In this Q&A, DTC Daily speaks to Brody O'Harran, global business development, CvE, to discuss his business' recent partnership with DTC massage business, Soothe, and how DTCs are building their media plans. 

Can you explain why CvE and Soothe are a good match? 

The CvE and Soothe partnership is the result of macro-level changes in our industry resulting in brands have an elevated expectation for their digital partners. Whether those partners are agency or ad tech – clients want more than simple channel execution and vanity metrics. CvE launched, with the support of Goodway Group, with the intention of bringing together a team of people that can discuss data strategy and infrastructure, technology trends, media execution, as well as understand profitability and customer life-time value.

As Soothe continues their path of international expansion and the growth of their B2B business, it was important for them to have a more rich understanding of exactly who their users are and the value of those individuals. That effort and challenge aligned perfectly with the solutions CvE offers.

Why is having a clear digital media plan so important for DTC businesses?

In today’s world of fragmented device usage and platform choices to consume content, a consumer’s journey is not as linear as it once was. It’s crucial to have a presence throughout all touchpoints of the consumer journey to capitalise on every opportunity to reach and engage your high-value audience. Digital is a key component in today’s consumer journey, having a sophisticated digital strategy empowers DTC brands to connect with their audience in an impactful, meaningful way throughout their journey, driving real results on business objectives.

How can digital media help drive customer acquisition and loyalty?

Digital media is data-driven at the core. Accessibility to data that provides insight into a customer’s lifestyle, behavioural patterns, purchase history, in-market signals, brand affinities, and how they are interacting with your messaging helps marketers to understand where a user is within the conversion funnel. Leveraging this data to tailor messaging to specific audiences provides the user with an extremely personalised, relevant experience that will drive better results. For example, a brand’s messaging to a brand loyalist should be very different from their message to a prospect they are trying to convert. A brand loyalist is sold into the brand, there is a relationship established, and the brand should focus on nurturing and building the relationship during interactions. Digital media provides the data required to activate and execute this kind of highly personalised 1:1 experience.

Are there particular channels that DTCs are seeing as particularly useful in driving growth (i.e. social, TV, OOH etc)? 

Since consumers are people-based and not channel-based, it’s crucial to focus on the audience. Creative message and the ease of communicating a product’s benefit also plays heavily into this. DTCs are not a one size fits all, they offer different products and services, audiences will vary depending on the brand. To drive significant growth, focus on the audience and how to reach them in the most relevant, impactful manner. Putting audience at the core of your strategy and focusing on the user experience with the brand vs. channels will generate better results.

How can DTC brands leverage the data collected through their platforms to improve their customer offerings?

DTCs have an enormous advantage due to the amount of data that is accessible to leverage. Utilising the data to understand their customer on the deepest level can unlock powerful insights to improve their offerings. There are many possibilities to activate data to generate these kind learnings, but one impactful way to improve offerings is through A/B testing. DTC brands can A/B test audiences, messaging, offers, geos, etc. to determine which customer offerings resonate the most and why. Leverage these insights to inform future strategies, improvements to offerings, and fuel ideation for improving customer experiences.