Stronger Than Ever: How OMD Turned Challenges into Success for Ellina

Stronger Than Ever: How OMD Turned Challenges into Success for Ellina

In a challenging Lebanese market crippled by an economic crisis, a devastating explosion, and the Covid-19 pandemic, businesses were struggling to survive. Sadly, a great number of these businesses failed to make a comeback. Yet, despite all the hardships, one particular brand defied all odds and made a comeback even stronger than before: Ellina lingerie! Their Spring Summer 2023 campaign, boldly declaring ‘Yes, we’re here and we’re strong,’ defied expectations by achieving a 100% increase in sales.

So, the question that begs itself is: How did Ellina achieve this remarkable feat when so many others struggled? The answer is simple: Outsourced Marketing Department by Joint Media House.

Taking a company that was in survival mode for almost four years and then reviving it is no easy task. Do you want to know how it was done? Keep reading!

Who is Ellina

HADDAD Trading Co. was founded in 1975 and soon after, Ellina Lingerie was founded. Since its foundation, Ellina Lingerie has operated in a number of countries worldwide: Australia – Bahrain – Jordan – Kuwait – Lebanon (Head Office) – Qatar – Saudi Arabia – Syria – United Arab Emirates – Egypt. The company offers a wide variety of gently crafted items with the finest materials and first-quality workmanship to guarantee comfort and durability in each of its beautiful designs.

Ellina Lingerie is a luxury lingerie brand for women focused on creating beautiful and comfortable pieces that celebrate the very nature of womanhood. Their collections feature a range of styles, from bold and seductive to romantic and feminine, all made with the highest quality materials and attention to detail.

Their mission is to empower women to feel confident and sexy in their skin, regardless of shape or size. That’s why Ellina offers a wide range of sizes, including plus sizes, to ensure that every woman can find the perfect fit.

In addition to their signature lingerie, Ellina also offers a range of lounge and sleepwear, as well as shapewear and cover-ups. No matter what you’re looking for, Ellina Lingerie has something for every woman who values comfort, style, and self-love.

How Did the Multiple Crises Affect Ellina?

Amidst Lebanon’s hardship, from currency inflation to economic issues, internal conflict, and definitely COVID, most brands found it difficult to survive this harsh period. Prices were on the rise, and the consumers’ purchasing power was at an all-time low, which led people to stick only to necessities.

Like every business in the country, Ellina took a huge hit during COVID. All of its shops were closed, and this is when Ellina opted to open its online shop to survive and supply loyal customers, but with little luck.

The crises were hard, to say the least, and even when they ended, the company faced other types of issues: 

• Slow sales
• Loss of brand awareness and reach

Another issue that was worth mentioning as well is that Ellina was set on targeting a younger generation. Yet, their mission was made harder by the ongoing quarantine.

Success Through OMD

Defining Objectives

The first step in any campaign is establishing clear objectives. Ellina’s Spring/Summer 2023 campaign had three primary objectives:

We will see how different departments contributed to the success of that campaign through OMD.

JMH Department Involvement

Marketing Department

The first step was to benchmark the market and analyzing the SS campaigns of 4 local and two international competitors. It was also essential to craft a unique story that delivers our brand values and connect us with our audience. At this point, our focus was on utitlizing the best marketing materials to communicate this story. This translated into covering multiple online and offline marketing materials:

Crafting a Compelling Story for Ellina SS23 Campaign

Ellina’s latest marketing strategy revolves around celebrating the diverse experiences of womanhood. The campaign aims to highlight various moods and vibes women go through. The focus is on lingerie sets that complement each woman’s unique style, promoting confidence and authenticity. The campaign features four women from different backgrounds enjoying genuine moments, showcasing the versatility of Ellina lingerie. Sensuality, comfort, and fun are central themes, with sets designed to make women feel beautiful and comfortable in any situation. The collection includes a range of styles, from romantic lace to floral prints, combining aesthetics with functionality. Ellina’s Spring/Summer 2023 ad campaign is more than just visual appeal; it’s a celebration of modern womanhood, self-love, and the unique beauty inherent in every woman. The campaign invites women from all walks of life to join in embracing their authentic selves and revel in the magic of being a woman.

Media Buying

Targeted Audiences identification

After the data collection and idea development phase, the Media Buying team took over. Based on the products and price analysis for the SS 23 campaign, they matched these findings with the interests of the target audience. They were responsible for effective budget allocation, advising the marketing team on platform selection, and determining the required variations.

Our media buying team began with establishing an understanding of the client’s goals, target audience, and the dynamics of the market. They created a suitable media buying strategy based on their research and assessment.

When it came to where, to whom, and how to communicate and share the campaign, the media buying team landed on focusing on these targets : 

• Target 1: Targeting Women aged 18 to 65
• Target 2: Retargeting customers with previous purchases
• Target 3: Look alike targets 

All of the audiences had a similar interest in Lingerie. The campaigns launched on two platforms which are Meta and Google. The strategy included a comprehensive approach involving multiple ad formats and objectives for various product categories, following the A/B testing process.

