The partnership promotes the “Scout That Street Style” challenge within the app experience. App sponsorships are a great way for marketers to reach new and existing prospects.

“DailyCandy editors are known as discoverers of the next, the new and the best,” said Ashley Parrish, editor in chief of DailyCandy. “With this new app, we are putting the power of discovery into the hands of consumers.

“DailyCandy Scout enables consumers to become roving DailyCandy contributors, trendspotting and sharing their favorite discoveries in real time,” she said. “With DailyCandy editors weighing in continually, liking and commenting on photos, we’re opening up the dialogue between our audience and our editors in never before seen ways.

“Enabling our audience to not only consume content but to create it, facilitates a meaningful conversation with our audience.”

Enticing consumers
The DailyCandy Scout mobile app is available on iPhone, iPad and iPod touch devices and lets consumers become DailyCandy contributors.

Users can share their favorite local discoveries in real time and browse curated content from DailyCandy editors who will also program the app experience with multiple weekly Scout Challenges that inspire users to hunt for the next big thing.

As part of the H&M partnership, the consumers with the keenest eye for capturing a candid fashion pose will win a $500 H&M shopping trip.

To participate, users are encouraged to sign-up for a DailyCandy account or simply log-in to their existing account.

Additionally, H&M is branded throughout the app and there is a mobile banner ad on the bottom of the screen that takes consumers to the retailers’ mobile site where they can find the nearest location, browse the latest collections, check out the company’s social media presence and sign-up to receive discounts. 

DailyCandy believes that the sponsored challenges will enable marketers to incorporate their offerings into a viral consumer discovery process, drive sampling and retail traffic, create new product evangelists and rewarding users for engaging with their brands via mobile, social and in offline environments.

“With DailyCandy Scout’s ‘Sponsored Challenges,’ we’ve created a new way for marketers to engage consumers in a deeply integrated way,” Ms. Parrish said. “Scout Challenges showcase new products and brand experiences in an organically integrated way that activates consumer interest and engagement.

“EG, a denim company could sponsor a challenge such as ‘show off your good jeans’ or  an airline could ask users to share their beach style tied to a February flight promotion to a warm destination,” she said.

“The integration goes beyond the banner ad; its reaching consumers in an environment they are willingly participating in.”

Mobile features
Through DailyCandy’s new app, users can find fashion inspiration by snapping a photo, adding witty captions and uploading their finds and sharing them with friends and family via Facebook and Twitter.

Furthermore, DailyCandy editors will also introduce several challenges every week.

At launch, the initial challenges will include “Scout That Street Style,” “Flaunt Those Fall Kicks,” “Demonstrate Your Good Jeans” and the Halloween-themed mission “Display Your Disguise.” 

Users who submit the most unique, DailyCandy-worthy finds for the challenges will have the opportunity to receive direct feedback from editors, win prizes and earn bragging rights by having their discoveries spotlighted across DailyCandy’s email newsletters, Web site, video series and social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Tumblr.

“In addition to the extensive editorial coverage on our website and within our daily emails, we are launching marketing campaigns across a number of social and mobile networks to create general excitement about DailyCandy Scout; and to drive engagement around specific challenges,” Ms. Parrish said. “Also, because our schedule of challenges will complement our existing content and promotional strategies, we will easily be able to contextually promote the app as part of other marketing efforts during the holiday season.

“Lastly, we’ll be launching a wildposting campaign in NYC in November to encourage New Yorkers to become DailyCandy Scouts,” she said. “DailyCandy’s 6 million strong audience depends upon us to discover the next big thing in fashion, food, and culture.

“Whether it’s in email, on the web, or across our 1.5 million strong social nets following, DailyCandy’s goal is to share our discoveries with our reader whenever and whereever she wants it. This app extends the brand’s core offering – discovery of  the new and the next – while empowering DailyCandy brand loyalists to be Scouts themselves. Genius, really.” 

Final Take
Rimma Kats is associate editor on Mobile Commerce Daily, New York