Olivia Bradshaw

Q for the beauty brand founders and marketing leaders out there: Can you describe your brand’s purpose in a single sentence? If yes, hell yeah. Keep doing what you're doing. If you’re thinking “Maybe. Kinda.” I totally get it. But in our highly competitive marketplace, the ability to quickly tell a client, an investor, or a potential retail partner precisely what your brand does and how it’s different from your competitors with clarity, confidence, and conviction is a super power. It can be the difference between capturing a sale, or not. Getting an investment to grow your brand, or not. Getting onto the shelves of Sephora, Ulta, or Credo, or not. Take a note from my client Ua Body—they took their established brand to the next level when they invested in their Verbal Brand Identity. Here’s what that looked like: https://lnkd.in/gUAuZm5r

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Kudos, Glossier, Inc. Grant Program For Black-Owned Beauty Businesses, for at least upping the ante in terms of grant size. I get really frustrated seeing the proliferation of female founder grant programs/pitch competitions with teensy weensy amounts, where we're expected to be grateful and compete for crumbs, while the VC funding banquet lavishes millions, nay, billions on white bro founders. Glossier is awarding four $50,000 grants and one former grantee $100,000 Alumni Award - at least that's not nothing. Details here: https://lnkd.in/e-miZ4yr #FundFemaleFounders #FundBlackFemaleFounders

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The art of mood/inspiration board-ing. Don't get me wrong I know how obvious it is and how everyone has been creating mood/inspiration boards that align perfectly with our niche. But here's the catch– W hat if this focused curation is actually narrowing our creative scope instead of broadening it? The art of creating mood or inspiration boards shouldn't be about funneling your vision into a tiny space. It should be about expanding your horizons, embracing the abstract, and welcoming the absurd. Like, imagine deriving inspiration for your next fashion collection from the vibrant world of culinary arts. Loewe did just that, check out "Loewe Tomato". Straying beyond your niche can unlock a floodgate of fresh ideas and innovative concepts. It pushes you to think outside your usual frame of reference and challenges your creative boundaries. This is especially vital during brainstorming sessions where the goal is to let your imagination roam free. So, here's my 2 cents: the next time you sit down to create a mood board, dare to venture beyond your industry. Look for inspiration in places you'd least expect. Let your inlet for ideas be broader and beyond your conscious prejudices. This approach could be "the thing" that your brand needs to stand out in a crowded space. I mean, give it a try though. Here's an example of how I set my boards, I often pair my visuals with audio to create a sensory trip. The board is called "soft-core summer".

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I will be talking about how to build a sustainable career / business as a creator next week in NYC. Reach out if you will be there and want to talk about brand <> creator partnerships and how to do it in a long term profitable way!

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I've been diving deep into the world of Q-commerce delivery apps lately, and I'm curious about their potential as discovery tools for challenger brands. The speed and convenience they offer are undeniable, but the limited space for storytelling feels restrictive. There's no room to build that emotional connection that can really resonate with consumers. This focus on pure functionality seems to be a trend across new platforms like ONDC and other niche marketplaces – great for established brands with existing recognition, but what about the up-and-comers? ET recently reported that "Big consumer goods companies...have said the contribution of quick commerce to overall ecommerce sales rose as high as 35% in FY24," which makes perfect sense for those household names. So, the question that's been nagging at me is: can we turn Q-commerce apps into discovery powerhouses for challenger brands? I'd love to hear your thoughts! #qcommerce #ecommerce #marketing #branding #challengerbrands #innovation #discussion

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Did you see this article in ELLE Magazine recently about Glossier, Inc.? As Glossier, Inc. turns 10, it's aiming to become a beauty brand with 100 years of impact. In the article, I liked how candid Founder Emily Weiss was when reflecting on Glossier, Inc.'s journey. When it comes to her popularity with the press for better or for worse, she shares her perspective, that at the end of the day, she would much rather have created a brand that is as beloved and as fascinating as Glossier is, than have a brand that people aren’t really interested in talking about at all. This was a great read. See the link below. Do you agree that any press is good press? #beauty #skincare #cosmetics #beautybusiness #beautyindustry

