CLINIQUE

To take advantage of a viral moment for its classic Almost Lipstick in Black Honey, Clinique used a live shopping event to launch an Instagram-exclusive set featuring the product, which was added to 85% of orders over 11 days.

THE STORY
Iconic beauty brand

Launched in 1968, Clinique became a beauty industry trailblazer with its dermatologist-created skincare products and its recognizable brand image of in-store advisors dressed in pristine white lab coats. The brand remains committed to its original mission to provide the safest and most effective skincare formulas possible.

85%

of orders via Instagram and Facebook from September 14–25, 2021 contained one of the Instagram-exclusive sets1

7X

faster product launch activation (3 days, compared to average 3-week activation time for new product launches)2

Instagram allowed us to maintain interest in the brand while addressing the demand for an otherwise out-of-stock product. Repurposing the kit to an Instagram exclusive allowed us to create a saleable product, meeting consumers where their demand was—on social.
CAROLYN DAWKINS, SVP, PRODUCT MARKETING, CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT & ONLINE, CLINIQUE
THE GOAL
Responding quickly to surging demand

As a surge in popularity led to Clinique’s Almost Lipstick in Black Honey selling out online and in stores, the brand wanted to further accelerate consumer demand by providing shoppers with a new way to discover the bestselling lipstick shade.

THE SOLUTION
Creative real-time merchandising

Demand for Clinique’s Almost Lipstick in Black Honey spiked during the summer of 2021, propelled by the momentum of numerous beauty and social trends. The product’s sudden rise in popularity meant that it sold out in major retail stores and also went temporarily out of stock on Clinique’s website. The brand had travel-size inventory in stock, however. Determined to build on Black Honey’s viral moment, the brand partnered with Instagram to launch an exclusive 7-piece kit. The spotlight product: the in-stock, travel-size Black Honey lipstick.

As Black Honey trended, the team worked quickly to plan and organize the product launch via a live shopping event on Instagram. The 20-minute show featured a simple and conversational format: three Clinique Field Executives appeared onscreen to share what they loved about Black Honey. Each one applied the shade so viewers could see how the product looked on a variety of skin tones. The product link was pinned on-screen, so that viewers could add the product to their shopping carts at any time and purchase on Instagram.

Throughout the broadcast, Clinique took advantage of the engaging experience of live shopping on Instagram. Viewers were encouraged to add comments and questions, which the hosts could read and respond to as they came in. As the broadcast culminated, the hosts reminded viewers how they could simply buy the set on Instagram.

Clinique promoted the launch for three days after the live shopping event. The brand created more buzz with posts in its Instagram feed that highlighted the exclusive launch, as well as through Stories. Both its feed and Stories posts included product tag links that people could click to view the product details in Clinique’s shop on Instagram and purchase the item without leaving the app.

Clinique’s Instagram-exclusive product launch and live shopping shopping event helped the brand achieve multiple goals. Using data from Commerce Manager and Clinique’s ecommerce insights platform, the team measured the following results:

  • 85% of orders via Instagram and Facebook from September 14–25, 2021 contained one of the exclusive product sets

  • 7X faster product launch activation (3 days, compared to average 3-week activation time for new product launches)

These results were provided by Clinique based on a campaign run in September 2021 and are not the result of a controlled study. Your results may vary.

Success with this launch included both internal and consumer-facing wins. For our consumers, we were looking to increase engagement with Clinique within the Facebook commerce ecosystem by addressing the extremely high demand for an otherwise out of stock product. Knowing how quickly virality and consumer interest can shift in today’s landscape, we also wanted to test our agility in working with cross-functional teams.
CAROLYN DAWKINS, SVP, PRODUCT MARKETING, CONSUMER ENGAGEMENT & ONLINE, CLINIQUE