Lace ‘em Up
Making a superior product is one thing, but convincing consumers of that fact is a whole ‘nother challenge. That hurdle can be amplified in children’s product lines, where parents are buying on behalf of the end user. It can cut both ways though, knowing most parents will opt for the most suitable option that they can financially afford.
This was the challenge See Kai Run faced when they committed to refining operations and growing their business. Considering the children’s shoe market is worth upwards of 46 billion dollars, it’s not surprising how competitive it can be to meet the various consumer needs between style, price point, product quality, and all combinations in between. This can result in a race to the bottom for any business without a robust marketing presence. Here’s a roadmap that businesses experiencing similar growing pains can follow to get over the hump.
About See Kai Run
Since 2004, See Kai Run has produced children’s footwear specifically for toddler feet. In support of podiatry development, their products offer stability to the contours of pre-adolescent feet. The Seattle-based footwear company distributes an array of products including shoes, sandals, boots, and sneakers offered in some of the biggest retailers across the country. Today, a dedicated team of designers and footwear makers carry on the original mission to ensure every style is fun, fashionable and features the finest in materials and craftsmanship.
The team at Logical Position has been instrumental in developing a marketing strategy that aligns with our objectives as a business and enabled our operation to define initiatives between our various product lines. By leveraging our value proposition front and center, they’ve propelled our direct-to-consumer channel and customer lifetime value tremendously.
— Steve Hart, Marketing Manager, See Kai Run
Up and Running
Before onboarding with Logical Position, See Kai Run’s digital marketing was handled in-house. At the time, they were only running basic search ads without proper attribution established, which left plenty of room for opportunity. This is when they reached out to LP to leverage their brand equity to grow their direct-to-consumer business. With a superior product in hand (or on foot, rather), they had established a reputable following, but needed a focused strategy for new acquisition, as their actual end users (children) would eventually grow out of their product offering. Literally.
Setting the Track
We started by conducting a full account audit to understand current benchmarks to build from. This allowed us to roadmap a pace that met the initial client needs and allowed our team to build for the future. In taking inventory of the current campaigns, we identified opportunities to fully stabilize the account with proper attribution to capture the whole picture. This was vital to establish a roadmap for the interim to properly benchmark the campaigns and begin setting proper targets.
Hitting the Ground
To meet executive business objectives we focused on low funnel acquisition to start. After all, their brand generated strong search volume from various high-profile retail placements that created an array of queries for their products. Thus, the DTC channel was utilized for inventory management, with ad creatives largely geared toward product clearance to help them free up cash flow for the business so they could focus on order fulfillment for their retail clients. This strategy was not sustainable.
Leveraging the LP Partner Ecosystem
Working within our preferred partner network allows our clients to integrate systems for optimal account success seamlessly. This benefit stemmed from See Kai Run attending our internal Partner Connect event in the summer of 2023 in preparation for the holiday rush. This further galvanized our strategy and overall campaign effectiveness.
Seamless integration with our in-house data-feed management platform, Feedlogic, to enable conversion actions in Shopping ads.
Help desk assistance to aid in cart abandonment prevention, improve conversions, and increase average order value.
Helping build the customer lifetime value by engaging post-purchase with rewards and rebate opportunities.
Paid Search
First Steps
Capture branded search volume with increased budget
Campaign segmentation across product catalog to isolate demand and appropriate spend matrix accordingly
Move strategy away from inventory clearance sales to focused campaign targets:
- First Walkers
- Toddler Sneakers
- Boots
- Sandals
Additional Steps Taken
Shifted focus to new acquisition with allocated budget for non-branded search terms
Adjusted budget seasonally for holiday rush and back-to-school shopping
Focused PMAX campaigns on non-branded queries to scale the account
Implemented negative keyword learnings from manual campaigns to educate PMAX automations
Merchandising the Data Feed
Our datafeed specialists populated product size, color, and model to each SKU to dominate the Shopping Feed and occupy as much digital shelf space as possible.
Paid Social
One Step Further
With a renewed focus on brand awareness and new audiences, we re-launched paid social ads for See Kai Run to begin building top-of-funnel traffic. These campaigns were previously run in-house but abandoned in spring 2021 at the onset of the iOS14.5 update that limited attribution visibility.
Cross-Channel Development
Our team used Meta’s advertising suite to introduce new messaging with a sole focus on their core lineup, instead of inventory clearance. Paid Social served as a strong medium for brand discovery and allowed our client to introduce the brand with a focus on healthy foot development. We leveraged the full re-marketing funnel on paid social to bring engaged users back to the site and introduce email subscribers to our mid-funnel remarketing campaigns, as well. With a direct impact on their branded search terms on Google and Microsoft, we incrementally increased the budget and eventually got enough threshold to launch Advantage Plus campaign automations that could scale the account. This allowed See Kai Run to reach higher-intent buyers and made the Meta Advertising suite an integral part of their full-funnel growth strategy.
Results
Through trust in the process, we’ve been able to achieve monumental success for See Kai Run and fully integrate their DTC eCommerce strategy into the backbone of their business. This has made a dramatic difference in the direction their board of directors are choosing to take the company, enabling See Kai Run to continue expanding its product line with a new and improved production facility to manufacture their shoes. Through a series of integrations and marketing solutions, our team has been able to keep the sole of See Kai Run intact for another generation of rambunctious toddlers and eager first-walkers.
Account snapshot: February 1, 2023 — February 29, 2024
Tips For Achieving Similar Results
Identify separate account targets for branded and non-branded search terms.
Integrate your branding efforts across multiple platforms (social and search) to gauge impact per channel.
Align your value proposition with your marketing efforts and avoid blanket discounts that cheapen your brand.
Leverage industry partnerships to your benefit. There are often referral credits and rebate incentives worth activating.
Is your business ready to embrace a full marketing sprint and capture new clients? Reach out today to learn how digital marketing can grow your sales on and offline.
