Behind Burt’s Bees’ Skincare Sets That Were Tailored to Fans of Various Cinematic Genres
Today, you’d be hard pressed to find a person who doesn’t enjoy at least some of the offerings provided in the realm of movies and TV shows. After all, no matter what your taste may be, there’s probably a genre, or at the very least, a niche piece of programming that’s literally intended for people just like you!
If you’re still dubious about this fact, consider the following statistic. According to the team at FCB Canada, the average Canadian spends over three hours watching TV per day. That’s a pretty large number, and considering we’re looking at something which impacts virtually the entire population of the country, it’s all the more reason why Burt’s Bees’ latest campaign (created in partnership with FCB) is brilliant.
Specifically, the brand hit gold when it discovered that what you watch actually impacts your skin. Consider the fact that action films spike cortisol levels, which can cause skin to be more sensitive. Or that while watching comedy, you’re likely to laugh, which can lead to laugh lines. It completely makes sense, but it’s probably not something most people think about regularly, in spite of just how much they enjoy watching various pieces of content. So, to make this more well-known and better market its face care line, the Burt’s Bees team launched ‘Screencare’: product bundles designed to alleviate the skin sensitivities that fans of each genre could experience. Ranging from ‘The Romance Lover Set’ to ‘The Horrorphile Set’, each was not only tested to prove results, but utilised data from the Amazon Ads Brand Innovation Lab to reach the right audiences via a set of clever spots parodying movie trailers of said genres.
To learn more about just what it took to bring this to life, LBB’s Jordan Won Neufeldt sat down with the team from FCB Canada, including group creative director Troy McGuinness, associate creative directors Sara Radovanovich and Sally Fung, vice president of planning Jesse Gilbert, and group account director Hanh Vo, as well as Burt’s Bees’ marketing director Cyril Urbano for a chat.
LBB> From the top, what was the brief, and what inspired Burt’s Bees to embark on this campaign?
Cyril> Burt’s Bees, a prominent player in the lip balm market, has consistently held the second-largest share and enjoys widespread consumer affection in Canada. However, many remain unaware that Burt’s Bees also offers a comprehensive, benefit-specific face care line crafted from natural ingredients – a lesser-known facet of the brand. The challenge lies in bridging the gap; while consumers adore Burt’s Bees lip balms, this affinity doesn’t necessarily extend to our face care products.
So, our objective was clear: to create a breakthrough concept that captures our target audience’s attention and reinforces the relevance of natural face care solutions for addressing their skincare needs.
LBB> The idea of creating skin care sets for TV and movie fans is brilliant! Where did the idea come from, and what made it right for the job?
Troy> Thank you! Our job was to raise awareness of Burt’s Bees’ skin care line with a new creative idea partnering with Amazon. The partnership with Amazon is really where the idea came from, because we were thinking about Amazon Prime and then found the research on how what we watch affects our skin. From there, we knew we had a compelling way to talk to people about Burt’s Bees’ skin care products.
LBB> The fact that our skin will be impacted differently based on what we watch is cool! What was the research process like behind this, and what were the most interesting takeaways?
Jesse> There were so many fun surprises researching along the way! I think, overall, it was really interesting to realise there were both long-term and short-term effects for your skin when watching your favourite shows that Burt’s Bees products could help with. For example, laughing engages over 40 muscles in your face, which not only contributes to wrinkles, but also just leaves your face feeling tired, so a best-selling retinol cream and a nice soothing facing mask helps both immediately and over time.
From here, we worked with Burt’s Bees’ in-house dermatologists to make sure all the products in each set were formulated to alleviate the skin issues each genre is likely to create. The target is actually quite massive, since the average Canadian spends over three hours watching TV per day, so it was really just about engaging Canadians in a fun way that also felt catered to them.
LBB> With that in mind, what were the top genres? And how did you correlate the impacts of watching those with impacts on the skin?
Sally> The genres were chosen by working closely with Amazon Prime to figure out which were most popular amongst Canadians, and then we got to work researching the impacts of those types of shows on your skin. Some things were more obvious, like shows that make you cry (dramas and romance) cause eye puffiness and dehydrated skin, but others came from studies that showed your brain reacts the same way to watching something stressful as experiencing something stressful, e.g. action and horror causing cortisol levels to spike (and, notably, cortisol spikes contribute to breakouts and redness).
