![[Case Study]: 5 Steps to High-Converting On-Brand Beauty & Wellness Ads — Perpetual Traffic cover](https://artwork.captivate.fm/c2b4936d-1e28-403e-992c-780525932b65/lvY6fW1F5opaFz10MGMshAk7.jpg)
Loading summary
A
Foreign. You're listening to Perpetual Traffic. Hello and welcome to the Perpetual Traffic podcast. This is your host, Ralph Burns, founder and CEO of Tier11, alongside the greatest the goat. The goat of creative. I'm your hype person, like for this show because I actually do think you, like, we actually spent the last hour dissecting what it is that you do. And it makes me realize even more so that you are the goat of all all things creative. So anyway, people love that when I totally hype up our guests or especially people within tier 11. So coming back to the show today, obviously is Lauren Schwartz, creative director extraordinaire at tier 11. Welcome back to Perpetual Traffic for episode number three on how to scale your beauty brand.
B
Yes. Thank you. Glad to be here.
A
That's right, that's right. The other thing is, like, you know, if I could like pump you up with confidence, you're like, it's a better show because you're like, yeah, I am the goat, damn it. So today we're going to show why I actually think that way and why our two companies merged nearly a year ago. And it's been great because that's. I always sort of felt like we were really good at creative. I was like, we're really good. Like, we know the creative is the biggest thing that's going to drive media buying. You know, take out like Google pay per click and that kind of stuff. But anything that's top of funnel, TikTok, YouTube meta, Google display, to a certain degree, all of that is the biggest gear and what we refer to as the conversion engine. If you don't know what the conversion engine is, head on over to tour11.com obviously see exactly what it is. But the biggest gear in that machine is creative. And I was like, well, we're pretty good at that because we were. And until we started working with you guys, I'm like, oh, I guess we're not that good because you're like, next level. So the thing about your stuff, I think, which is very cool, we'll go into this in our beauty scale system that we're going to reveal here for the very first time, is consistency with brand but also performance. And it's not one or the other. You can have both. And I think a lot of beauty brands specifically think, oh, well, I need brand, I need my ads to look pretty. But then what about performance? Because when you spend a dollar, you want to make a return on that, whether it's through media efficiency ratio, roas, you know, obviously NCAC is the big number that we talk about here cost to acquire a new customer, but you guys do that so well and you do it in a way so that you maintain the brand consistency but also draw that performance side is that sort of. That's the platform that you used in order to get your business to a level where it's like we at tier 11 were jealous of all the stuff that you guys were doing. It's safe to say, like, that's always sort of going on in your head.
B
Yeah, definitely. I think that's always. Again, like you said, it's the biggest thing I think that brands struggle with is brand consistency, making sure that the message is clear not only through website socials, but also through paid ads and just elevating that creative and making sure that everything is still aligned, but also is, you know, converting as well.
A
Right, right. And we've talked to a lot of beauty brands just in the last couple of weeks, specifically me and you on, like, discovery calls. And that's the biggest thing that people have a problem with is that they. They think, like, there was a time when you could just throw anything out there and it would convert. Back in the early days of Facebook and we sort of found that because we, you know, our media buyers used to do all the creative. Like, I would do the creative with the media buying because creative wasn't really that important because the platforms were new. But now it's even more so to be able to differentiate, show your unique mechanism, the thing that makes you different in a space that there is like literally millions of competitors in the beauty space, just in general. We're going to be talking about one here today that is a niche of a niche of a niche, sort of in a lot of ways. But there's still a lot of competition, like deadly competition. Talking with their founder a couple of weeks back, it's like, yeah, we've maintained a unique position in the market, but still cheaper products are coming on the market. We have to differentiate from a brand standpoint, and that's what creates the loyalty as opposed to buying it once and then buying the cheap knockoff later on on Amazon. So getting that upfront is not just a need, like a nice to have now. It's a need to have, in my opinion. So let's get into this here today and we're going to do some screen sharing of some of the work that Lauren and her team has done, you know, with tier 11 and prior to tier 11 as well. And we'll even show through the Wayback Machine kind of what you guys did. On the after the click side too, because that was important to maintain that consistency of what's being put out there, top of funnel also in their ads, and then having that message be consistent on the site itself. So we're going to do screen share today. If you're listening to this, you're walking the dog. A lot of people walk their dogs when they listen to professional traffic. I don't know why that is, but that's what we hear. Definitely check this out over@petpetual traffic.com forward/YouTube. If you're not subscribed, you're going to be subscribed automatically when you go on that link anyway. So that's sort of the devilish little trick that we pull on people. The point is, is that you'll get more out of this by seeing this visually. So let's talk about some of the stuff that you've done here and just kind of give people an overview of maybe what things look like before and now what you're doing today with this particular product. We can name them by their brand name because we're going to be seeing it here. So yes, take it away.