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We’ve (almost) been able to automate our entire influencer seeding process. Let me explain: I’ve been pretty vocal about our push to build a profitable presence on TikTok Shop, and now that we’re seeing some progress, it’s time to double down. You can only scale your influencer seeding process so far with manual processes - eventually you’ll need to start automating the process to see some real results. We’re pouring a lot of our energy into ramping up our efforts on this end - and our outreach campaign to find these influencers is about as simple as it gets - Determine our commission structure and product we want to promote  - Filter out the exact type of creator we want with SARAL - The Influencer OS’s search engine - Craft our outreach messaging Then we’re letting it run. But my favorite part of this entire strategy? Since we’re searching, filtering, and creating our outreach campaigns through SARAL - The Influencer OS - it’s almost completely hands off. All I need to do is get everything together and press ‘go’. When you’re working at scale (like we are), this is a huge lifeline. It’ll help us to scale faster and easier while I can direct my attention to ironing out exactly what we want these influencers to promote and how. Yes, I’m a #proudpartner - but running a brand is all about optimizing everything you can. And if there’s something I can automate confidently? You know I’m going for it.

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Why are freelance prices higher than FTE? 🤔 Because brands don't have to: Pay for equipment (computer, software, etc) Pay for benefits (insurance, time off, etc) Pay for 40hrs/week, consistently Pay for taxes ❌ So, dear freelancer, raise those rates! 💸 💻 I'm hosting a *free* live training for freelance fashion designers 🤑 To help you find well-paying clients who value your services 📣 Comment 'TRAINING' below and I'll share the link

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5 pivotal things I’ve learned since moving to San Diego solo 3 months ago 1️⃣ Making new friends as an adult can be challenging, and that’s not talked about a lot You definitely have to go out of your way to reach out to people, join groups, show up at events, and otherwise put yourself out there— With detachment to whether or not people respond, follow up, or receive you in the way you intended. ——— 2️⃣ Everything takes longer than you think Anytime you’re embarking on a new experience, project, or circumstance, you have to give yourself grace and be patient with yourself. Otherwise you’re just going to burn out and get frustrated. Energy is a limited resource, and rest in restoring that is fully productive. ——— 3️⃣ Change is scary and uncomfortable but on the other side of that is what you really want Leaving familiarity, to this day, remains one of the hardest things for me. I like routine, knowing my people, and who I can call/text to hangout. ………. The funny thing about comfort and familiarity though is you think it’s what you want, but in reality it just makes you more miserable. If you’re not outside your comfort zone, you’re not growing. And if you’re not growing, you’re dying. ——— 4️⃣ Say yes and go to the thing I’m all for setting boundaries and honoring signs from your body, but at the same time I think advice on the internet around “learning to say no” lacks context. There have been very few times I’ve gone to something I didn’t really feel like going to or felt weird about before bc I was flying solo, and those thoughts ended up being true. ………. Usually after I commit to something and go to it, I leave saying — damn, I’m so glad I came to this. Because I ended up meeting someone new who’s awesome, having a new experience, and gaining new perspective. ——— 5️⃣ Don’t take things personally and try to withhold judgment to things that are foreign In a new city with new people, you’re going to be met with personalities, behavior, responses (or lack of), ideologies, and beliefs that might catch you off guard. That’s totally normal and expected. Being open minded and curious instead of rigid and judgmental is only going to serve you. ………. You get to see things from a different light and adopt someone else’s perspective — which doesn’t mean you have to agree. That ^ breeds understanding and empathy. Which we certainly need more of in today’s world. ——— If you’re based in SD or know someone who is and we haven’t met yet, I’d absolutely love to connect! Definitely in my season of exploring new things, having new experiences, and meeting new people 🌻💛 #sandiego #healthandwellness #newconnections

