Elle Canada has partnered with Dior to create a series of three shoppable videos promoting the beauty brand’s new Backstage Pro – Instant Beauty Solution collection.
Ranging in length from 45 to 60 seconds, the videos – “First blush,” “Kiss and tell” and “Eye Candy” – showcase products from the new Dior collection. A series of highlighted dots appear throughout the videos, inviting viewers to click to buy the featured products.
The videos are available at ElleCanada.com/ShopSpringBeauty as well as the TC Media title’s iPad edition. Elle’s print readers can also access the videos by downloading the free “Viewa” app and then scanning a four-page spread inside the current issue to watch on a smartphone or tablet.
The six-week campaign was created in association with Dior’s media agency, Havas. It also includes a digital long-form execution and in-store consultations at Dior counters at Hudson’s Bay. Each video ends with an invitation to sign up for the free consultation.
The videos coincide with the introduction of the Elle Canada Closet, an online representation of the physical space inside Elle’s Toronto headquarters where the magazine’s editors come up with fashion and beauty shoots.
The TC Media brand made its first foray into shoppable videos last year, partnering with Hudson’s Bay on a series called #ShopYourMood” that enabled Elle Canada readers to purchase fall fashion directly from the videos.
E-notifications about #ShopYourMood sent to Elle Canada’s database saw a 78% open rate and an 11.9% click-through rate. “We exceeded on every metric we set out to succeed upon,” said Jacqueline Loch, vice-president and group publisher, consumer solutions at TC Media in Toronto.
While acknowledging the shoppable video execution comes at a higher cost than a standard print or digital ad, Loch said its e-commerce component also gives Elle access to other areas of Dior’s total marketing budget, such as merchandising and promotion.
She stressed that offering Elle readers engaging and relevant content remains a key focus in programs of this nature. “At the end of the day it’s a revenue-generating advertising play, but the lens we look through is, ‘Is the Elle customer experience good? Are we meeting all of Dior’s marketing objectives, and is the content experience good?’” she said.