B
Awesome. Okay, so when Bellissima first came to us, they just had this one piece of creative that showed someone using the product, showing the before state, after state and just how to use the product. But really there was not a lot to it. So really it was just a simple ad creative that, that they came in with. And then as we started working with them, we were like, okay, this is, it's a great video. It really shows again that, you know before and after state. But what exactly is the problem here? Like what are you trying to showcase? Is it that you have frizzy hair? Is it that your curls aren't defined? Like, what exactly is it that we're trying to go go with? So from there we took the their top performing creative and we really started working with them on. Okay, what, what exactly is the message here? So taking the same exact creative, we added in some copy of hair diffusers, kind of out with the old how it was this kind of product and then really just defining like what it is exactly that, that this product does better. So the old diffusers damage your hair, whereas this new diffuser is a two in one. It's a diffuser and a dryer. So it really helps define those curls, but it also helps dry your hair and it also helps with frizz technology. So like, obviously the biggest pain point for girls with curly hair is that your curls aren't defined. You have frizzy hair. You have frizzy curly hair. It's really poofy. And so this product specifically does the opposite of all of that. And so really we kind of tried to show like what exactly this product does with their top performing creative. So that was kind of like the first round of where we were going, trying to figure out which product is working.
A
And the funny thing is with that, it's like, if you're not watching, I recommend that you do watch this. Like, these are super simple examples. These are 15 second ads, all video. And all you really did is you highlighted the important potential underlying pain points, which are hairs. The curls aren't defined right. And your hair is too poofy. Those are sort of the underlying, like, you know that those are the issues that this particular demographic, this woman, girls with curly hair, I think you said that on a call this week. That's what their main problem is. And it's the same video that they had before. It seems like it's basically the same video footage that you're repurposing the exact same video.
B
So, yeah, it was just taking what was already working and then just pulling out those layers of the pain points of. Okay, what exactly do people with curly hair have issues with? They have issues with frizziness and they have issues with not having defined curls. So that was just kind of like the two main pain points that we started working with. Then from there going more into diverse creative and just trying to understand. Okay, so we kind of pulled that out a little bit. So now we have for the curly girlies. So calling them out specifically, like, you have curly hair, this is what you need. So it's just a static image of the product highlighted, calling out the girls who need to use this. It's a 2 in 1 diffuser with a hair dryer. And then get the right diffuser for your hair. Literally this was it. Like we just took all of the things, put it into one static ad, and this ad is actually still running. And it's one of our top performers to this day. So a year and a half later, it's like still one of our top performers. So again, we need to call out, like, who specifically we're trying to target here, which is curly haired girls. So really that was again, like kind of taking down all these different levels here.
A
So let me just. Before you go on to the next thing, like, this is usually what happens when people are like, well, this is just like so obvious, but it's not that obvious. So I, I want to Call out a couple things. First off, you did the obvious thing in your mind, which isn't so obvious. It's like my dad used to say this. It's like common sense, son. Ain't that common? So you took their best performing ad. It was performing well. It was their best performer. You made it better by simple adjustments. And all you're really doing is is underscoring in that video. It's a 15 second video if you're a beauty brand. Watch this over on YouTube. Perpetualtraffic.com YouTube look for this episode, the point is, is that it's a simple, simple ad. This is the biggest thing that people come to us with. It's like we haven't had, but we really only know what to do next. Well, what's the pain point of the audience? You said a couple of different things. Like you just sort of say, well, this is it. Well, it's not that obvious. Sometimes you have to actually know who your avatar is and who your avatar is not. But then specifically, we'll get to that in a second. But what their pain point is, I wouldn't know anything about this. I don't have curly hair. I'm not a girl. Like the hair thing. I don't even want to talk about the hair thing. But anyway, frizziness and not defined curls like those are the two problems. I mean, we're not unraveling the human genome here by any stretch. You know, we're not splitting the atom. But we are, we are calling out the problems that this demographic has. And having it as a two in one is sort of their unique mechanism is sort of what I'm getting here. It's like, all right, you can get reduce the frizziness. You can get better defined curls. Which they were doing on their site with sort of this before and after thing, which we'll show in just a second. You guys did it a lot more with video and that's kind of the way that it works now. But that is the key, is you took their best creative. I'm going to say this again, because nobody was listening the first time, is that you took the best creative and all you did is you just made it better. You called it out with really simple stuff for those pain points. And that's oftentimes all it is, ladies and gentlemen, to get that next level. And if you've got something that works great, figure out why. But then you need to know your avatar. You know what their pain points and desires are first and foremost.
