Changing How Buyers Evaluated a Stagnant Market
A global CPG brand launched a new women’s razor to compete in a crowded category dominated by loyalty and habit. Their initial assumptions pointed to Gen Z as the core target. But early results told a different story—one that opened the door to a smarter strategy, better messaging, and a surprise hero audience.
Client Overview
This global personal care brand was preparing to launch a new razor designed to disrupt the women’s shaving market. The core challenge? Break habitual buying patterns and attract a new wave of loyal customers. We were asked to help:
- Validate audience assumptions before scaling media spend
- Test multiple messaging angles to uncover the most motivating triggers
- Build a nimble, data-driven campaign strategy that could pivot in weeks, not quarters
- Ensure early learnings informed creative, targeting, and even future product development
The Challenge
The brand initially aimed its product at younger women, assuming they’d be more open to innovation and product switches. But early social and email campaign performance revealed resistance:
- Gen Z shoppers didn’t feel a pressing need to change from their current razor
- Promotional discounts weren’t motivating trial
- The audience wasn’t engaging with lifestyle-focused creative
Why it Mattered
This wasn’t a “soft launch” — the campaign was:
- Time-sensitive, tied to retail distribution windows and seasonal shopping patterns
- High-visibility internally, with leadership and R&D watching performance closely
- Budget-dependent, where every wasted dollar risked eroding ROI
A failure to pivot quickly would mean:
- Poor adoption and slow sell-through at retail
- Negative perception among core brand loyalists
- Lost opportunity to stake a claim in a fiercely competitive category
The Solution
We took a rapid test-and-learn approach using integrated email and social media campaigns to segment, measure, and adapt in real time — ensuring that insights came in fast enough to guide mid-campaign shifts.
Our Process:
- Segmented test audiences by age bracket to compare attitudinal and behavioral responses
- A/B tested offers, tone, and creative to pinpoint the strongest combinations
- Mapped differences in purchase drivers between younger and older consumers
- Discovered that women in their 30s–50s valued performance, quality, and skin-sensitivity far more than “trendy” features
- Refined targeting, messaging, and creative to lean into this audience’s priorities
Why It Worked:
Instead of forcing the launch to fit the original hypothesis, we let the market tell us where the opportunity was. That agility allowed the brand to move budget toward the highest-response segment and craft creative that felt tailored, not generic.
The Results
This campaign didn’t just find new customers, it reshaped how the brand saw its audience, informed product decisions, and set the tone for future launches across the women’s care line.
Bonus Benefits
- +138% higher engagement among Women 35–54, the highest-response segment identified.
- +38% more product page visits from targeted audiences.
- +22% lift in customer acquisition rate over the course of the campaign.
- Identified highest-response audience segment (Women 35–54) to guide future spend.
- Shifted internal perception from “trend-first” to “performance-first.”
- Sparked product design and feature discussions for future SKUs.
- Influenced ad creative with new insights into color/style sensitivities.
- Strengthened cross-functional alignment between marketing, product, and sales.
On top of the strategic wins, the campaign delivered shortened decision cycles, streamlined reporting, and improved team collaboration — all while outpacing typical category norms for engagement and conversion.
A Fresh Look Starts With a Fresh Listen
When you trade assumptions for insights, the results speak for themselves. This challenger brand didn’t just launch a product — they found their audience, clarified their message, and positioned themselves for long-term loyalty.
Ready to stop guessing and start targeting where it counts? Let’s build the insights that give you an edge.