Desert Essence

Founded in 1978, Desert Essence is a trusted source for natural and organic personal care products. The company’s marketing team approached
Medium to reinvent their online brand presentation, complete with updated design, an improved user interface and a wider business reach through
social media integration. Through this three-step approach, we set out to grow the brand's customer base, while remaining true to its mission
and standards.

We created a clean, user-friendly website to improve the online shopping experience while also establishing a strong online connection to the
brand positioning, packaging and print collateral. Using a Drupal platform, we streamlined the information architecture and developed targeted
landing pages to support highly trafficked keywords and top-selling products. We integrated social media links to build brand awareness and
implemented customer reviews to promote trust and loyalty. To enhance the shopping experience, product detail pages were redesigned to highlight
key product benefits and now include tablature so customers can easily access customer reviews, usage instructions and ingredient information.
The robust platform of the new Desert Essence website now easily accommodates promotions and discounts. Additionally, the backend helps
monitor inventory stock levels, while the flexible interface enables the marketing team to make simple product updates.

We doubled the brand’s email marketing program, and in 2011 launched an Email Welcome program which allows for segmented delivery based
on customer preferences and has helped increase open rate by 17%. We also launched the Desert Essence blog, The Blooming Sage, as a
resource for natural living, with Earth-friendly tips and advice to promote interaction and further build the brand’s online community.

All online messaging is now cohesive, consistent and aligned with the brand’s larger marketing strategy. Building on the sense of grassroots
community that has long been a part of the Desert Essence brand, we have developed their social media outlets into a legitimate, responsive
marketing platform by providing informative content, contests and customer service. Facebook fans have grown by over four times, and Twitter
followers have increased by nearly 300%. Medium continues to partner with the client’s PR team to ensure that all press mentions and media
spots are highlighted online and communicated to the Desert Essence community via social media platforms.

The combined online initiatives have provided a much improved user experience and have dynamically impacted sales and website traffic. Average
Order Value (AOV) has increased by 14%, while improved usability and an optimized PPC campaign has led to a conversion rate increase of 32%.