A Marketing Color Psychology Ages Beyond Its Color
What a Change in 1 Color Can Do for Sales
The Right Change in the Right Color — Against All Odds, Thinking Pink Was the Missing Piece
A spicy brand look painted by FixxeL's Graphic Design Manager gave this premium Luxury Perfume and Women's Accessories brand the ticket it needed to dominate across the globe, and provide their scent-lovers with the luxury and identity they craved.
*All projects shown are real and/or are based on real projects and results, while some brands' names have been changed due to non-disclosure agreements for content in premiering agency portfolio. All content shown produced by current FixxeL personnel with demonstrated marketing success(es) shown.
Overview
Belle Chanson (U.S. release, "Belle Chance"), directly translated from French as "beautiful song" and signified by the majestic fuchsia bell, is a French women's perfume and accessories brand. Their target demographic is females aged 35-65+, and their recent U.S. sign-on has indeed shown more women than men, but both showing strong interest from age ranges from 18-30 and 55-retired. This came as a surprise to the beautiful "Belle" brand—and as it turns out, what was harder than they expected to prepare for market in the North and South Americas and for what we'd reveal in adding a dash of "hot" to what they thought naught.
The Approach:
Redesigning the Banner
It didn't need much. Just a new theme, scheme, and color theme and design. We got right to work envisioning and aligning visions with diligent research on the brand's demographics - based on what we knew, and on projections based on affinity science & the data.
Concept in Promotion
We rebuffed not just the copy from "SALE" to "BOGO" - but the value itself, reaffixing the benefit from a generic term that generally works—to a specific type of sale that catches the eye in the mere aesthetic of the repeating Os along with the deep 100% already understood—and more.
Think (Pink): The Psychology
It's bold. It's big. Knowing the facts, a very real psychology outside of just advertising but just as bit ubiquitous in the Universal Desire for Youth (even when you're old - research for the 55+ demographic) is a play that worked - even in disconnected cases, this one just as less.
Breaking it Down:
Redesigning the Banner - Gripping Customers Within by Thinking Outside the Box; Points A, B
BEFORE
- Gets the Message Across: A Pretty Purple Perfume Sale.
This purple graphic was great for Belle's "soothing the soul" and appealing to the 35-65 demographic. The loud "SALE" callout was pervasive, and the code clearly communicates what to do.
- Before: Communicates product information; some benefits. Shows the THINKPINK sale with pink florals, but in the more-purple section.
AFTER
- Commands The Message While Appealing to More Audiences.
Yes, even with the woman - surprising; we it thought too. We took it a step further to appeal both 18-30+ and 55+ demographics, as outlined in the "Psychology" analysis below.
- After: What happened was actually much more than that.
Concept in the Promotion - Gripping Customers Within by Thinking Outside the Box; Point C
"Belle beauties" as customers are fondly called were so used to seeing "sale", the initial spike of which were beginning to dwindle - so we decided to change it - from the "sale" of buy one, get one free to the copy change from 'sale' to BOGO. This shifted not the value but the perception of said value, giving customers not just a sale, but something that's newer and potentially perceived as greater, thus a "better" benefit.
A generic term that generally works to a specific type that's more eye-catching in 1. Not saying "sale"; 2. Aesthetic in repetitous Os; 3. More exciting in getting to read something different, or less common.
More Psychology:
The Analysis: The Psychologies (3) Behind
It's so crazy, it just might work. Isn't that what all great leading industry researchers say? Well that's what No-Bella Prize-worthy winning Graphic Design Manager Jennifer Lioen said, and by golly, that's what she did. Introducing Fire Pink was the beginning and the result, and this is what happened, broken down into three types of psychology in marketing.
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YOUTH PSYCHOLOGY: We All Want to Be Young Forever.
As outlined in Psychology Today, there's a paradox with aging. Based on this youth-consumer psychology particularly prominent in the female population, we observed it here with stunning results. Women aged 35-60 had no problem receiving a banner with a 25-year-old with the following:
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COLOR PSYCHOLOGY: "Fire Pink" Color is Hot on Youth-Based Psychology's Tail.
Color psychology in marketing doesn't stop at just color.
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PERCEPTION PSYCHOLOGY: Written Value-Based Psychology in the Offer
The third psychology is a copy of the above - that, the copy. Writing the offer that's essentially the same offer, in a different way, sways value-based psychology. BOGO instead of Sale, or the concept of the promotion, rather than the promotion itself.
This summarized research led us to make conclusions and yield these results; the before, and the after:
Before:
After:
The Deliverables, Campaigns & Testing:
Email Marketing Campaigns - x3 + A/B Testing
We A/B tested two email campaigns with three creatives, all using the same offer, and audiences, and this is the methodology.
Being a 'fuscia' company, the first used Bell Chance's original purple and pink against the new, updated design.
The second one used the new, updated design against the hotter-pink version of that same design.
We ran the first test the third weekend of one month.
We ran the second the same, the third weekend, but the following month.
We used the hotter-pink color and louder coloring to accent strategic callouts like CTAs and "BOGO" callouts above other texts to increase specific actions of desire, a methodology not used previously.
Google Display Ads - Featuring Creative Brief: "Well Tickle Me Think"
Strategy 1: "Well Cool My Soul"
Yes, some of us pronounced it "sool". Bell Chance speaks volumes when communicating about laid-back luxury to their versed audience, done well in hushed purples, and muted fuchsias with historic success proven time after time. Our Graphic Design Manager, J. Lioen, depicted the colors as hushed and gently as the name you hear cooed, but still stood out with vibrance using what we dubbed them with: the "Feather-Weighted Purple" seen here in the eye-catching BOGO.
Strategy 2: "Well Hot Damn"
For a luxury parfum collection inspired by walking the landscapes of southern France, selecting featured products was no easy choice. However, based on revolving inventory priorities, and in close collaboration with Belle Chance, this case-study demonstration without taking into account a rebranding in mind, the product features their second-in-command "Essence de Rose", as their #1 seller was flying off shelves under another "flagship" campaign underwent at this same time. We applied the "Fire Pink" to an already-tinted hushed Rose profile and shall set targeting to their desired demographic—but to expand with automated budget allowance exceptions for interest and user-based behaviour, to capture those of interest not previously known beyond those parameters known by the Partner.
We will not run these directly as A/B tests against each other, as they are too different in nature to benefit from that budget spend, while the content is prepared in explicitly testable measures, so the results will certainly be up for all's review.
Results:
Overall:
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New things tried, new chances taken, new numbers down in the books.
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Belle Chance has a presence that makes their customers able to identify and feel like more who they want to be.
Does your premium, luxury, perfume/cologne, or feminine brand need the right touch or bold idea to waft it to the next level?
Contact us to see how we can innovate like this and more for your brand.