Meta Advertising

Featured Categories:

• Pajamas
• Baby Dolls
• Shapewears
• Bra Sets
• Underwear

Campaign Elements:

• Visuals: Visual content created for each category to boost sales.
• Brand Awareness Video: Launched as part of the Meta strategy to promote the campaign.
• Foot Traffic Improvement:

• Low Foot Traffic Issue: Addressed because Ellina Lingerie had several shops with low foot traffic.
• Solution: Location-based ads designed to redirect users to respective WhatsApp accounts.
• Strategy: Utilized geo-targeting to reach the local audience surrounding each shop location.

Google Advertising Primary Platforms

Google My Business:

• Targeted Locations: Tailored to locations associated with Ellina’s Google My Business account.
• Offered Details: Provided information for contacting the store, accessing the website, or navigating through Google Maps.

Google Search:

• Segmentation: Segmented into best-selling categories.
• Focus and Budget Allocation: Primary focus and the highest budget allocated to Bras as the top-selling items to drive sales.

Google Display:

• Objective: Concentrated on a blend of visuals to enhance brand awareness.
• Focus: Focused on brand awareness rather than direct sales.

Taking on a campaign that is tackling multiple ends at once required a budget, and the team suggested that the budget increases of 50% compared to the preceding year in order to tackle all of these fronts to fulfill all of the objectives that needed to take place.This strategic decision reflects a commitment to overcoming obstacles and fostering advancement in the face of economic uncertainties. 

Copywriting Department

Moving on to the copywriting team which played a pivotal role in crafting the campaign’s Story and messaging, which extended from SMS to emails and ads. They began by collaborating closely with our marketing team, immersing themselves in the brand’s identity and aligning with the marketing objectives. With comprehensive briefs and effective communication, they crafted compelling copy that grabbed the audience’s attention and delivered tangible results. With a great focus on the audiences’ needs, pains, and wants, they created a story that delivered the brand message and spoke the customer’s language.

Graphic Design Department

Designers were instrumental in crafting the visuals for the campaign.The graphic design team then crafted a visual identity that harmonized with the identified successful branding elements. This approach ensured that our designs were in line with proven strategies in the market, guaranteeing a consistent and appealing visual language across all marketing materials.

Brand Consistency: We worked on developing a consistent visual language, encompassing colors, typography, imagery, and design elements, that would be applied across all platforms, from the landing page to billboards.

Campaign-Specific Visuals: Each marketing component, such as the Ads campaign, Social Media, Email campaign, or billboards, received its distinct visual treatment while adhering to the overarching brand identity. This ensured that every touchpoint with the audience carried a consistent and memorable visual message.

Social Media Department

In the social media (SM) strategy, the team adopted a diverse and comprehensive approach that revolves around storytelling while promoting the products, all supported by effective community management. 

This involved sharing the brand’s journey, values, and unique selling points in a way that engaged and inspired Ellina lingerie’s community.

In addition to storytelling, the team incorporated product promotion within the posts through boosts. 

It’s worth mentioning that it was deliberately decided not to involve influencers in the strategy for various reasons. Firstly, the social media department did not want to confine Ellina to one image, it needed to reach every woman possible. Secondly, we’re still in the process of testing the market to see the number of people it could reach without external influence.

The Success in Numbers:

Now for Social Media, we gained 40% more followers than projected. The campaign had 135% more people than the previous month. 

The collaborative effort led to impressive results, showcasing Ellina’s resurgence in the market. The campaign successfully communicated that Ellina is here and stronger than ever. Though initially challenged by transitioning to an online presence, this campaign achieved its objectives of Location Awareness, Sales, and Brand Awareness. In synergy, the marketing, media buying, copywriting, graphic design, and social media teams contributed to this success.

We were confident in achieving such impressive results as we had anticipated an increase in purchasing power when the Covid 19 pandemic would come to an end.

Real Results with JMH’s OMD

The numbers do not tell the whole story because Ellina doesn’t only sell the products; it sells the experience and the relationship. Some of its clients describe the brand as a part of their identity, to an extent, it’s part of who they are, which is why Joint Media House needed to extend this experience to new customers. We needed to offer every woman in Lebanon that experience, that closeness.

Leading the campaign, we wanted to expand the reach and expand Ellina’s message. Based on this goal, the  marketing team thrived to understand this bond and transcend it in numbers, goals, and objectives, and by planning a full-on campaign, the execution team made this vision a reality. It’s simply the fact that the planning and the execution were in one single place that made that campaign possible; if not all of these elements were not aligned to the utmost perfection, that campaign would’ve not achieved the success that it had.

JMH’s OMD(Outsourced Marketing Department) will offer you a dedicated and experienced outsourced marketing team to manage your brand and business as their own. Our expertise provides marketing solutions tailored to your unique business needs, from design and social media to email marketing and content creation  all aligned under one marketing goal and vision.

If you’re interested in a free business consultation fill in the following form: https://jointmediahouse.com/contacts/