LBB> Of course, the spots are also hilarious! What was the writing process like, and what went into bringing them to life?
Sara> The spots were the easiest thing to write! We knew we wanted them to feel like different genres of movie trailers to draw people in, but we also wanted to play with the juxtaposition of two things you don’t usually think of together: skincare and movies/TV. We actually got a voice actor who worked as a movie trailer announcer for his entire career, which was also very cool!
Troy> We also hired an illustrator who worked on animated films to create the look for each set. It was a nod to storyboard and conceptual art that you would see at the initial stage of movie making. It's less movie poster design, and more storyboard/concept art.
LBB> What challenges have you faced during this project? How did you overcome them?
Cyril> One intriguing challenge involved developing product bundles aligned with specific skincare benefits. These bundles needed to be both scientifically grounded and credible while remaining reasonably priced for our consumers. Achieving this delicate balance required multiple iterations and close collaboration with our research and development team. We ensured that our offerings were evidence-based, delightful for consumers, and accessible in terms of pricing.
Budget constraints posed another hurdle. Despite being an out-of-plan initiative, we committed to investing sufficiently to maximise reach. So, we enlisted the help of our agency partners to map out a surround-sound plan that would bring this idea to life. We also employed a placement strategy that looks at base tactics (must-do’s) versus supporting tactics (could-do’s) to inform resource allocation. Enlisting the expertise of the Amazon Ads Brand Innovation Lab to identify base tactics provided our internal and agency teams with a sense of sufficiency in the support plan.
LBB> What lessons have you learned from the making of this campaign?
Hanh> The power of partnerships for sure. Without all these pieces coming together - from the team at Amazon to Burt’s Bees’ skincare experts, and of course our brave clients - we would have never gotten to make something so unique and compelling.
Cyril> Three key lessons resonate with me as a marketer:
- The value of interconnected systems: Leveraging interconnected systems amplifies consideration. In our case, the Amazon ecosystem served as fertile ground for delivering our message, resonating with the target audience, and reinforcing relevance. Recognising this interconnectedness enhances the conversion cycle.
- Science reinforces relevance: Evidence (the ‘science behind things’) remains a powerful driver of relevance. The art lies in presenting scientific information in a way that resonates with the audience, making the idea both disruptive and memorable.
- The power of personalisation: In a world where personal identification matters, customisation establishes an emotional connection with the target audience. Tailoring our approach enhances engagement and loyalty.
LBB> Since launch, how have people responded to this campaign?
Cyril> From a sales perspective, we’ve witnessed remarkable traction. Despite some challenges, including selling out of some products mid-campaign, our sales increased by 15% in units compared to the previous year. The campaign generated a total of 12 million impressions across various digital platforms. Notably, our YouTube click-through rates (CTR) exceeded norms, and our non-skippable video on Amazon Prime achieved above-benchmark view completion rates (VCR). These metrics underscore the high engagement levels our creative content achieved among our target audience.
Additionally, Stackline provided an insightful metric: 62% of purchasers were ‘new to brand’. This statistic highlights the campaign’s effectiveness in customer acquisition.
LBB> With that in mind, how does this campaign fit into Burt’s Bees’ platform for 2024 and beyond?
Cyril> We consider ‘Screencare’ as a breakthrough tactic that opened us up to the possibilities of expanding our reach and strengthening consideration. The approach that we took to garner eyeballs, interest and sales through this programme will be the basis for how we blow this out to support big business opportunities for our lip care segment.
LBB> Finally, have you yourself tried any of the sets?
Sara> Yes! We’re all big fans of very different genres, so it’s been cool to try all the different products and feel like they’re bespoke for us.
Cyril> Yes! I'm a huge fan of comedy series. For a person like me who's nearing a milestone age (it's 30, you guys!), the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles is exacerbated by a lot of facial expressions, and I love showing those expressions not only when I watch shows, but in real life as well. So, hail to the ‘Renewal’ line because it has kept those pesky furrows at bay. And let’s not forget the Overnight Lip Treatment, an enchanting elixir. Each morning, I rise with lips so pampered, they practically whisper, ‘Kiss me, world!’.
