Merle Norman
SCALING MERLE NORMAN’S DTC BUSINESS
RESPONSIBILITIES: DIGITAL STRATEGY, ANALYTICS, AND PERFORMANCE OPTIMIZATION*
Challenge
Merle Norman, a 90+ year-old brand, faced challenges growing its direct-to-consumer (DTC) business.
With an aging customer base and limited relevance among Millennials and Gen Z, maintaining growth while respecting franchise studio owners' brick-and-mortar business was a delicate balance.
Additionally, the brand launched e-commerce less than a year prior, and existing brand assets were sparse and outdated, requiring modernization.
Solution
To drive sustainable growth, we implemented a multi-pronged strategy:
-
Developed a cross-functional calendar with creative and product development teams to align studio launches with e-commerce initiatives.
Created detailed briefs and business cases for improved photography and assets, focusing on product and texture shots optimized for web.
Designed holiday promotions with gift-with-purchase incentives instead of heavy discounts, ensuring margin protection during Black Friday and Cyber Monday.
-
Increased ad spend, ensuring budgets aligned with revenue goals (20-30% of target revenue).
Introduced affiliate marketing and retargeting campaigns, filling gaps in existing digital channels.
Enhanced email marketing cadence to 3-4 emails per week, improving engagement and conversions.
Recommended SEO improvements, focusing on high-quality backlinks to boost search rankings.
Optimized paid social strategies, incorporating stronger incentives to attract new customers.
-
Identified key staffing needs and successfully hired a UX/UI graphic designer and a full-stack developer for Salesforce Commerce Cloud.
Implemented performance benchmarking from competitive brands to guide UI/UX enhancements and ad spend allocation.
Results
32% YOY DTC revenue growth, with a 3.97% conversion rate.
Achieved 5x ROAS in paid search, significantly improving ad efficiency.
*Responsibilities & accomplishments as a full-time employee
TESTIMONIAL
“…[Lauren] effectively scaled the organization's e-commerce business by using a diverse array of skillsets in branding, digital marketing, technology, and creativity. ”
Michael Pendleton, Global Marketing Executive at Merle Norman
