2011 Bronze Effie Winner
“EOS - Reinventing Lip Balm”
Category: Beauty Products & Services
Brand/Client: EOS Products
Primary Agency: Juniper Park
Strategic Challenge
How do you break through as a challenger brand in an already over-invested women‟s beauty
market, competing against rich multinationals within a product category that no one really cares
about?
In the case of EOS, you do it by designing a product as innovative, thoughtful and charming as the
EOS Smooth Sphere lip balm, and then radically altering the consumer perception of just how
appealing a lip balm can actually be.
The US lip balm category is $400 million annually, stocked with brands that are well established
and have the strength of multinational companies behind them. The top 4 brands have a combined
65% share and there are about 200 additional brands with less than 1% share each. Moreover, in
the year prior to the EOS launch, a large branded skincare company (“Competitor”) entered the lip
care category spending approximately $30MM to achieve a 6.3% dollar share. EOS was entering a
hyper competitive category, with fewer skus and a significantly lower spend than Competitor, or
the top brands.
So how did EOS gain a solid footing in this category, which certainly didn‟t need another lip balm?
By reframing expectations of what a lip balm can be.
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2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
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The lip balm category is built on traditions and conventions – lip balm comes in sticks and pots and
the category colors are powder pinks, pale blues, white and beige. The products are functional, but
they don‟t delight. Likewise, communications in the category follow similar conventions – talking
about the ingredients, the elements (cold, wind, nature) or a more girly approach (lips, kissing).
But EOS was created to disrupt such conventions; to provide women with products that are both
purposeful and delightful, products that elevate otherwise mundane tasks of beauty and transform
them into acts of joy.
And that‟s exactly what it did. The Smooth Sphere lip balm is the perfect embodiment of EOS‟
principles - born out of a unique understanding of what women want and need.
Women consume over 9lbs of lipstick over a lifetime; most made from petroleum-based chemicals.
So EOS made their product 100% natural and 95% organic. And then packaged it in a beautifully
round, brightly-colored recyclable sphere - gorgeous to look at, soft and sensuous to the touch,
intimating how amazing a woman‟s lips would feel when using it. It‟s also super easy to find in a
cluttered handbag.
EOS knew it had something special. It is, quite possibly, the first lip balm that women might
actually covet, and perhaps even love. They just had to get it in women‟s hands, AND get them
talking about it – all with virtually nothing to spend.
Our bulls-eye was women 25-35yrs, who are stylish, curious and interested in being in-the-know.
They enjoy searching for the latest “new thing” that they can share with their social network. We
believed that if we could engage women in the brand (equity) and with the actual product (trial
initiative) we could create brand evangelists and ignite a significant groundswell of interest and
recommendation of EOS for this new brand to gain traction in this crowded category.
We had two marketing challenges, with a very small budget:
1. Generate awareness for the completely unknown EOS brand and smooth sphere lip balm
product.
2. Drive trial of EOS‟ unique smooth sphere lip balm by sampling 50,000 lip balms in 30 days to
our target audience.
Objectives
Our business objective was ambitious:
Achieve a 2% share in the channels in which EOS had distribution.

Analysis of the category determined a 2% dollar share to be significant enough to establish a
position in the market.

For perspective on how aggressive this goal was, there are 200+ existing brands that have
failed to achieve more than 1% share at all. EOS wanted to achieve this in 6 short months.
The Big Idea
EOS is purposely & delightfully made for women.
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Tel: 212-687-3280 Fax: 212-557-9242
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2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
property laws. This brief may be displayed, reformatted and printed for your personal use only. By using this site, you agree not to
reproduce, retransmit, distribute, sell, publicly display, publish or broadcast the information to anyone without the prior written consent of
the Effie Awards.
So few things are truly made for women. At its core, EOS products are thoughtfully made with
women in mind:
EOS knows that women often don‟t take time for themselves, so its products elevate her otherwise
mundane tasks of beauty and transform them into acts of joy. Thereby giving her a gift.
Our big idea, was inspired by the thoughtfulness of the product itself: EOS creates products that
are equally purposeful and delightful:
While EOS‟ smooth sphere lip balm is loved for its 100% natural and 95% organic ingredients
and its delightful flavors, its overall design is its most thoughtful element of all. Instead of the
expected, slender tube, EOS smooth sphere lip balm comes in a delightfully round, wonderfully
soft sphere. Ok, now you might be asking, “But how will that fit in my pocket?” Exactly. It isn‟t
meant to go in your pocket. It is designed so you can always find it in your purse.
Simply brilliant.
And our big idea was confirmed by consumer research:
Our consumer research instantly showed that the brand‟s commitment to and thoughtfulness
around being both purposeful & delightful was not lost on consumers. The immediately
understood it as the brand‟s true purpose.
Some verbatims:

“Someone put a lot of time and effort into the design of this product”

“You pick it up because it looks like fun, then you turn it around and are totally
surprised by the naturalness”

“OMG, they‟ve made a boring category fun!”