B
Right, Exactly. It's simple in my mind. In my mind. But like you said, it's not simple to everybody else. That's. I think what I always tell a lot of brands when we first start with them is that with your creative is if there's a creative that's working, there's a reason it's working. So we need to understand why it's working. And then like you said, how can we make it better? And so really, it was just, it's just an evolution of where they started already having a really top performing creative, we already know what the pain points are. And now let's just elevate it from there. It doesn't have to be crazy scientific, high performance, like high production things. It's just really, it's messaging, honestly, is you already have the video and assets. Now we just need to define what the messaging is and how do we kind of pull that in. So kind of moving on from the evolution of. Okay, we know again, like, it's the curly hair girls. They're struggling with defined curls. They have frizziness. They want a product where it's all in one. It diffuses your hair and dries it at the same time.
A
And stupid question for you. Does a diffuser on its own actually dry or is it just diffuse? Is that two in one? Is that a super unique mechanism?
B
Yeah. So usually you have to buy a separate piece for your blow dryer and so you have to put it onto the blow dryer in order to like dry it.
A
I've seen that in my bathroom.
B
Yes.
A
I always wonder what it was. Now it actually makes sense. Okay.
B
Yeah. So now it's all in one. You don't have to buy, you don't have to have a blow dryer. And this other piece, it's just all in one piece. The technology is better because sometimes your blow dryer, like your blow dryer is made to dry your hair, whereas this particular one is made specifically for curly hair. So it doesn't make your hair frizzy. And that's like another big thing that even though you put the diffuser on, it can make your hair frizzy. And so that was again, like another thing that if you have this, that the technology helps it to not make it so frizzy.
A
Cool. Can you show that image ad just one more time?
B
Yeah.
A
Now that we're reiterating this. So the unique value proposition going back to advertising, one on one is really is. It's two in one. It's doing two things. But it's like the attachment that I see in my bathroom is actually is an attachment on a blow dryer. And like, when Jen does do the curly thing, like, she doesn't go curly like this. It like, it does make her hair frizzy as a result of that. And I assume that that's one of the things about this as their particular tool that is unique. Like, yeah, there's competitors that are out there, however you're showing it. And here we are showing it on screen here over@perpetualtraffic.com YouTube. I love this because it's so simple. It's one of the best performing ads. It's an image ad, right. And you're calling out your avatar like it's a dog whistle call out, as Frank Kern always used to say, for curly girl. It's just kind of cute. And anyway, who thought of that?
B
Actually, that was just like. Because it's just already out there. So I think that was. Yeah. That we just kind of found something that like, yeah. Went together with it. So for the curly girlies, really.
A
Right. That's so cool. So it's like you're calling that out in the first line, largest type. All right, here, this is for you, but not for you.
B
Right.
A
So two in one diffuser and hairstyle. Two in one diffuser. Hairdryer. Hmm. That's interesting. Cause I know when I use my hairdryer in the attachment, I get frizzy. But get the right diffuser for your hair is the bottom line. That statement on the bottom, like, this is such a simple ad, and it's a great image. This is obviously a professionally done image. Shows really, really clearly in the newsfeed or wherever they're actually seeing it. And you say this is their best performer on its own or in combination with other creative. Where would this ad sort of fit in? Because we just showed a.15 seconds now we're showing a static image. I was about to say a stagnant image. Static image here. The two of them in combination or they work kind of separately. How do you sort of bring it together as far as conversion?
B
Right. So right now, these are both in basically our kind of like always on evergreen campaigns that just continue to just constantly drive sales. So we have both. We actually. All the ads really that I'm going to show are all in this kind of like our scaling campaign. Basically. They are always in there, always on, always working.
A
They're all working together.
B
Yeah, exactly.
A
Makes sense. Which I think is another thing is like a lot of people, the unconscious conscious is that, oh, well, you put videos with Images. Because some people respond to images, some people respond to video. It's like it's neither one or the other. Everyone says, oh, it's video ads. Well, we've got a lot of image.
B
It depends. Yeah, I mean, like some people resonate better with static. So it's like, yeah, they all kind of work really together.
A
So. Cool. So two ads definitely reinforcing the same message. Definitely on brand. And we'll get into that sort of that framework in our next show here. But the point is that together is a killer combo and not something that they were doing before, but using what worked before and then relating it back to new ads today.
