Threadless (@threadless) was awarded the Shorty Industry Award for Best Brand Presence on Twitter at the 3rd Annual Shorty Awards on Monday, March 28, 2011 in New York City.
Overview: Threadless is a community‐focused online apparel store operated by the Chicago‐ based company skinnyCorp. The public can vote on new designs, and the best are sold online. Threadless approaches its verified Twitter account with the idea that Threadless should be like a friend you enjoy having in your stream: someone funny and interesting with cool stuff to share who likes you back and isn’t necessarily always trying to sell you something. The store organizes numerous Twitter‐based give aways and social engagements for followers. Occasionally Threadless will run #TGIFT or “Thank God I Follow Threadless” contests on Fridays, asking followers to link to a Threadless design and tag a friend they think he or she would like it. If the tweet is selected, the friend wins a t‐shirt and the tweeter wins a $20 gift code for the online retail site. Threadless also tweets about what is happening around the office and warehouse, giving followers an inside peek at the company. Threadless also uses Twitter to highlight product partnerships with brands that include Thermos, Dell, Griffin, and Sharpie. In 2009, Threadless also partnered with Twitter to makes “Twitter Tees,” t‐shirts with popular Twitter comments. Though two people on the company’s marketing team manage the Twitter feed and Facebook page, all Threadless members are encouraged to utilize social media outlets and tweet what they are up to. Public relations agency Attention PR assists Threadless with promotional efforts.
Impact: The Threadless account has more than 1,580,000 Twitter followers, has tweeted over 3,700 times, and is on more than 8,000 lists. Social Media has had a huge impact on the company’s 11 revenue stream. In 2009 alone, Threadless made $30 million in revenue. Sale days have often attracted so many shoppers that they have often shut down Threadless’ website.
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