Y.O.U Underwear, the highest-scoring fashion B Corp globally, faced significant challenges in a crowded market. Competitors had matched their sustainability credentials, outspent them on advertising, and targeted the same audience. Meanwhile, their outdated website, inconsistent imagery, and small business storytelling-heavy marketing was failing to drive conversions.
In early 2024, Google algorithm change caused a drop in organic traffic, and competitors responded by increasing ad spend, leaving Y.O.U struggling to maintain visibility.
On top of this, their product range of “comfy basics” was seen as a convenience rather than an aspirational choice, that people were unlikely to seek out for single-point online purchase.
These factors led to declining conversion rates and market share, with the brand relying heavily on income from their physical shop, until they hired us to fix it.
To counter these challenges, we redefined their audience, shifted their messaging to focus on confidence and empowerment, revamped their digital presence, and treated organic content like advertising to build brand recall without relying on a high ad spend.
Headline Results
In just 10 months we achieved:
- 53% increase in sales – achieved organically without ad spend
- Delivered a new competitive digital presence and strong market positioning
- Launched a fully built campaign in just 17 working days from photoshoot to launch, with enough assets to run for two years
- A 7% improvement in conversion rate
- A 362% boost in sales from Instagram
- Email marketing revenue up 119.5%
- 3% growth in average order value (AOV)
- Returning customer rate up 6%
The brand now stands out in a competitive market with a stronger, more empowered digital presence, a targeted audience, and a message that resonates deeply with women over 40.
Here’s what we did…
Redefining the audience
When we started working with them, Y.O.U were targeting women age 25-40. This audience was too broad, and lacked the disposable income to afford their products.
93%of women aged 40 to 60 make all or most of the financial decisions in UK households. 40+ women control 80% of the UK’s wealth, 1 in 2 is the chief income earner in their household and they are 90% more likely [than those under 40] to earn over £40,000. There are 8.5 million women in this category, spending an average of £92bn annually.
They prioritise self-care and have the disposable income to spend on themselves. 72% say it is important to treat themselves, while 60% say they deserve to do so once in a while. This demographic is tech savvy. 67% of women in their forties and older purchase shoes and/or clothing online at least monthly.
However, most brands ignore this demographic, and women over 40 tend to feel underrepresented in advertising and marketing, and underserved by brands. With all our competitors targeting 20 and 30 year olds, shifting focus to over 40 was a smart move to claim market share.
We identified that Y.O.U underwear could stand out from competitors and gain market share by focusing on a more personal and empowering message that brings the impact and the sales messaging together in a way that converts. We shifted Y.O.U’s focus to this untapped audience and a campaign that reflected their values: confidence, empowerment, and self-investment.
Execution:
- Created relatable, aspirational campaigns showcasing high-quality, well-fitting products designed specifically for women 40+.
- Elevated Y.O.U’s offering from a convenience purchase to an aspirational self-care choice.
- Integrated behavioural insights, like relatability through imagery and care-driven messaging – putting real customers front and centre in photography and videography and showing women of all ages in a positive light.
Results:
Within 2 months of running the new campaign on socials, we increased % of 45-54 year old audience from 17.4% to 24.5%.
Confidence-driven messaging
Campaign Theme: “Confidence Comes from YOU.”
Most women treat everyday underwear as an afterthought, grabbing multi-packs from the supermarket while their minds are on everyone but themselves.
To compete in a category dominated by convenience and price, and get women to seek out ‘essential basics’ online, we needed to do more than highlight ethical manufacturing or sustainable practices. We needed women to understand their own value – to show them that they are worth more than a £5 supermarket multi-pack.
The brand already had a buy-one-give-one model designed to tackle period poverty and empower women and girls around the world. Tapping into this empowerment messaging was a powerful way to connect to customers, but it needed to be connected to the product too.
We knew that a pair of underwear, no matter how ethically made, won’t magically give you more self esteem. So, we grounded our message in something deeper: ‘Confidence comes from YOU’.