“I love the little details – the embossing, the shapes and colors”

“Love that you can find it in your purse”

“I feel like it was actually made for me”
This idea, language and imagery had to be as thoughtful and contemporary as EOS‟ product
design itself. Furthermore, it was immediately evident that the sense of true delight sparked when
women actually held EOS‟ products in their hands. When women hold an EOS smooth sphere,
they immediately „get it‟ – it was truly made for them.
Bringing the Idea to Life
Unlike, Competitor, we didn‟t have $30MM budget, so we weren‟t going to outspend our
competition. We had to approach our strategy like a surgeon with a scalpel. Our budget was
small. Very small. So every piece of communication had to work extremely hard. It had to
reinforce that EOS is truly an evolution in lip balm and create a sense of desire.
Our target was women in their 20s and 30s, who are intuitively drawn to what is stylish. They are
curious and interested in being in-the-know, which keeps them searching for the latest and
greatest “new thing” that they love sharing with their social network.
Effie® Awards
116 E. 27 St., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-687-3280 Fax: 212-557-9242
th
2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
property laws. This brief may be displayed, reformatted and printed for your personal use only. By using this site, you agree not to
reproduce, retransmit, distribute, sell, publicly display, publish or broadcast the information to anyone without the prior written consent of
the Effie Awards.
Our communication strategy had three pillars:
1. We created equity print for a sense of presence in highly targeted print magazines.

The print medium was important for establishing our brand with our target. The brand‟s
physical design, which intuitively made women smile, was our inspiration. We played off the
shape and colors of the smooth sphere, placing them in artistic situations reminiscent of
objects in everyday life. For example, we replaced apples in trees and eggs in nests to
showcase EOS‟ design sensibility.

The print campaign ran in highly select beauty, fashion, lifestyle and celebrity magazines – a
total of 115 print GRPs. (We told you our budget was small!)
2. We created POS and merchandise shippers to maximize the product‟s visual impact at
shelf.

The simple yet sophisticated imagery was in keeping with the brand‟s design sensibility. As a
new brand being sold in to retailers, the at-shelf execution was a critical part of the total mix to
ensure momentum was established and fuelled.

In-store POS materials ran in key accounts.
3. We harnessed the power of women to spread the word.
 We leveraged two powerful insights to build our communication idea:
i.
Women trust their tribe more than anyone else. (Source: Female Brain, Dr. Louann
Brizendine)
ii. Women use social media almost twice as much as men, and they use it differently.
Women actively use social media to share tips, information and advice with each other.
In essence, they are their own media channel.
We knew that if we could show her the thoughtfulness of the EOS smooth sphere, she would
recognize that it was made for her - and she would want to share her find with her peer group.
And we believed that if we could get the smooth sphere in women‟s hands and offer a delightful
interaction with the EOS brand - they would become fans. So we harnessed this innate behavior
of women, and hardwired their desire to share delightful tips and experiences with their girlfriends
into the program.
We had to get 50,000 smooth spheres into women‟s hands in 30 days. With absolutely no media
budget.
We did it by spurring rampant word of mouth by leveraging women‟s innate social media
behavior and innate “sisterhood” connection.

We tapped into brand ambassadors to spread the message (consumers and beauty editors who
had written to EOS about how much they loved the product)

We created a microsite that would show women the extent of their Sphere of Influence (i.e. her
circle of friends).

Our message was simple: “Get one, and share one”. We invited women to receive a free EOS
smooth sphere, and share the same invitation with her girlfriends, using Facebook, Twitter or
email. Once again, it was rooted in our big idea: Purposeful (get one) and delightful (share
one).

The site enabled women to create a visual representation of her friends who received EOS
smooth spheres through her, and how they were connected to each other.