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The ONE founder that's developing a personal brand everyone should follow in the CPG industry: Erika Geraerts. Erika is a serial entrepreneur. She's one of the founders of killer branding agency Willow & Blake, and co-founder of beauty superstar Frank Body. Her current venture is as the founder of Fluff : An Australian casual cosmetics company that promotes the idea that you can feel "more with makeup, as long as you don't feel less without it." (One of my favorite taglines, ever) Erika is very present as herself. Not just as a founder, or a creative, or a copywriter. But as a human being. She writes regularly about her insights into the industry on her Medium, shares editorials from Fluff contributors, and runs the Pretty Hard podcast. Her ventures make it clear she's not only passionate about the beauty industry and what it means for both consumers and ecommerce... But that she's paving her way from a business perspective as a true disruptor. (Without calling herself a disruptor, of course) I've learned a lot just from listening to Erika on podcasts, reading her writing, and absorbing the incredible voice, tone, and copy she's expressed naturally through multiple mediums. If you want to be inspired, you should follow her, too. . Highlights I've learned from Erika's journey: + Give your brand idea a chance + Be patient (and grow slow if you need to) + Invest skill, time + money into copywriting + Have a creative marketing idea? Go for it + See what works, play with what doesn't What's a founder you're following that really capitalizes on these strategies? . Hey, I'm Tay: a personal brand ghostwriter + photographer for CPG startup founders breaking the mold in their industry with niche-defying products, values, and spirit. Because you didn't start your own thing to be like everyone else.

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Always an honor to share the stage with Gary Vaynerchuk! CMOs and creators need to wake up! Social media and advertising is changing. The most pressing issue we addressed at POSSIBLE? Staying relevant. How do you do that? 𝙎𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙛𝙞𝙧𝙨𝙩 ❇️ It’s undervalued & underpriced ❇️ The only merit-based thing left. People are telling you what they think. Are you listening? 𝘾𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙨 ❇️ It’s about relevance to each consumer ❇️ That means knowing & segmenting your audience 𝘽𝙚𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙚/𝘼𝙛𝙩𝙚𝙧 ❇️ Win the first second (stop the scroll) ❇️ Post-creative strategy: audit your wins and losses every time! “We romanticize the past, are blindly optimistic about the future, but are failing in the present” -Gary Vaynerchuk. If attention is the modern currency, understanding and adapting to these changes are essential. Do you agree? 📧 Connect with me to explore updating your strategies to maintain relevance in your marketing. **Thank you Gary for the shoutout in your book! #marketing #modernmarketing #possible2024 #marketers #marketingevent

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I've been diving deep into how different brands manage their influencer collaborations. I'm always curious to see how successful companies do things. Recently, I took a closer look at Abercrombie & Fitch's influencer marketing strategies. What I found was pretty unique and far from the typical "send free products and hope" tactic. Here are some key takeaways from their approach: Abercrombie & Fitch has something called the "Creator Suite by Abercrombie." They've made this program sound like an exclusive club. This makes the influencers feel special and valued, more than just another affiliate. The brand promotes this program actively on social media. This strategy draws in customers who already love the brand and have a decent following. They're more likely to want to join this cool community. Abercrombie uses a tiered system in their program. Influencers can complete challenges, earn points, and unlock rewards. This gamification keeps the influencers engaged over the long term. It's not just about one-time posts. Influencers also get to attend events for new product launches. This gets them excited and creates a buzz around new products right away. It gives them great content to share and strengthens their bond with the brand. Abercrombie also uses the content created by these influencers on their own social media. This gives them a constant flow of fresh, authentic content. It also gives extra visibility to the influencers, benefiting everyone involved. The biggest lesson here? Abercrombie doesn’t just chase the biggest names or throw the most money around. They focus on building a community of influencers who genuinely love and represent the brand well. I'm always excited to exchange ideas and learn from others in this space. How are you building relationships with influencers? Share your experiences; I’d love to hear more.

