Post-Fashion Show, More Buzz for Victoria's Secret Among Women Than Men

While sometimes it’s unclear whose attention Victoria’s Secret is really trying to grab, the clothing retailer has gotten women to take notice following the broadcast of its annual fashion show on CBS last week. Victoria’s Secret’s Buzz score, as measured by BrandIndex, has climbed to a year-to-date high among women, reaching 33 points on December 8th and besting the male demographic by 12 points. This upward trend among women is especially notable because Victoria’s Secret typically has a higher Buzz score among men than women. In fact, men have had a higher Buzz score than women for a combined nine months out of the past eleven, often times by a large margin.

The current upward trend among women began at the beginning of November, coinciding with the original taping of the fashion show on November 8th. Even though it was not broadcast until recently, the taping of the event–which featured pop-stars Justin Bieber, Rihanna and Bruno Mars (and also a $2.5 million, jewel-encrusted bra)–attracted much attention. The upward trend in Buzz among women at the time was accompanied by a parallel increase among men.  For men, however the upward trend trailed off shortly after the taping of the fashion show. For women, the Buzz scores continued to rise through the end of November and eventually surpassing those of men.

The more significant increase among women may have been driven in part by November promotions around one of the retail industry’s biggest weeks of the year: Thanksgiving. These included in-store offers on Black Friday and online deals during cyber-Monday. From the middle to the end of November, the retailer’s Buzz score increased another 10 points among women.

While November saw gains in Buzz for the brand, December and the broadcast of the fashion show  have seen it increase even further, placing them in a good position as the holiday season continues. While it might seem odd that the fashion show–a night, after all, of scantily-clad ladies–did not cause an increase in Buzz among men, this is apparently exactly how Victoria’s Secret wanted it. According to Wall Street Journal, the event “attracts twice as many women as men in the 18-34 age group” and, as Jack Sussman, a CBS exec in charge of planning the show, says, “It has to appeal to women. If it’s insulting to women, they won’t watch it on TV. And VS doesn’t want to alienate its customers.”

The Buzz scores show they certainly haven’t.