This has been a changemaking year for Durex. Historically, the brand has not sold products directly to consumers, trading instead through other retailers and Amazon. Durex were hoping to capitalise on their solid history as sexual well-being experts and develop a new range of products to expand into the sex toy market. They hoped to break new ground by trading directly to consumers across three territories; the UK, US and Italy. The client came to us for support in the form of a three stage project that would see them reposition themselves in the middle of the consumer market and evolve from being solely a manufacturer and distributor to an active retailer.
Planning a successful business
Our first objective was to create a comprehensive business case to establish whether there was an opportunity worth investing in. We carried out a meticulous research project, seeking to understand both the consumer and the market. Our channel specialists gathered data on competition and possible target markets, and created an accurate picture of the landscape with suggestions about where the investment should be placed. Our recommendations, ranging from messaging to marketing spend by channel, were the key to translating the research into a blueprint for a successful online Durex business.
Building transactional websites
The next stage was to use the information gathered, coupled with best-practice user experience, to create transactional eCommerce sites for the Durex brand in the UK and K-Y in the US. We designed and built both sites using the Magento platform, taking responsibility for onsite content, photography, and technical functionality. The multinational nature of the project required multiple storefronts with different fulfilment partners and merchandising. The UK and US sites were launched on 10 and 25 November respectively, in conjunction with a TV advertising campaign and a world first smartphone app which offers viewers a duel screen experience with Durex.
Growing profitability
Both sites were delivered on time and on budget, and generated some early sales despite minimal marketing activity. We have since launched a comprehensive online marketing programme which has seen traffic to the UK Durex site triple in less than a month, with more than half of consumers visiting via mobile and spending an average of three minutes on site. We continue to partner with Durex, with our dedicated eCommerce team trading the products online; a new facet of Summit’s capabilities and one that we are looking to grow over coming months.
eCommerce is new territory for Reckitt Benckiser, and our experience has taught us that team structure and competency are crucial to success. We are extremely pleased to have been involved in the Durex and K-Y journeys, and are looking forward to supporting the client in growing their online sales in the UK and US and future expansion across Europe and beyond.
For more information, or to speak to us about anything mentioned in this piece, please reach out to us at [email protected].
Hannah Scaife