While doing so, we invited women to complete the thought, “if the world was made for
women...”. This provided an opportunity to engage with the EOS brand, as a brand truly made
Effie® Awards
116 E. 27 St., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-687-3280 Fax: 212-557-9242
th
2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
property laws. This brief may be displayed, reformatted and printed for your personal use only. By using this site, you agree not to
reproduce, retransmit, distribute, sell, publicly display, publish or broadcast the information to anyone without the prior written consent of
the Effie Awards.
for women, and share and enjoy the thoughts of their peers.
The sampling campaign launched using no paid media, only the advocacy of brand fans and
online beauty editors.
Communications Touch Points
TV
Spots
Branded Content
Sponsorship
Product placement
Radio
Spots
Merchandising
Program/content
Print
Trade/Professional
Newspaper - print
Newspaper - digital
X Magazine - print
Magazine – digital
Print partnership
Direct
Mail
Email
X PR
Events
Packaging
Product Design
Cinema
Interactive
Online Ads
Web site
Viral video
Video skins/bugs
Social Networking Sites
Podcasts
Gaming
Mobile Phone
X Other – Microsite (sampling)
OOH
Airport
Transit
Billboard
Place Based
Other
Trade Shows
Sponsorship
Retail Experience
X POP
Video
X In-Store Merchandizing
Sales Promotion
Retailtainment
Guerrilla
Street Teams
Tagging
Wraps
Buzz Marketing
Ambient Media
Sampling/Trial
Consumer Involvement
WOM
Consumer Generated
Viral
Other
Additional Marketing Components:
None.
Reach:
National.
Total Media Expenditure:
$2-5 Million.
Effie® Awards
116 E. 27 St., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-687-3280 Fax: 212-557-9242
th
2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
property laws. This brief may be displayed, reformatted and printed for your personal use only. By using this site, you agree not to
reproduce, retransmit, distribute, sell, publicly display, publish or broadcast the information to anyone without the prior written consent of
the Effie Awards.
Results
Despite being a new brand with a budget a mere fraction of the size of a key competitor, the EOS
smooth sphere program was a resounding success!
BUSINESS: EOS achieved a 2.5% dollar share brand in the drug channels in which it had
distribution in just 6 months, exceeding our goal of 2%.
 To put this accomplishment into context, EOS did so with the same distribution as
Competitor, nearly half the skus (12 vs. 22) and a much lower spend of $2.5MM (vs.
Competitor‟s $30MM spend). EOS achieved 40% of the share Competitor did (2.5% share
for EOS vs. 6.3% for Competitor), with less than 10% of the spend
EOS
Competitor
$
Spend
Drug
Dollar
Share
Cost/Share
Pt
Time
frame
Distribution
skus
2.5MM
2.5%
$1.0MM
6 months
40%
12
30.0MM
6.3%
$4.8MM
6 months
40%
22
Sources: The Nielsen Company. Adweek (Competitor Spend Data). EOS Management (EOS Spend
Data).

Volume sold at retail tripled (internal sales source - specific numbers not made public) in
the first month of the print campaign vs. the prior month (Oct vs. Sept 2009).
MARKETING: The success of the sampling campaign was off the charts:
 We gave away the 50,000 spheres in just 24 hours with no media support (vs. our goal of
30 days)
 13% of visitors contributed an „if the world was made for women…‟ comment which showed
their interest and engagement as it was not a requirement to receive the sample (Source:
EOS Management)
 The excitement generated by those wanting to share the site with their friends through
Twitter, exceeded Twitter‟s limit of connections, causing Twitter to stop posts originating
from the site – in short, we essentially „broke‟ Twitter!
 16 fashion and beauty editors, including People Style Watch (average 12.6MM visitors daily)
featured the program
 Visits to the EOS main website, jumped 10x in the first day and 20x on the second day
after the launch of the sampling site vs. the prior average. We had definitely created
interest in EOS. (Source: EOS Management)
Further Consumer Success: Consumers are buzzing about EOS:
 “EOS lip balm” is the most searched term on Google for terms that include lip balm by a
factor of 10 to 1 (second most searched term is “best lip balm”) – Source: Google Insights.
 There are 12 separate fan pages on Facebook and over 3000 vidEOS on YouTube
 People from over 165 countries have shown up at the EOS main website to check out the
product
 Editorial coverage online and offline in beauty magazines and through bloggers continues to
build.
 The campaign expanded the EOS database from 1,500 brand fans to 37,000 who wanted to
Effie® Awards
116 E. 27 St., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-687-3280 Fax: 212-557-9242
th
2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
property laws. This brief may be displayed, reformatted and printed for your personal use only. By using this site, you agree not to
reproduce, retransmit, distribute, sell, publicly display, publish or broadcast the information to anyone without the prior written consent of
the Effie Awards.
stay in touch with EOS.
Further Business Success:
 The consumer momentum has translated into customer success! The consumer magnetism
and strong in-store visuals has allowed EOS to double its presence in its current distribution
and expand distribution to every major mass retailer. EOS is currently the #1, 2 or 3 brand
or sku at every major retailer. (Source: EOS Management)
And people thought it was only a lip balm!
Anything else going on that might have helped drive results?
Ongoing PR outreach to beauty, fashion and lifestyle magazines and blogs continues to build
awareness of and brand advocates for EOS, however, there are no formal programs.
Effie® Awards
116 E. 27 St., 6th Floor, New York, NY 10016
Tel: 212-687-3280 Fax: 212-557-9242
th
2011: The information available through effie.org is the property of the Effie Awards and is protected by copyright and other intellectual
property laws. This brief may be displayed, reformatted and printed for your personal use only. By using this site, you agree not to
reproduce, retransmit, distribute, sell, publicly display, publish or broadcast the information to anyone without the prior written consent of
the Effie Awards.