Q] What was the idea behind using ‘in-moment’ humour in the ‘Get Used to Wow’ campaign?
To bring this campaign alive, we conceived a creative platform around misplaced moments of beauty. In this category, we have often seen beauty ads that follow a certain format. There’s a person who has a certain problem, and there’s a product that makes the person glow and changes the destiny. We thought of doing something different here because we are an insurgent brand, and we have to stand out. We realised that humour as a hook is very potent, and we have used that.
Q] Do you think packaging plays a role in attracting consumers?
Packaging is very important in the Ps of marketing. I call it the first moment of truth, where a consumer sees your packaging and understands what you’re trying to communicate. It appeals to the consumer, and then they pick it up. As for us at Wow, our packaging has always stood out. It’s a very strong memory hook when consumers think of Wow. They always see our packaging, which is amber and gold, as distinct. This has helped us carve a unique place in the beauty and personal care segment because we always wanted to be different. Our packaging actually bears testimony to that.
Q] There are many other toxin-free brands in the Indian market right now. What is Wow’s USP that separates it from the rest?
Our USP, which we’ve recently crafted, is activated naturals. We have products that are good for you and are toxin-free, but what we are really bringing to the table is the distinct proposition of activated naturals. We have natural products like onion, vitamin C, and aloe vera that are activated by active products. This gives you the perfect balance of the goodness of natural products with the efficacy of actives.
Q] Wow opened doors for television advertising last year and even increased the marketing budget by around 40–50%. How has that paid off?
Getting TV into our media mix was a crucial and strategic call. As we grew from strength to strength, we realised that whatever demand we built on our online channels and the brand love that consumers have for us when they buy us online also translated into a strong latent demand on our offline channels. To fuel this, we decided to advertise on TV to communicate our brand to a wider audience. We started with TV last year, and the results have been very encouraging. We’ve advertised our best-selling ranges, the Wow Onion range for hair fall and the Wow Vitamin C range for a bright glow on TV, and we see the metrics shifting promisingly in terms of awareness and consideration. It has grown by leaps and bounds. This has given us the confidence to use TV.
Q] What does Wow’s marketing mix look like, and what are the mediums that have fetched good results for the brand?
In terms of building awareness, we have seen success in ATL media, therefore, TV works for us. We’ve also gone on some interesting channels right now, which the emerging Indian urban consumer uses. Connected TV works really well for us, and so does OTT. With respect to Digital, we have seen that the best results come to us on prime Digital channels like Meta and YouTube, but we are also exploring other publishing sites and channels to reach our audiences. It must be mentioned here that this also depends on the brand we are communicating and the media objective that it has. For example, our vitamin C campaign right now has a certain scale. In the media mix, we realised that using TV, Digital, Print, and Out-Of-Home is really impactful. We select the media vehicles based on the objective of the relevant brand that we’re activating.
Q] What is Wow’s primary audience and how is it approaching rural India?
Our core audience right now is urban-centric. These products are unique and new to the market. Right now, the bulk of our purchases are happening in urban Tier I and Tier II markets, but we do realise the immense potential of markets beyond this. Currently, in terms of distribution, we rely on marketplaces to do the distribution because online is huge for us. We rely on marketplaces like Flipkart, which have a better understanding of Bharat.
PROFILE
Vanda Ferrao is the Chief Marketing Officer at Wow Skin Science, a leading D2C wellness and personal care brand headquartered in Bangalore. As the CMO, she is responsible for the development and implementation of marketing strategies across all of Wow’s product categories and channels. Additionally, she also drives forward the brand strategy in Digital content and communication along with product categories for Wow Skin Science, and Body Cupid.
ABOUT THE BRAND
Based out of Bangalore, Wow Skin Science is a nature-inspired beauty brand that is committed to curating safe skin and hair care products for everyone. The products are free from sulphates, silicones, mineral oils, parabens, and artificial colours, and the ingredients used are inspired by nature, and dermatologically tested. The brand boasts a complete range of Skin Care, Hair Care, and Bath & Body Products.
FACTS
Media Agency: Mindshare
Digital Agency: Leo Burnett
PR Agency: Adfactors PR
