Netflix has yet to announce a release date for Season 4 of Emily in Paris, but I’ll be waiting with Merlot in one hand and a notepad in the other. I’m sure I’ll get more tips about how fashion marketing works. Here’s what I have learned so far:

1. Let your market frame the message.

This might seem obvious, but sometimes, we get so carried away with our ideas that we forget who’s driving our campaigns: actual and potential customers. 

At Emily’s agency, Savoir, Antoine shoots an ad in which a statuesque blonde saunters down a street and disrobes, exposing her naked body to many ogling tuxedoed men.  Emily expresses her concern that the advertisement is sexist, but Antoine insists that it is instead sexy, that “Desire does not mean lack of respect. Quite the opposite. It is a sign of respect.” Instead of Emily wasting time in a lengthy debate with her client (always a wrong move), she finds an out-of-the-box solution: She posts the commercial on social media with the poll “Sexy or sexist.” Her social impressions go up by 200%. This is an excellent reminder for all marketers and has many applications in fashion marketing.  By making the target market part of the conversation, it can move an industry known for being exclusive to one that is representative of a wider audience, which brings me to the next lesson: 

2. Be inclusive.

Grégory’s “Pieces We Are Told to Keep Hidden” is unlike anything I’ve seen.  It features models of all shapes, sizes, and shades donning sexy shapewear, strutting, and abruptly breaking into freeform dance.   

From non-binary-themed Harris Reed to Daily Paper’s Afrocentricity, fashion is growing more inclusive.

We are moving away from the predominance of white models walking the runway.  We’re just as likely to see fashion spreads and posts featuring Zakiyah and Lupita Nyong’o as Blake Lively and Kendall Jenner.

2A) Be even more inclusive.

Though we’re coming a long way in terms of the representation of BIPOC models, thin is still in when it comes to shape. I predict, though, that we will see more of what Grégory offers in “Pieces We Are Told to Keep Hidden”; customers want to envision themselves in the fashion they’re interested in buying no matter their shape, and though arguably too slowly, we are continuing to make strides. Since Victoria’s Secret shifted its marketing to feature plus-sized models, fashion marketers should note that sales have boomed. 

As much of a hit as Grégory’s “Pieces We Are Told to Keep Hidden” is, though, his earlier attempt to impress a client doesn’t work.  Sylvie warns Grégory that his Air France dominatrix-themed apparel is over-the-top, but he just can’t let go, which brings me to lesson number three: 

3. Don’t always settle on your first good idea.

Emily’s client, Ami, offers a clothing line that emphasizes romanticism. She conceptualizes a live Instagram story for an awareness campaign that would feature surprise engagements in some of the most noteworthy places in Paris. Despite Ami loving the idea, Emily ultimately decides it would feel too staged – that engagements are too intimate for mass consumption.  Good thinking, especially since the engagement-to-sell-a-brand is cliche (take it from one who knows: my former husband proposed to me on a reality TV show to promote, of all things, a clothing designer. It was cheesy and invasive – not romantic at all).  

Emily doubts the engagement campaign when she finds out that the plan never would’ve worked anyway because her couple, Gabriel and Camille, opt instead for a spontaneous moment in a setting that holds personal meaning. This highlights Emily’s foresight, a necessary quality for marketers to possess. 

3A. Pivot.

Emily pivots to another idea: to release hot air balloons occupied by couples in love that float above the beatific French countryside. She is one of the participants, along with her boyfriend, Alfie, which works in this case…but sometimes it doesn’t help to be the face of a brand, which brings me to my next lesson: 

4. Don’t just tell a story. Tell the right story.

Emily uses social media primarily to focus on herself to market brands, but what could have been a compelling fish-out-of-water story instead turns into a boring, unoriginal one about an American in Paris.  While stories that cultivate wanderlust are effective, Emily unrealistically amasses 200 Instagram followers by taking shots of biting into baguettes and chocolate croissants (yawn). There are more compelling stories Emily could tell, the kind that pulls everyone in more effectively: stories of challenges overcome. But, in Emily’s case, her social media is all the good and – save for a shot of a dog defecating on a sidewalk – none of the bad. There’s no tension, and audiences love to follow the conflict. 

In addition, it’s often more effective to let clients be the marketing story. You don’t see the Kardashian marketing team’s stories; you see the Kardashians, rife with conflict – and – like it or not – it’s effective. 

4A.  Maintain a work-life balance.

Emily is always “on” but somehow has the bandwidth to keep doing it, which is unrealistic and unhealthy.  Luc explains that the French “work to live” rather than Americans who “live to work,” Emily – and marketers – might benefit from heeding his advice. For the next season, we may follow Emily through the tragic truth of burnout when not establishing boundaries between her work and private life.

5. Your client’s brand is an extension of themselves.

Fashion designers are sensitive folks who want their marketing team to know that their brands will be cared for by their marketing team.

When Pierre signs on with a huge corporation, JVMA, it seems his brand is in good hands. Savior warns him that this may not be a good match, and, as they predicted, things quickly sour. As is often the case, JVMA puts the bottom line above all else and loses sight of Pierre’s brand. Pierre’s brand has become his face, literally, and is taken from classic to basic, but it’s also made Pierre feel self-conscious about his aging. When you lose connection with a client, you put your business at risk.

Pierre fires JVMA and returns to Savior – an agency that balances applying sound business practice and respecting artistry.  

6. Keep up with trends.

It’s impossible to market a product you don’t understand, and Emily in Paris’s designer, Patricia Fields, teaches us all about fashion. Her work reflects the millennium theme of putting a new spin on styles from bygone eras. There’s Emily’s Aubern-esque, puffy-sleeved party dress and delightfully chaotic, 80s-style neon pairings; Camille’s often gender-bending grunge chic; and Sylvie’s sleek and sexy monochrome one-pieces that harken back to 70s glam.  It’s unlikely anyone could pull off these looks, but fashion is fantastical, and Emily in Paris delivers.

Like all romantic comedies, Emily in Paris is ultimately escapist, but there are certainly lessons all fashion marketers will learn from watching the show.