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The recent $1M US live shopping record is just the beginning of many to come… A few days ago, news broke out that Stormi Steele, the Canvas Beauty CEO, achieved over $1M GMV in a single live shopping session. Let there be no mistake… It’s an incredible achievement and there’s a lot to unpack here. I can already tell that a ton of DTC folks are thinking… “Who in my company can do this? Perhaps we can hire a social media person?” Can that work? I don’t know, try it out. However, I’ve seen this fail time and time again… ➡️ Creative Strategy ➡️ Social Media ➡️ TikTok Shop ➡️ Paid Social ➡️ Etc. “Let’s just hire an intern or someone who does social media.” For some, it works… But rarely. It’s time to at the very least talk about the intersection between the Creator Economy and the DTC world. That’s why creator-led brands grow quite rapidly even without paid ads. Now I’m not saying that all founders should be creators(maybe?)... But at the very least, having someone who does content creation for a living in your team is extremely beneficial. Here are some ways to do it: 1. Keep multiple creators on a retainer basis - Reach out to creators that fit within what you’re looking for and have multiple creators make a few videos a month. That will give the brand variety and enough consistency. If one doesn’t work out, you can easily replace it with another creator that is more in-line with what you’re looking for. 2. Good ol’ fashion collaborations - Instead of doing a pay-per-post type of deal(we usually find this ineffective), combine it with paid ads. You can either do whitelisting, or run it as a regular ad and do a flat + ad spend compensation structure. 3. Weekly shoots - IF your team is good at creative ideation and production, this is perfect. You can have your team come up with creative ideas, write the scripts, and cast people who fit within your ideal customer avatar. This saves on cost and time. It’s what we do and it WORKS. 4. Brand activations - Activations are incredibly effective if done right. The idea isn’t to just be in front of people… It’s to also shoot a ton of content that can be used for organic posts of paid ads. Video examples: Product reviews, interview style, showcasing products to your audience. These are just a few ways brands can capitalize on what’s going on. What are some of the other ways I’ve missed? ==================== I’m planning a series of events to help bring more brands and creators together… Our mission is to bridge the gap between the Creator Economy and the DTC space–fostering an environment for long term partnerships and collaborations. 06/27 - Private Dinner Event 06/28 - Creators x Brands Speed Dating Party Anaheim, California If you’re a BRAND or CREATOR and are interested in coming, shoot me a DM for more info. :) NOTE: I don’t run a talent agency–I’m NOT here to sell you anything.

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A lot of people talk about how conversational search and genAI will help out consumers. But one of the things I’m most excited about is how it’s going to make merchandisers’ lives better. One of the hardest things about the job today is trying to figure out what a shopper wanted when they landed on your site, and how hard they had to work to find it. With traditional search, you might only get a few words or a short phrase to figure it out, which isn’t much context. The beauty of conversational search is suddenly the merchant will have so much more information - instead of a couple words, they might have paragraphs or even full conversation transcripts they can reference — much deeper insight into what was going through the customer’s mind while they were shopping. Brendan Witcher goes on to explain how that information can then be used to produce more useful product copy and other CX enhancements. It’s one of my favorite parts of our webinar last week. What do you think?🤔

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Thank you, Retail Brew, for sharing this blog from impact.com on effective ways to better brand collaborations. As a social media manager who handles influencer marketing, I've seen firsthand the transformative power of a well-crafted influencer marketing strategy. Setting clear goals is vital to aligning your brand's vision and maximizing ROI. Building genuine, long-lasting relationships with creators fosters authenticity and trust, leading to more impactful campaigns. 🤝 Since incorporating tools like Aspire, we're enhancing our communication with creators, providing them with creative control that aligns with our brand values. ✨ #InfluencerMarketing #BrandStrategy #SocialMediaManagement #AuthenticRelationships