This simple but powerful statement was more than a clever play on the brand’s name. It was a rallying cry for women to own their strength, their beauty, and their worth – on their terms.
We featured real customers in power poses – each one showing what confidence meant to them. Creating a long-term campaign that looks and feels different every time someone sees it in their feed. No preaching, no prescriptive ideas of what empowerment “should” look like – just a reflection of the many ways women can define strength for themselves.
When it came to creating campaign assets, instead of trying to cram sustainability credentials, ethical production stats and social good into one message, we let empowerment take centre stage, knowing that this would resonate most with the audience’s key purchase drivers.
We reframed Y.O.U Underwear as a brand that supports women in feeling confident, emphasising comfort and quality as enablers of empowerment.
Results:
- Instagram sales increased 362%.
- Returning customer rate improved by 6%, reflecting stronger loyalty.
- Weekly views on social media increased 35%.
Challenge: Y.O.U’s outdated website, fragmented small business-focused storytelling, and limited professional imagery failed to resonate with their target audience.
Solution:
- Demographic Targeting: We analysed their core buyers and designed the website for the 40-60 demographic, ensuring usability and alignment with their needs.
- Modern Features: Added mobile optimisation and introduced features such as ‘Shop The Look,’ to increase conversions.
- Streamlined Storytelling: Simplified navigation and leveraged the Peak-End Rule to emphasise Y.O.U’s impact story at the end of the purchase journey, increasing loyalty and positive reviews.
- Green Claims Compliance: Ensured all sustainability messaging adhered to the CMA’s Green Claims Code.
- Behavioural insights: Even small changes can make a big difference to conversion rates. For example, research shows that horizontal product displays on websites make people choose higher quality, more expensive products. Vertical displays encourage the choice of cheaper options. Switching the product page imagery layouts to a horizontal display put more focus on the quality of the product, playing into our messaging encouraging women to invest in themselves.
Results:
- Conversion rate increased by 7%.
- Average order value rose 3%.
- Delivered a visually cohesive, user-friendly website that enhanced trust and loyalty.
Imagery: professional and purpose-driven
Y.O.U Underwear had previously relied on amateur photography, which resulted in busy, poorly lit, and inconsistent imagery that failed to create a cohesive brand identity. To address this, we commissioned behavioural science research into best practices for ecommerce imagery in the fashion category to ensure the revamped visuals we created would resonate with customers and drive conversions.
Execution:
- Image Audit: We reviewed Y.O.U’s image library to identify their best-performing visuals and reused high-value assets.
- Photoshoots: Organised two full-day photoshoots in our Brighton studio, capturing:
- Ecommerce imagery to show real customers wearing the products.
- Power poses for campaign assets, emphasising confidence and movement.
- Reels footage, providing enough high-quality social media content for two years of posting twice daily.
- Commitment to Authenticity: Stayed true to Y.O.U’s body positivity values by featuring real customers and avoiding airbrushing.
Results:
The imagery overhaul provided Y.O.U with:
- A complete ecommerce library
- Enough social media content to post twice daily for two years
- High-quality, relatable visuals that significantly boosted customer trust and engagement
By leveraging cutting-edge research and scientific insights, Y.O.U’s new imagery not only reflected their brand values but also directly contributed to improved performance across digital channels.
Email marketing overhaul
Y.O.U Underwear’s previous email strategy leaned heavily on small business storytelling, which engaged supporters but failed to drive conversions. We revamped their email marketing to be product and benefits focused, ensuring the content was aligned with what mattered most to potential buyers.
The welcome sequence was redesigned to emphasise comfort, fit, and quality while tying seamlessly into the wider confidence campaign.
To further enhance results, we shifted all impact messaging pre-sale to focus on Y.O.U’s recycling program, leveraging behavioural science research from Boston University which shows that take-back initiatives boost customer engagement and profits. Studies revealed that consumers were willing to pay 39.1% more for a pen and 12.2% more for an IKEA armchair with take-back programs, while brand loyalty increased by 19.4% for clothing brands. A 65.3% majority chose a more expensive shirt ($11.90 vs. $10.15) with a take-back program.
