Authentic Beauty Concept: from underdog to unprecedented success.

Authentic Beauty Concept is a brand that was introduced to the Belgian market in 2019 under the Henkel umbrella. It’s not just a premium brand; the professional haircare & styling brand is a holistic experience crafted in collaboration with a unique collective of hairstylists who wholeheartedly embrace a fresh perspective on genuine/authentic beauty.

Objectives:

Our mission was clear: elevate brand awareness in the Belgian market and educate potential customers on the myriad benefits of Authentic Beauty products. With a commitment to sustainability and natural ingredients, we aimed to expand our distribution nationally through a network of carefully curated hairdressers.

Approach:

After a thorough in depth analysis we came to the conclusion that there were some significant glitches in the current strategy. Up until 2022 the brand only invested in PR & brand activations. Which generated some reach and awareness but the initiatives had no overall always-on strategy. We developed a multi faceted plan that mapped the whole customer journey whereby we differentiated between B2B (Hairdressers) and B2C actual customers looking for the best hair care products. 

Building the plan we focussed on 2 main elements: increasing owned & paid reach and sessions. First of all we created more traction with an elevated social media strategy, by changing the messaging, revamping the content & imagery and rightfully educate the followers on the products we were able to grow their following base significantly on Instagram. 

Secondly the Belgian website was launched in August 2023 to build more credibility as a brand and have a dedicated landing page for our extensive ads campaigns. Whereby we covered the full funnel. Higher funnel we made sure Authentic Beauty Concept was present where the potential customer (hairdresser & end-consumer) were, mainly being Instagram. Mid funnel and lower funnel we focused on Instagram & Google to capture qualitative traffic. 

Results

Our overall objectives were achieved:

• A threefold increase in direct sessions, indicating a heightened top-of-mind awareness 
• A 1.5 increase in owned sessions 
• A staggering 5x increase in paid session 
• A 12% boost in instagram followers 
• The generation of leads for new Authentic Beauty Concept salons.

What’s Next?

Building on our 2023 success, we will refine our elevated Instagram strategy and leverage TikTok as a major driver for owned sessions. Aligning with beauty trends on TikTok, we will tailor our strategy and content creation. Additionally, we plan to invest in acquiring first-party data early in the customer journey, deploying a comprehensive email marketing and marketing automation strategy. The journey from underdog to success continues, and Authentic Beauty Concept is ready for the next chapter.