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Do you ever feel like you're posting on social or writing a blog post "just because"? Maybe it's to join the chorus of voices sharing impact stories around Earth Day, or celebrating Women's History Month before March ends. Maybe you have some amazing metrics to share but aren't sure how to write about them. Maybe you woke up one day and realized you only have three days until Earth Day. Creating content doesn't need to feel this frantic. After working with dozens of companies to plan and write content strategies, I've learned the importance of intentional storytelling. Read on (or check out the blog) for my six tips for creating impactful stories that align with your brand, and stand out from the social noise! 1. Put your audience first. Who are you speaking to? What would they like to learn/discover/watch? How can you provide value beyond the product or service you sell? Don’t try to create for everyone; narrow in on the audience that matters most. 2. Tell the truth. Always, no matter what. Especially when it comes to impact. Hold yourself and your team accountable, own where you’re falling short, and be clear about the meaning behind your metrics. It takes a lot of time to build trust with your customers or audiences, and it only takes one mistake to destroy it.  3. Ask yourself why. Arguably you should ask why any time you post, but when it comes to impact, intention is essential. Why are you choosing to share right now? Why does your story matter? Why are you the right ones to tell it? Why will your audience care? Revisit your mission, vision, and values to help tie your story back to your overarching company ethos. 4. Find the format that fits your vibe. Writing essays and written guides (like this one) is true to Watterson Creative because we deal in the written word. Maybe video is better aligned with your brand. Or maybe a series of photos or a product roundup will resonate best with your ideal customer. 5. Accept good enough. Do you have metrics that you’re proud of, but no time to publish a full report? Write a thoughtful letter or email and share the numbers there. Treat this year as an experiment, try a few simple posts or stories, note what lands, and use those learnings to do even better next year. 6. Normalize doing nothing. Not every brand needs to post for every calendar event. In fact, insensitive or sporadic posting could erode your audience’s perception of you and be counterproductive to your goals. So get comfortable sitting one out. Remember: Powerful content should extend your brand and help your clients or customers feel like they’re part of something. Have fun creating campaigns that celebrate your impact and share your story, and then see what resonates! Stuck on what to say or how to say it? Reach out. I’m always happy to spend an hour consulting on your story strategy, helping you plan a full editorial calendar, or taking the writing off your plate completely.

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🌱 #Cannabis and Ancillary Brands: If you've recently redesigned your website (or are in the process) ➡ When did you pull in your copy person? Here's the thing: - UX is important - The design needs to evoke emotion - High-quality images are critical ^^ All of these things help to attract your ideal buyer. ... But *no one* is going to convert without the right messaging. It's the words that ultimately make people click. When you bring your copy person in late, instead of from the get-go... They'll inevitably be working *around* your dev team instead of alongside them. And that'll result in sub-par messaging. It's sort of the same as when people are eager to design their logo. I'd argue that before you begin that process, you need messaging, brand values, value prop, etc., solidified first. (It'll also give those creatives so much more to go off of to really capture the essence of your brand.) Do you agree? #cannabisbrands #cannabismarketing #websitedesign #copywriting

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This a DTC version of up a creek without a paddle. My team had to tell one of our fashion brand partners: "Look, I can tell you what the truth is but I won't just tell you what you want to hear and say, yes" The brand is in what you'd call a conundrum. - afraid to increase prices - doesn't want to address their high opex - can't scale to make OPEX % smaller through volume - wants CPA cut in half next month - wants to maintain same sales Through ads we've acquired enough new customers that they grew 52% in the last 60 days. Profitable on first sale. That growth is causing strain on their team, which is understandable. Good problem to have but still stressful. So we recommended let's focus on getting you better margins while you catch up and build in structure. we recommended: - increase prices on some products. Their margins are lower than we like. - cut opex line items that aren't needed - roll out some bundling offers They instead would rather keep everything the same and go from a 4x MER target to 7x MER target. "can you guys just target traffic that would give us a $30 cpa vs our $52 CPA?" That's when we told them, "Look, I can tell you what the truth is but I won't just tell you what you want to hear and say, yes" That turned into us showing them a model that PROVED it wasn't realistic. And in that same conversation they actually thanked us for shooting straight with them. The real big benefit is we have access to A LOT of brands back ends and performance. We get to see across a lot of different verticals and products to see baseline performance. That is a big advantage. This brand is actually quite profitable. They just didn't know how other brands are playing the game to know they need to think differently to keep growing. Every brand on our books that is over $10mil in annual revenue runs their brand around 3x MER range. Your brand must be profitable at lower thresholds if you want to play with the big boys.

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