B
Yeah, exactly. So, yeah, so as we kind of started to figure out the messaging, how things were working, then we started working with our content creators to basically take that messaging and start to pull it into new creatives, new faces, different hairstyles. So again, for curly haired girls, or anyone with curly hair, curly girlish, every curly hair, curly girlies, every curl pattern is different. So there's, you know, everyone who has curly hair knows that I'm not the same as everybody else. And so now we really have to showcase all the different types of curly hair because, you know, curly hair is not created equal. So really, like for this one, you know, we took one of our other content creators and right at the beginning it's if you struggle to get defined curls. So this girl, she has pretty loose curls and she has short hair. And so that was really something that she struggled with, was really having that kind of struggling curly hair. And now this product specifically helps her have defined curls. So it was always, you know, kind of showcasing, she had hair that she'd always just make it straight because she could never find a product that really worked for her specific curls. And so then we show kind of the before state of what her hair looked like and now it's really showing how to use the product, how, you know, the technology works and then what her, what the after state is with really fluffy defined curls that aren't frizzy that just make her feel more confident. So really that was kind of, again, like the evolution of kind of where we were going. So this was like another really, you know, this is a top performer as well because again, it showcases a different type of curl pattern.
A
Yeah, definitely different than the first one. Like the first one, if you're not watching this over on YouTube, the first one was, this one was like kink, like I don't even like tight, small curls.
B
Right.
A
And like that's her natural hairstyle but this woman's shorter hair. But then the curls are, like, way bigger.
B
Yeah.
A
So it's. I mean, we're splitting hairs here. Is that expression. But we're not because it's two separate avatars. I mean, these are. All right, we're talking about curly girlies here, but now we're getting into, like, super curly females and now, like, a little bit less so. But then she starts off with the first part of that video. Was the after state to begin with or was it the before state?
B
It was the after state. Yeah.
A
Your sequencing was super interesting.
B
Yeah. So we, again, we kind of had a. Actually, no, sorry. It was the before state. She had the before state. Yeah.
A
Hey, you know, when I was first at a consultant actually doing the stuff that we're doing right now in Tier 11, one of the first tools that I learned how to use was from a company called Unbounce. And they are now a sponsor of Perpetual Traffic. And the reason is, is that their landing pages and how quickly you can create those landing pages without having to consult your designer, your developer. With drag and drop builders now built in AI copywriting, it's even better than when it was 10 years ago when I first started using it on my own to create my very first landing pages. These guys are absolutely amazing. They've got conversion optimized templates giving you everything you need to launch your pages on your own without developers. In fact, Unbounce is the leading landing page platform for building, testing and optimizing high converting pages powered by data from over 2 billion conversions. That is 2 billion conversions with a B. That means they know what converts. So if you want to Convert more customers one platform and launch pages fast, Unbounce is offering PT listeners a special offer. They are giving you the PT listeners 10% off when you enter coupon code PT10OFF over at unbounce.com forward/pt. So head on over to unbounds.com forward slash PT. Enter code PT10OFF and cash in today. Convert more customers one platform, launch pages fast. You shouldn't have to wait for your designers and your developers to build and test your landing pages. Get started with Unbounce today.
B
So was that one was the before state where that's actually what we wanted to test was, do they want to see what it looks like before? Do we want to see what it looks like after? So again, like, I know a lot of people struggle with, well, how do I show that before state? How do I kind of tie everything in together? And again, the first three seconds was the pain point, which is you don't have defined curls and the before state of that. So it's like, that's the evolution of it.
A
And I was getting so tired of my hair looking like this, but I could never really get it to look the way that I always wanted it to look because I am naturally curly. So I have to straighten it kind of.
B
Exactly. Yep.
A
I don't have a solution.
B
Yes. Until I.
A
Otherwise, it looks too frizzy. Until I found. Got it. Yeah.
B
So again, so as we kind of started to test that, we were like, okay, great. That one started to perform. Really, like, perform for us again. It was the before state with the problem. And so from there, we started doing more testing.
A
So for this one, how many tests did you do before you found that one? I'm just sort of curious because that was the. It's pretty good. Like, that's a little bit more mainstream. That seemed like that last video seemed like that was a. Would be a larger audience of women who have curly hair but don't have a solution, so therefore have to look less curly because they don't have this product. Is that a larger market than the super, like, tight curl?
B
Yeah. So that one, I would say so kind of like the evolution where we started, where it was like, again, the really tight girls, the really tight curls, Like, I think that's what everyone thinks with curly hair is like, oh, it's everybody with super tight curly hair. That's the demographic we need to go after.
