:36am PDT

Apart from uploading pictures on their Instagram account, Daniel Wellington actively encourages Instagram users to post pictures with their DW watches. The hashtag #DanielWellington has close to a million posts.

Daniel Wellington also runs a daily #DWpickoftheday competition, where winners are rewarded by simply being featured on the official Instagram account.

Being “picked” by DW offers a highly personal and intimate experience with the brand, creating strong brand loyalty in the process. “Picks” almost always received thousands of likes and positive comments, reinforcing the brand’s positive image.

3.Using influencers for 'natural' product placements

Congratulations to @mallowfrenchie on being our #DWPickoftheDay! Make sure that you tag your photos with #DanielWellington for a chance to get featured, and visit danielwellington.com to find your favorites.

A photo posted by Daniel Wellington (@danielwellington) on May 9, 2016 at 11:17pm PDT

Daniel Wellington CEO Filip Tysander has an aversion to traditional advertising, steering clear of billboards and running ads on print media. Instead, the company chooses to work with prominent social media profiles and influencers worldwide.

The arrangements include paid endorsements for more prominent celebrities, to offering a free watch to less established influencers.

One of them, Pauly Vella, a 22-year-old technician-turned-photographer from the Blue Mountains, said his 293,000-strong Instagram following earned him a $230 Daniel Wellington watch. Queensland chef-turned-Instagrammer Lauren Bath, who has 454,000 followers, also accepted gifts from Daniel Wellington watches.

These are prime examples of Daniel Wellington actively seeking to “leverage influence” on social media. The costs and reach of social media advertising is nearly unbeatable in this context, and Daniel Wellington has seemed to got its marketing game right.

4. Generating traffic through the use of promo codes

Daniel Wellington makes use of discount codes to the divert traffic to their web store.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BW7J-xdAnmL/?tagged=danielwellington

Often, influencer's posts are accompanied by these discount codes, giving their followers 5-20% off on their purchases.

With these discounts, influencers would be more willing to encourage followers to buy DW watches, while followers themselves enjoy from the cost savings.

These are the strategies employed by Daniel Wellington so successfully to grow and dominate the mid-range watch industry.

Why not try some of them yourself to improve your brand presence? Start an Instagram account, run a photo competition with your company #hashtag, hire influencers to create awareness of your product, and be sure to include promo codes in those posts!

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