By incorporating these insights, the recycling program messaging effectively connected Y.O.U’s sustainability values to actionable benefits, driving stronger customer loyalty and conversions.
The post-purchase sequence was also carefully redesigned using the Peak-End Rule, a behavioural insight showing that people judge an experience based on its most intense moment and its conclusion. We ensured that Y.O.U customers’ final impression of their purchase journey was positive and impactful by incorporating personalised thank-you messages tied to the company’s wider impact – showing that each purchase helps to empower 3 women and girls (data we calculated during the impact reporting process).
This approach reinforced Y.O.U’s brand values while strategically positioning sustainability and ethics in the post-purchase stage, where it serves to validate the customer’s decision. By doing so, it enhanced brand loyalty, positive reviews, and word-of-mouth marketing, avoiding the risk of triggering the attitude/behaviour gap that can occur when these messages are emphasised pre-purchase.
As a result, this sequence was transformed into a revenue-generating flow, achieving an impressive £2.52 in revenue per recipient and a 2.86% placed order rate, far exceeding expectations for post-purchase.
Results:
- Revenue from email marketing grew 119.5% (from 4% to 7.41% of total revenue).
- Deliverability score improved from 18 to 92.
- Newsletter open rates surged to 52.26% – a 99.4% increase (industry average: 31.82%).
- Welcome sequence click rate increased from 6.17% to 6.79% (industry average: 6.25%).
- Welcome sequence placed order rate surged from 0% to 3.15%, significantly outperforming the industry average of 0.08%.
- Revenue per recipient from the welcome sequence reached £1.59
Social Media Campaign
We created a bold social media campaign tailored to the 40-60 demographic, prioritising visually dynamic, product-focused content to drive engagement and conversions.
Reels Strategy: Letting the Product Speak
We transitioned from founder-led storytelling to short, unscripted Reels showcasing real customers interacting with the products.
This leveraged the IKEA effect – a behavioural phenomenon where people value something more when they help to build it. Research shows participants are willing to pay 63% more for something they’ve built themselves.
Our Reels focused on women feeling confident, dancing to salsa music, and wearing the products. The visuals were designed to reflect empowerment without catering to the male gaze. Instead, the energy and joy in these videos resonated with women, encouraging them to see themselves in the moment.
The videos were intentionally highly energetic to increase watch time. Research has shown that high-energy video ads – those that feel fast, loud, and dynamic – are less likely to be skipped by viewers. High energy stimulates excitement, keeping audiences tuned into the ad. This approach drew on research by Joonhyuk Yang (University of Notre Dame), Yingkang Xie and Lakshman Krishnamurthi (Northwestern University), and Purushottam Papatla (University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee), which highlights the link between stimulation and sustained attention.
To ensure this strategy was as effective as possible, we also commissioned heat mapping and eye-tracking research grounded in neuroscience. This research tested our visual design to predict engagement levels and revealed which elements were most likely to build brand recall. Insights from this research informed the use of movement, transitions, and layouts to optimise viewer retention and maximise the impact of the Reels.
Optimising Visual Design Across Static and Dynamic Content
To ensure our strategy achieved maximum impact, we complemented the analysis of Reels with in-depth testing of static posts. By commissioning heat mapping and eye-tracking research rooted in neuroscience, we evaluated the effectiveness of our visual assets across multiple formats.
Key Findings and Insights
- Static Post Engagement: The research assessed how elements such as imagery, colour balance, and typography drew viewer attention in static posts. This provided clarity on which design aspects held the audience’s gaze and guided their visual journey.
- Reels and Motion Content: The analysis of dynamic content, such as Reels, predicted how movement and transitions could sustain viewer engagement. It also highlighted opportunities to reinforce brand recall through well-timed focal points and storytelling sequences.