A
As did I. Yeah.
B
Right. But really, it's like, okay, well, let's test someone. This is a more, I would say, like, like you said, broader audience where they don't necessarily have such tight, defined curls. They have more looser, kind of wavy curls, but they could have tighter curls if they use this product. So really, like when we were. When we were kind of doing this, we had to kind of go outside of our, like, our normal creator pool that we have and really look at all these different curly hair types and find specific creators. That one not only did really well on camera, but also, like, had different curl structures and patterns. Patterns that we could talk to all these different people.
A
So choice of creator, super important. Expand the market away from, like, super tight curls. The call that we were on, which we're. I think we're going to get into in part four of this series, was super tight curls. Like, they're keeping with that in, you know, the African American market primarily. But anyway, we'll talk about that one in a second. But the point is Is like you're expanding out, but then you also need to have the creator. And that goes back to the stable of creators that we have that you can sort of choose from. And then you have individuals, you know, who might potentially be a spokesperson for this. I mean, everybody knows it's creator content. People know at this point, so that's fine. It's like they're being paid. It's like, you know, influence their content to a certain degree. But that choice of creator is vital. And then them being good on camera, all those other sorts of things. So there's a lot of nuances here.
B
Yeah. So after we kind of again found that specific one, then again it was working with another creator who has tighter curls. So taking again. So these two were kind of running congruently together. So we had the one that we just showed where it was a little bit looser curl. Then we have this one, this girl who has tighter curls. And again showing that before and after state together. So that was like kind of our test of like visually of. We want to see what your hair looks like before and what it looks like after. But in the same frame at the beginning.
A
Yeah. First off, this is awesome. I know I've seen this one before, so I kind of know. But if you don't know the difference between frizzy curls and like actually tight, like beautiful curls, like, this clearly defines like, oh, that's the state I want to avoid, which is on the left hand side here. This is the state that I want. And you're showing it right up front in a split screen. This is really, really good.
B
So, yeah, so again it was showing that before, after state and then going right into. This is the product I use. This is how I effectively get these curls showing the product and what it doesn't do, the technology, how to use it. And again, just really showing that defined state. This one was really focused on the product because we, we needed to show again that before and after state, but we really needed to define like the actual product and the call outs. And then after that it's just these great shots of her after curls which are like really tight, really defined, not frizzy. And so this was like the evolution of how we've, we've grown with these different creatives.
A
And you can really see it like, that's beautiful hair.
B
She has amazing hair. Yes.
A
Yeah, I don't like, you know how women like compliment each other on their hair. Like, guys never do that. They don't really like your haircut. I did that to my cousin the other day I was like, I really like your haircut. What's going on there? So, anyway, so if you can screen share that back again. Like, the other part to it is that there's text overlays that reinforce the message. And obviously we're not playing this with sound on because we're sort of walking through it at the same time. But I think that is another thing that a lot of people miss is that they sort of assume everyone watches with sound on, which is not always the case. So you do need to have. You've got a great split screen. Three regrets, and then it's heat. Talk about heat damage. They're superior technology. You can dry effectively. No frizz, no flat. Frizzy and dry. Like, that's the enemy.
B
Yeah.
A
You know what I mean? And you can give your hair life and hydration and you just sort of show it. And the after state is like, oh, my God. Like, even I notice it. Yeah, it's crazy how good it looks. And she's obviously a really good content creator that we've used, I'm sure, plenty of times before. So it's a lot of elements.
B
It's like, it is a lot of elements. Yeah, it's a lot of elements. It's a lot of testing. But again, as we started to figure out what was working, how it was working, then, it was once. It's like, once you find that message, it's really. It's really easy, I would say, to then take that messaging and just expand. We found the messaging that works. We found creators that work specifically well with this. And from there, it was easy to kind of take all those different creators. I mean, we actually have a lot of different curly creators that we work with now where we can really showcase the different curl patterns, how it works, and then really showcase like, how it helps all these different people. So it's like if you have that wavy hair and you want defined curls, like, this is what you need. And they all speak to those different curly audiences. So I think it was just. We had to kind of find what that message was and go from there. And so the last, I would say, evolution of this one was probably, well, we have two, but I'll show this one because this was a good one. So this one, again, going back to that static where we're calling out the curly kind of like the curly hair. Girlies. This one, again, like, it was 2004. The Eras tour was like full swing, and it was like, you're in your whatever era. So this one was like specifically calling out kind of a trend, but then also tying it back to curly hair. So again, so pov, you're entering your curly hair era, and this one we really wanted.
