Is it possible for a company, with a single marketing strategy, to attract 375 million in private investments and then manage to be acquired for 1.5 billion dollars?
In a world, especially digital, where words like innovation, growth hacking, and disruptive are more than overused, is it really still possible to relive the "story" of two guys locked in a garage who "conquer the world"?
Yes, it is.
Today, we present to you "the curious case" of Harry's, a razor company where marketing and product merge to create one of the most interesting case studies of recent years.
Harry's, who?
Harry's was founded in New York in 2013 by Andy Katz-Mayfield and Jeff Raider. It is a direct-to-customer razor company with a subscription model for product sales.
Based on the customer's shaving frequency, Harry's prepares the "Shave Plan": every month, every two months, or every five months, a kit with everything needed for shaving is shipped directly to the customer's home.
Harry's closed its last investment round in January 2018 with $375 million, growing in a sensational way since 2013 and carving out a leading role in the shaving and beard care market.
The Business Model of Harry’s
The innovation of Harry's lies primarily in its business model: unlike Gillette, which "waits" for its customers to go to the supermarket to buy a razor when they need it, Harry's offers a subscription model with regular shipments directly to the home.
Considering it is a direct-to-customer and digital-first company, this leads to a significant competitive advantage because it allows for:
- to know their customers in detail;
- to predict future purchases;
- to implement ad hoc digital strategies based on the stage of the funnel the customer is in;
- to cut costs for distribution intermediaries.
Product = Marketing
What makes Harry's extraordinary is not just the innovation of its business model, but the marketing strategy implemented by its CMO.
In March 2013, Harry's, with its chief marketing officer, prepared for the launch of its product through an innovative digital marketing tactic: an incredible referral marketing campaign.
Lead generation
The start was spectacular: a perfect landing page where they announced the product, minimal and straightforward. With essential communication and a different tone of voice for the industry, they attracted thousands of people: specifically, 100,000 leads in one week.
The navigation of the landing page was designed with the sole goal of getting the user to leave their email, without distracting them in any way: one page, nothing more.
Interessante, però, la fase successiva, in cui il CMO di Harry ha cominciato a svelare le proprie carte: l’azienda si è messa a parlare con i propri utenti, spingendoli ad invitare altre persone per avere in regalo le proprie lamette.
Speaking in the right way: the quality of the copy, the minimalism of the phrases, the non-trivial CTA, and showing only what is needed made all the difference.
An exclusive relationship between the company and the consumer is created: the user feels, for the first time, that they are part of an exclusive circle, a family, where the sense of belonging pushes them to stay "close," waiting for the next move.
Referral strategy
Starting from scratch, their strategy focused on creating leads interested in the product by launching a landing page that collected emails and notified users, when the e-commerce site launched, of the opportunity to make a purchase.
The success of the CMO's strategy primarily relies on referral marketing, ensuring high product loyalty from the start: once the email is provided, Harry's encourages users to share and invite friends to receive their first product for free.
Le stime delle mail ottenute tramite referral sono il 77% del totale, molto più di quelle ottenute tramite semplice conoscenza del marchio.
Questo dimostra quanto il “consiglio dell’amico”, il word of mouth, sia molto forte e con una valenza per le persone importantissima, da non sottovalutare mai.
A very low CPL, balanced by a higher initial CPA – who is the crazy one who initially gives away their product? – an extremely high awareness, very strong loyalty, and great ideas have created a brand with a capital "H."
Harry's today numbers
With this strategy, Harry's was able to obtain 100,000 leads in one week from the launch of the landing page and sell many subscriptions upon the opening of the ecommerce: this allowed the company to grow and establish itself in the market, competing with giants like Gillette and Dollar Shave Club.
Dal 2013, Harry’s è riuscita a portare a termine 7 round di investimento, per un totale di 375.2 milioni di dollari, con il suo ultimo round di Serie D nel dicembre del 2017.
On May 9, 2019, Harry's was acquired by Edgewell Personal Care for $1.5 billion in Cash & Stock options.
Al momento Harry’s è il 29,772 sito per traffico al mondo, con 1.5 milioni di utenti attivi ogni mese.
It is estimated that Harry's annual revenue is around $600 million.
Not bad at all, starting with a simple referral program (a garage, metaphorically), right?
Conclusions
The importance of investing in marketing and in figures like the CMO in digital-first companies is now of primary importance.
La digital transformation ha cambiato in modo radicale la figura del CMO e se nel marketing mix è fondamentale avere un buon prodotto, il giusto prezzo e una distribuzione ottimale, non va assolutamente sottovalutato quello che è l’aspetto promozionale, che oggi deve essere, senza se e senza ma, orientato al cliente e a ciò che vuole, posizionandolo al centro della propria strategia.
Because innovations do come from great minds, but always with people in mind.
Editorial recognition for the photos: Harry’s Facebook Page