- Design Principles Across Formats: The insights revealed cross-format strategies to build consistency and retention. For example, layouts that balanced high-impact visuals with clear calls-to-action performed well in both static and motion content.
By applying science-backed methodologies, we ensured that both static and dynamic content not only captured attention but also fostered a cohesive brand experience that resonates across platforms.
Key Metric:
Our primary KPI was the average percentage of the video watched, as longer watch times correlate with stronger ad recall and algorithm performance.
Results:
- Product-focused Reels achieved an average watch time of 38.91%, a 185% improvement over small business storytelling videos (13.66%).
- Weekly reach grew 48%, and weekly views increased 35%.
- Contributed to a 3% increase in AOV and a 6% rise in returning customer rate.
Staying Product-Focused:
With Meta allowing Instagram users to reset their algorithms in 2024/25 and a much stronger focus on interest-based content, clarity in content strategy is more critical than ever.
Overemphasising broad, feel-good sustainability messaging risks confusing the algorithm, alienating potential buyers and attracting the wrong audience.
By centring on product benefits, we positioned Y.O.U as a brand focused on quality and comfort, ensuring alignment with both audience expectations and platform trends.
Creating Brand Recall:
According to Forbes, 70% of people don’t return to a brand for a second purchase, even if they liked the first purchase. Fostering brand recall and staying memorable is essential, but increasingly challenging in the fast paced digital environment.
The neuroscience insights we commissioned guided the inclusion of branded end cards in every Reel, featuring the “Confidence Comes From YOU” message, brand colours, and logo. This helped reinforce brand recall while ensuring the content was optimised for boosting and turning into ads.
By combining behavioural insights, energetic visuals, and cutting-edge research, Y.O.U’s Reels strategy delivered exceptional results, driving engagement and deepening brand resonance with the target audience.
Treating Organic Content Like Advertising:
With Y.O.U unable to compete with competitors’ advertising budgets, we treated every piece of organic content like advertising. This approach was not only budget-conscious but also highly effective in the current digital landscape, where 37% of people use ad blockers (eMarketer, 2021).
Research shows that excessive ad repetition can annoy viewers and reduce ad effectiveness:
- General advertising is best capped at 3 repetitions per person to avoid annoyance
- For engaged audiences (e.g., website visitors), up to 6 repetitions is effective
- Rotating different creatives reduces annoyance and increases tolerance
Drawing from research by Vilma Todri (Emory University), Anindya Ghose (NYU), and Param Vir Singh (Carnegie Mellon University), our approach focused on diversifying visuals and messaging to keep the content fresh, ensuring consistent messaging that looks different every time someone sees it in their feed, so that they still engage.
By designing Reels and static graphics as distinct, high-quality pieces of content, we built brand recall and ad frequency without risking fatigue or turning off potential buyers.
Results:
- Product-focused Reels achieved an average watch time of 38.91%, a 185% improvement over storytelling videos (13.66%).
- Weekly reach grew by 48%, and weekly views increased by 35%.
- Contributed to a 3% increase in AOV and a 5% rise in returning customer rate.
- As a result of the campaign, non-followers reached each week rose by 14%, indicating broader reach to new audiences.
Summary:
By combining behavioural research, creative strategy, and scientific testing, Y.O.U’s Reels strategy delivered exceptional results, turning budget-friendly organic content into a powerful brand-building tool.
The social campaign drove substantial engagement improvements, with higher views, expanded reach, and a growing proportion of non-followers engaging with the content. These results underscore the campaign’s success in boosting visibility and extending audience penetration.
Through strategic insights and precise execution, Y.O.U Underwear achieved a 53% sales increase in just 10 months. With a competitive digital presence, a high-performing campaign, and assets ready for two years, Y.O.U is now positioned for sustained success.
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Category: Growth Strategy
Sector: Fashion ecommerce
Client: Y.O.U Underwear
Results: 53% increase in sales