A
CSOs would be very excited that you mentioned that on the podcast here today. Kind of a swifty group over there. Anyway, that's very cool. That's a very cool play on words. Especially like, These are in 2024, correct?
B
Yeah.
A
Okay. Yeah. All right.
B
Yeah. So, yeah, again the after state and then going into all of it. So it was the after state, which we saw actually performed better as we started testing was that more people wanted to see what your hair looked like using the. Like after using the product and then how it really kind of defined. So again, like, we've tried a new topic, but then, like, again, really showing that after state and then going through that with this creator again.
A
Yeah, same creator as the last video, too. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. She's super good.
B
So, yeah, that was again, like the evolution of how we really started to define these creatives. And then the last one, again, like, this is where we are now. Is this. You know, this is a pro tip, like how to get the most out of your girls. And again, showing the after state.
A
Would these be more. As we're waiting for load here, would these be more defined as like, bottom of funnel? Like, I'm ready to convert because I've already been sort of sold on the idea of it. Now I just kind of need a reminder of what that after state looks like.
B
Actually, no, these ones have been all top of funnel, so. Yeah, so these ones have. When we first started, it was again more so, like, because we started to find that messaging that was resonating top of funnel, and it was again just calling out those curly hair girlies at first. And then a pro tip, if you have curly hair, this is how you get the most out of your curls, basically. So it's like kind of going through that.
A
So that last one, this is one of the things that I think always sort of boggles my mind. It's like the stuff that I think is bottom of funnel and top of funnel. It doesn't really matter.
B
Yeah.
A
You know, and now with Advantage plus, you're just basically going to throw all this creative into it and they're going to mix it up and figure out where to hit different people. Everyone's going to be different. It's like the bottom of funnel, like, you know, you forgot something in your cart kind of thing to the top. Like, awareness doesn't really Matter. People react to different things in different ways. We used to sort of force it on based upon your previous action. That's out the window right now. So. And this is a great example of that. It's like you're just showing after state, after state as opposed to. Well, you kind of have to introduce the concept of. All right, well, here's your problem. Here's your before state. Here's how you're going to solve it. That would be logical for everybody coming in because this obviously has a unique mechanism that very few other products have, but it doesn't really matter. Throw it all into the mix and see what works.
B
Yeah, yeah, exactly. And I mean, this was like, again, this was an evolution of a couple months of testing to kind of figure out the specific messaging, the specific creators and all of that. So it's like we kind of started at the beginning with what they already had, started building on messaging and really testing from there. Right.
A
And can this, like, we're obviously, we're talking about a very specific niche. We were talking about curly girlies. Right. Differing tightness of the curl sort of demographic. But in the makeup and beauty space, you do the same thing. Like, every product has this kind of progression here before and after calling out the avatar, all these other things. Correct me if I'm wrong.
B
Yeah, no, I mean, it's really. We've used this, I guess, like, framework really, for every beauty client we've had. I mean, even in skincare, there's different things that you even want. In skincare, it's hyperpigmentation, wrinkles, dry skin. What are those things? That is the pain point. How does this product specifically do it? Show again, that after state of my skin is glowing and fresh or I don't have hyperpigmentation. It's all the way over to how you got there, basically. So it's not brain surgery, but, you know, it definitely, like, some people just don't know how to do that or showcase that in a very simple way. That can also sell the product as well.
A
Right, right. So if you are a beauty brand, you're like, well, this is, you know, a tool that is in the beauty space. But if you are in beauty and wellness and sell a cosmetic, same strategy applies here, which is why we call it the beauty scale system. Of course. So do we want to show, like, that's great on the ads, but I think one of the challenges that you had was once they actually clicked the message in the ads and maybe on their socials wasn't quite as consistent. If I recall correctly. Okay.
B
Kind of the issue we started having was that we were getting a ton of people to the website, but then the website wasn't necessarily showcasing or discussing everything that we had talked about in the ads. And so again, like a lot of people are always like, oh, it's my ad, it's ads, it's my ads. But really it's also your website. So like we always say it's after the click. You know, if I'm getting all these people to my website, if I'm getting you know, like all this traffic, then why is it not converting after that? So as we kind of started to see like we were getting so many going to the websites, clicks, all that, then it was the website. Okay, so what exactly about the website isn't showcasing what we are showing in the ads? So this was, I mean this was kind of like the before, before state.
A
Of really, how about that for production? We didn't even need an edit. Kevin. Wow. Anyway, go ahead. Sorry.
