Influencers and content creators are impacting consumers, but they’re also impacting each other.
In this week’s episode of Earned, CreatorIQ CMO Brit Starr sits down with Ayal Pascal, VP of Marketing at Allies of Skin—a skincare brand that has successfully combined high-performance clinical formulations with emotionally charged narratives to revolutionize the beauty industry.
To start, we dive into Ayal's journey from working on product development at L'Oreal to the indie brand scene, offering fascinating insights into product development and marketing strategies at different company stages. Ayal emphasizes the importance of direct communication and insights gained from listening to consumers and creators, highlighting how these relationships shape the evolving consumer journey. The discussion also explores the shift from traditional purchase funnels to digital and community-driven interactions, underscoring the significance of maintaining authentic connections with creators in today's social media landscape. We explore insights into Allies of Skin's strategic global expansion and the unique storytelling behind its products, such as the popular Growth Factor Serum. Ayal’s move to Bangkok and his role in positioning the brand in emerging markets is explored, emphasizing the importance of balancing a strong US presence with international growth.
Check out highlights from the episode below, or or tune into the podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen!
The following interview has been lightly edited for concision.
Ayal Pascal on becoming a successful brand: “Today, brands rise and fall over social media. That's the channel, that's everything.”
Brit Starr: In consumer conversations and feedback loops that you have, do you do the same with your creator community? What role do they play in giving feedback? One interesting thing for me is this idea of creators as a hyper-focus group. They're getting so much feedback all the time, they know the segments you exist in, maybe even better than we do.
Ayal Pascal: One billion percent. I have had so many interesting conversations with influencers during my time at Allies that really made me understand that there are certain rules that we play to make sure that we're making a brand grow. When you have a small brand, you need to understand the small things that make a brand grow and accelerate. And, of course, [for Allies of Skin] it's the emotional story and putting the founder at the forefront. It's also making sure that there is an influencer there [sharing the story]. Today, brands rise and fall over social media. That's the channel, that's everything.
I'm a big believer in having a direct relationship [with creators]— texting them, sharing stories, sometimes on Instagram, just for the love, and then also talking with them about business, about their thoughts. Looking at our social media feed, [asking] ‘what would you do differently?’ Influencers with high engagement rates are proud of making sure that they know how to speak to their community. This idea of using briefs with influencers has been completely shifting over the last couple of years. If you really believe that the influencer knows their community and knows how to speak to them, [they don’t need it as much].
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