Strategy
Purina
CHALLENGE
The Purina Petcare Company came to ?What If! Innovation with a problem. In 2012 when this project was completed, they had nearly twenty brands of cat food and none of them were targeted to the biggest consumer segment of cat owners - Millennials.
Purina wanted ?What If! to help them come up with a new brand of cat food that would attract the Millennial market.
1. Conduct Interviews
100+ Consumer in-home interviews
2 day Retail Safari
6 Expert Interviews
2.
Gather Insights
Millennials...
- See cats as roommates, not babies
- Appreciate a cohesive aesthetic
- Are concious consumers
- Expect quality
- Enjoy DIY
3.
Synthesize inputs into 5 insight platforms
- Foot in the Past & Future
- Wealth of Experience
- Everything in its place
- Giving Back Matters
-Smart with a Smile
4. Develop + Prototype
3 Brand Directions
- Ran 6 consumer focus groups to prioritize brand direction
RESULTS
Of the 3 brand directions we developed, we recommended that Purina pursue a brand we called “TRUE”. This brand was based in humor, transparency, and an understanding of the real nature of cats and their nutrional needs. TRUE used clear packaging to show freeze-dried ingredients. Each package included a Cracker-Jack-inspired toy that encouraged owners to play with their cats by leveraging their hunting instinct.
W&P
CHALLENGE
W&P has been in business for nearly 10 years selling kitchen goods that help eliminate waste. In 2021, we started to see a decline in numbers on social media, and decided to take a deeper look into why.
2. 1. Reach Out
Sent out a survey to current customers and employees to give feedback on the W&P Instagram feed
Gather Insights
There was one piece of feedback that was resounding: W&P’s imagery was too cold and sterile
3.
Look for ways to infuse warmth
We aligned on several ideas to make images warmer, these included:
- Incorporate “Smiley Objects”
-Include people
- Emphasize seasonality
- Highlight partners in propping
4.
Test and Translate
-We tested these ideas in several photo and video shoots
- We looked at other channels to determine how to translate these themes
(ie: Are there graphic representations of “ Smiley Objects” to be used in ads?)
RESULTS
We increased our engagement on Instagram, forged relationships with higher-ranking influencers, and saw an increase in the sales after the imagery refresh.
Fountain Vitals
CHALLENGE
In 2022, Very Great was looking to start a new brand in a new category. The founders decided they wanted to take on the world of aging. They developed supplement to support aging from the inside out.
1. Polling the People
We conducted a survey on both supplement habits and aging to determine what is and isn't working and to determine any unmet needs
4.
Bringing it to Life
We Created...
- The logo
- Type Hierarchy
- Palette
- Illustration Style
- Image direction
-Packaging
- Website
2.
3. Finding a Differentiator
We learned...
- People wish they could take fewer supplements
- People worry about aging bodies and minds
- The "anti-aging" market is filled with scare tactics
The Meat and Potatoes
We developed...
- The Manifesto
- Positioning Statement
- Brand Pillars
RESULTS
Fountain Vitals is looking for investors and is ready to launch as soon as they find them.
The Met
CHALLENGE
The Met Fashion House is an upscale store in Sarasota, Florida that was seeing very little engagement on their social media and declining sales. They came to me to develop a strategy to improve both.
1. Digging in
I pored through The Met's service offerings, existing marketing, and spoke to customers about their shopping experiences.
2.
Surfacing Areas for Action
We had 3 key areas for action to focus on. We needed to:
- AMPLIFY specialties
- CLARIFY misunderstandings
- ENGAGE community
3.
Establishing Content Areas
Within each of the action areas, I established content buckets. For instance, to AMPLIFY specialties, they should take imagery of their tailor at work. Many customers didn't know this was an offering.
4.
Creating a Cadence
After determining what to say, I had to decide where and when to post. Their customers are 40% Boomers, 30% Gen X, and 30% Millennial, therefore we posted on FB 2x/week, and IG 3x/week.
RESULTS
The Met began posting with these insights in mind and were pleased with a new level of engagement and interest in their store.
W&P
CHALLENGE
W&P is a sustainable brand that develops reusable products to encourage better habits. In 2021, they introduced the Porter Bag to their collection. This well-made silicone bag comes in a variety of shapes and sizes. The only challenge was the competition. The brand Stasher has similar product and they launched first. Our challenge was helping customer's understand why w&p was the right product for them.
2. 1.
Gather Inputs
First, we reviewed the competition's strategy
Then, we analyzed why the W&P product was more favorable, especially in the eyes of our own consumer.
Identify Opportunities
In our analysis, we determined that the key differentiators for W&P is 2-fold:
1) W&P offers a suite of products and the bag is a crucial component of that suite.
2) W&P's customer is driven, in part, by aesthetics - they love design and when products match.
3.
Land & Leverage
With these diffentiators in mind, we determined that we were not just selling a bag, but a storage solution. While it would be important to show the bags themselves, we needed to post, write, teach about how to use our products in conjunction with each other.
4.
Prepare & Post
Since W&P's clientele responds to trends, we wanted to combine our messaging with brand-relevant trends. We started partnerships with several organizing influencers. They highlighted ways to use the products together in an attractive way.
RESULTS
When we began to focus on ways to use our products as a suite and emphasized how beautiful and functional they are, we saw a massive response from our current customers and an uptick in new customers. While Stasher creates a good product, W&P provides a suite of products and a place to learn about how to make the most out of your space while you are living a more sustainable lifestyle.