B
So yeah, so this, I mean again it was, you know, they had these two models on there that showed the after state, but it was a better way to kind of dry or curl your hair. So again, just kind of calling things out of the curly hair damage. And then as you scroll down they had some discussion of like copy of what it was with like frizzy curly hair. And I mean, I don't know about you, but I'm the type of person where I don't like to read on websites. So I'm always like less is more when it comes to copy. Just show me. Exactly. So again, they had before and afters, but they kind of had a lot of copy on it.
A
It's good.
B
Yeah, I mean it's good. It's not bad, but it definitely could be spruced up a little bit.
A
Right.
B
So taking what they had and now going into their new website was kind of how we helped them evolve from this to the next state was really, you need to show more. Like we need to have that top converting creative at the top of the page. A game changer for your curly hair. This is the top performer that has always worked well for them. And then as you scroll down, they have some PR where it calls them out. And then we really wanted to show like actual users using the product. I think again, that's yeah, social proof. Like people definitely want to see more people using it. So we started adding in our UGC creators. These are basically just ads that we had for them and we added it into the website and then it Just kind of goes from there. Then it shows people using the product plus reviews. It just continuously just redefines what it is that we're trying to sell. So it's again, the before state and after state. They did like a slider so that you could see what it looks like before, what it looks like after, and really just went from there. So it's like top performing piece of creative at the top with a great call out. Social proof, Social proof, Social proof. And then your before and after state and then the product. So it's actually interesting because the product is actually much lower on the page and more people, I think, like they want it at the top of the page. But again, the product is already in the video at the top of the page. And I, as we've kind of tested, we've seen that the social proof actually performs so well that we don't need to have the product all the way at the very, very, very top of the page. So this was kind of an evolution too of testing a, B, testing the different homepages to see what was working. And this was kind of where we're at now, where it's like, this is what's working on the page, how we've been able to figure that out.
A
All right, so that was great. So we went through all the creatives that sort of started the whole process with Bellissima Hair Tools. Then we went through the website and sort of merged the two together here. And that's really the key, is that when you start to dial in your messaging on your creatives, on your ads, you might notice that there's a distance once they actually click. And that's where the second part of this whole magic sort of begins, is that you can get a lift from your creative by doing all the things that Lauren talks about here through making sure that the brand is in alignment with the problems of the avatar specifically. And then once you have dialed that in, using success as your guide, other ads that have worked well in the past, maybe social posts that have worked well in the past to get engagement and maybe even sole product without even being boosted or putting any sort of money behind it, then you take that next step, you improve what you have. And then the third step after that is really is looking at where are you sending that traffic? Can you actually make it more consistent with your overall message? So we've sort of shown how to do it here with this Bellissima Hair Tools case study. So I hope you enjoyed this one. This is the type of stuff that we try to bring to you to real world examples with all of this. This just about doubled this business's sales due to the consistency of message, bringing in different avatars, expanding the market with great creative and then ultimately converting them with a higher converting page we're sending traffic to. And you can do this with any product in the beauty niche. It's the same sort of formula which we're going to go through. We call it the beauty scale system, which you can learn more about over@tier11beauty.com but also we're going to be doing a final episode on this which sort of brings it all together, shows you exactly how to do it. Not necessarily just for hair tools like this, but also for beauty and wellness in general. And it's the philosophy that we use for all of our creative at tier 11. So you can learn more about that once again over@tier11beauty.com so thank you so much for listening to this week's show. Make sure that wherever you listen to podcasts, you leave us a rating and a review. We're rocketing up the charts over on Spotify, so definitely check us out there. So I listen to all my music. I'm actually starting to listen to professional traffic over there. Really do appreciate all the comments and the shares and ratings on that platform. Please continue to do that because it gets us to a wider audience to help educate marketers like yourself and teach people how to do this stuff the right way. So all the references and all the links that we mentioned on today's show will be over on the Show Notes page over@perpetualtraffic.com and if you we're listening to the audio version of this, once again, recommend you watch this over on YouTube so you can actually see exactly what we're talking about here@perpetualtraffic.com YouTube so on behalf of my amazing guest this week, Lauren Schwartz, till next week, see ya. You've been listening to Perpetual Traffic.
Podcast Summary: [Case Study]: 5 Steps to High-Converting On-Brand Beauty & Wellness Ads
Podcast Information:
The episode kicks off with Ralph Burns, founder and CEO of Tier11, enthusiastically introducing Lauren Schwartz, the creative director at Tier11. Ralph lauds Lauren's expertise, emphasizing her pivotal role in elevating the company's creative strategies.
