Case Study: Snow Bleach

The e-commerce world thrives on innovation, clear brand stories, and data-backed marketing. This article details my experience as a solopreneur, handling everything from marketing to product development for Snow Bleach, a natural beauty brand focused on skincare. 

Market Research & Building the Brand

I started with deep market research to find the gap.  Seeing a lack of natural, effective solutions for skin tone, I created Snow Bleach's core values: transparency, empowerment, and natural ingredients. This research also helped define our target audience:

• Women aged 22-45 with hyperpigmentation issues.
• Active on social media like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat.
• Value transparency and ethical practices in beauty brands.

Crafting Snow Bleach's Online Presence

We designed a user-friendly, visually appealing website for Snow Bleach. Using our copywriting expertise, we developed content addressing the target audience's pain points, all while emphasizing on natural ingredients and the confidence boost of a radiant complexion. 

Organic Content Creation & Social Media Management

Creating engaging organic content in the beauty industry can be tough.  Regulations are strict, and user-generated content often relies on heavy filters.  Despite the challenge, I created informative content. On Instagram, we used captivating visuals with diverse models to showcase the product's ability to achieve natural radiance. On Snapchat and TikTok, I produced short, educational videos debunking hyperpigmentation myths and offering skincare tips. Thankfully, the effort paid off – several videos went viral, garnering tens of thousands of views. 

Paid Advertising & Overcoming Challenges

Managing social media ad campaigns for platforms like TikTok and Snapchat required a strategic approach.  We targeted the identified demographic with compelling ad creatives, which significantly boosted brand awareness.  However, unforeseen challenges arose when an ad campaign was deemed inappropriate in the UAE market. This emphasized the importance of cultural sensitivity and ad copy adhering to local regulations. 

Testing The Ad Campaign Strategy

Understanding the dynamics of advertising campaigns is crucial for any brand striving to make an impact. 

Launching a test product is always a critical endeavour that can make or break into the market. Our a meticulously planned advertising campaign strategy ran on April 29th and 30th. Here’s a detailed look at our strategy, the outcomes, and the invaluable insights we gained over these three days.

Campaign Overview

Our campaign was designed to test the waters for a new product offering, with a focus on measuring audience engagement through various digital metrics. We utilized video ads to captivate interest and drive user interaction, aiming to translate these into tangible conversions.

Day 1

• Below are the following metrics that are most important when testing a product on Day 1.

Day-to-Day Breakdown

April 29, 2024:

• Total Spend: $73.217
• Impressions: 8,710
• Click-Through Rate (CTR): 1.44%
• Cost Per Thousand Impressions (CPM): $11.49
• Cost Per Click (CPC): $0.800
• Clicks: 125
• Conversions: 9
• Conversion Rate (CVR): 7.20%
• Cost Per Action (CPA): $11.12
• Video Views: 8,300 (2,530 reached 2 seconds, 1,070 reached 6 seconds)

The first day of our campaign revealed a solid start. With over 8,000 impressions and a CTR of 1.44%, the engagement levels were promising. Our video content managed to draw significant attention, though the drop-off rates in longer video views suggested areas for improvement in content retention.

April 30, 2024:

• Total Spend: $35.977
• Impressions: 2,404
• Click-Through Rate (CTR): 2.08%
• Cost Per Thousand Impressions (CPM): $20.44
• Cost Per Click (CPC): $0.980
• Clicks: 50
• Conversions: 4
• Conversion Rate (CVR): 8.00%
• Cost Per Action (CPA): $12.29
• Video Views: 2,258 (607 reached 2 seconds, 283 reached 6 seconds)

Day 2

On the second day, despite the reduced budget and fewer impressions, the campaign efficiency improved as evidenced by a higher CTR and CVR. The increased CPM indicates more targeted spending, aligning with our strategy to refine our audience.

Our ad set campaign success criteria were to keep the ad running if :

• CPC < $1.00~$1.50
• CPM < $35~40
• Add to carts = 1~2+

Based on the metrics, the Ads were good, but not great! There was definitely room for improvement.

Analysis and Insights

This brief campaign was instrumental in identifying key factors that drive user engagement and conversion. The higher engagement metrics on the second day, despite the lower spend, highlighted the effectiveness of targeted ad placements and refined audience selection. Moreover, the video engagement metrics emphasized the need to create more captivating content that retains viewer attention beyond the initial few seconds.

Strategic Adjustments Moving Forward

Based on these findings, we then planned to:

• Enhance our video content to increase viewer retention.
• Continue refining our targeting to optimize ad spend and conversion rates.
• Implement A/B testing on ad elements to further enhance their effectiveness.

Learning From the Experience

Navigating the complexities of e-commerce beauty required agility, adaptability, and learning from setbacks.  This project honed my digital marketing skill set, including market research, website design, copywriting, content creation, and social media campaign management. Beyond technical skills, the experience highlighted the importance of brand storytelling and fostering an authentic connection with the target audience. Snow Bleach's success is a testament to the power of natural solutions and a data-driven, multi-platform marketing strategy.