Ralph Burns [00:00]: "You're the goat of all things creative... our companies merging was a game-changer."
Ralph highlights the critical role of creative elements in driving media buying and overall ad success. He underscores that while platforms like Google and Facebook are essential for traffic acquisition, the creative content is the "biggest gear" in the conversion engine.
Ralph Burns [01:58]: "The biggest gear in that machine is creative."
Lauren concurs, discussing the common struggle brands face in maintaining brand consistency while ensuring their ads convert effectively. She emphasizes that aligning the message across all channels—website, social media, and paid ads—is crucial for success.
Lauren Schwartz [03:04]: "Brands struggle with brand consistency... aligning everything to convert."
The core of the episode revolves around a detailed case study of Bellissima Hair Tools, showcasing the journey from initial ad strategies to optimized, high-converting campaigns.
When Bellissima first approached Tier11, their creative assets were minimal—primarily a single video demonstrating the before-and-after use of their diffuser product. While this ad performed decently, it lacked depth in addressing specific customer pain points.
Lauren Schwartz [06:02]: "They had this one piece of creative that showed someone using the product... not a lot to it."
Recognizing the potential for improvement, Lauren and her team refined the existing creative by explicitly highlighting the product's unique benefits. They focused on pinpointing the exact problems their target audience faced, such as frizzy hair and undefined curls, and showcased how the diffuser addressed these issues.
Lauren Schwartz [07:54]: "We added copy about hair diffusers damaging hair and how this new diffuser is a two-in-one solution."
Ralph praises this straightforward yet effective approach, noting that sometimes the most obvious solutions are overlooked by others.
Ralph Burns [08:41]: "It's not that obvious... you're calling out the problems that this demographic has."
The team expanded their targeting by identifying and addressing specific sub-groups within the curly-haired demographic. By creating diverse ad creatives that resonate with various curl patterns, they ensured broader appeal and higher engagement.
Lauren Schwartz [17:07]: "We now showcase different types of curly hair because everyone with curly hair knows they're unique."
Ralph adds that selecting the right content creator is vital to authentically connect with the audience.
Ralph Burns [25:42]: "Choice of creator is super important... they're being paid to influence content."
Lauren explains the importance of collaborating with creators who genuinely represent the target audience. By featuring real users with different curl types, the ads became more relatable and trustworthy, leading to better performance.
Lauren Schwartz [19:46]: "This girl struggled with defined curls, and now her hair is fluffy and defined without frizz."
A significant challenge identified was the disconnect between ad messaging and the website's content. To address this, the team revamped the website to mirror the refined ad narratives, emphasizing social proof, user-generated content, and clear before-and-after displays. This alignment ensured that visitors transitioned smoothly from ad engagement to website conversion.
Lauren Schwartz [35:12]: "The website wasn't showcasing everything we talked about in the ads... we needed to align the messaging across all platforms."
Ralph Burns [37:00]: "Consistency of message... bringing in different avatars, expanding the market with great creative, and converting them with a higher converting page."
Throughout the case study, several pivotal strategies emerge:
Refine Existing Creatives: Enhance what already works by clearly addressing specific pain points.
Ralph Burns [12:23]: "You took their best creative and made it better by simple adjustments."
Identify and Expand Target Avatars: Understand the nuances within your target audience to create more personalized and effective ads.
Collaborate with Authentic Creators: Partner with content creators who authentically represent and resonate with your audience.
Align Website with Ad Messaging: Ensure that the transition from ad to website maintains consistency in messaging and branding to optimize conversions.
Leverage Social Proof: Incorporate user-generated content and testimonials to build trust and credibility.
Ralph wraps up the episode by summarizing the success achieved through consistent messaging, targeted creative strategies, and website optimization. He mentions the forthcoming final episode, which will delve deeper into the "Beauty Scale System," a comprehensive framework for beauty and wellness brands to replicate this success.
Ralph Burns [39:02]: "This just about doubled this business's sales... you can do this with any product in the beauty niche."
He encourages listeners to explore more resources at tier11beauty.com and stay tuned for the concluding episode that promises to consolidate these strategies into a replicable system.
Notable Quotes:
Final Thoughts:
This episode of Perpetual Traffic offers invaluable insights into creating effective, on-brand advertisements within the beauty and wellness sector. By dissecting a real-world case study, Ralph and Lauren provide listeners with actionable strategies to enhance their ad performance, maintain brand consistency, and optimize their websites for higher conversions. Whether you're a seasoned marketer or just starting, the "Beauty Scale System" unveiled here serves as a robust blueprint for achieving sustained business growth.