“We’ve got a product. We’ve got an audience. Why aren’t sales growing?” This question comes up more often than you might imagine. And usually, the answer doesn’t lie in the quality of the product — it lies in the marketing. Or, to be more precise, in the lack of a structured marketing approach.
Our client is a prime example of a business that has everything it needs to succeed: a high-quality product, an intriguing philosophy, unique ingredients, and loyal customers. When we came on board with the project, we saw a typical scenario for a young Ukrainian brand: fragmented channels, unstructured advertising, a lack of positioning, and a target of one million per month that hung in the air with no clear path to achieving it.
We’re here to build a marketing system — one that will help the brand grow steadily, regardless of the season, and scale up without chaos. It’s a cohesive structure where every element has its place and purpose, which is far more effective than a series of one-off activities.
💡 The foundation of an effective strategy lies in a systematic approach and careful planning. Every marketing decision must be aligned with the overall objective and deliver measurable results.
| How long did it take to develop the strategy? | 120 hours |
| What is the composition of the marketing strategy development team? | CMO, Operations Marketer, Business Analyst, Content Strategist, SMM Specialist, PPC Specialist, Targeting Specialist, PM |
| How were the results of the work utilised? | Implementation by the client’s team |
About the project: a Ukrainian brand of professional cosmeceuticals
The brand focuses on its formulations: active natural ingredients and rich formulas free from fragrances, silicones, sulphates, and parabens. Vegan formulations, certified raw materials, eco-friendly packaging, and the option of a consultation with a beautician — these are the very essence of the brand.
Product range
- Skincare products for the face (cleansers, toners, serums, creams, exfoliators).
- Make-up.
- Gift sets.
- Hair care products.
- A separate men’s range.
- Battery candles and make-up tools.
Audience
B2C — women aged 25–45 with moderate skin concerns or seeking anti-ageing skincare. An audience that already understands ingredients, reads labels and does not buy blindly.
B2B — beauty therapists and shops specialising in Ukrainian and eco-friendly cosmetics. Here, partners are looking for a product with a good reputation, clear terms of cooperation, and support for their customers.
💡 Two segments mean two different messages, two sales funnels and two different acquisition channels. Mixing them up in a single communication means you’ll end up missing the mark with both.
👉 Want to find out how to segment your audience and build separate funnels for each segment? Book a free consultation — we’ll analyse your specific situation.
What we saw at the outset
Before proposing a solution, we carried out a comprehensive audit — of the website, social media, advertising dashboard, market and competitors. Here are the key issues we identified.
Lack of positioning
The brand’s website and social media channels lacked a clear answer to the question of its key competitive advantage. The brand has plenty of strengths — and therein lies the paradox. When everything is important, nothing is important. The audience cannot form a concrete opinion of the brand because the brand itself has not provided them with a clear ‘anchor’.
Advertisement without structures
Meta’s Ads Manager presented a typical picture of a haphazard launch: one campaign, one ad set, one ad. No A/B testing, no UTM tags for analytics, no distinction between B2B and B2C audiences. The objective is “traffic” rather than “conversions”, despite having a fully-fledged online shop. The result is that the budget is spent without any understanding of what actually works.
Website: untapped potential
The website has a decent structure, but a number of critical shortcomings are systematically reducing conversion rates: a lack of SEO optimisation for the content, incorrect product titles lacking keywords, a blog without proper markup, and no dedicated page for B2B partners. Each of these issues represents a direct loss of organic traffic and sales.
Instagram: there’s content, but no sales funnel
The profile makes a good impression: regular posts, highlights, and a fully completed bio. Upon closer inspection, however, we note the absence of CTAs in the posts, a lack of niche hashtags, an inconsistent layout of the highlights, and no section dedicated to the team or the brand’s values. There are followers — but there’s no path from “viewed” to “purchased”.
💡 The problem isn’t that the client did nothing. All their actions were disjointed — lacking any overarching logic and with no way of measuring the results.
👉 If you’re in a similar situation, we’ll carry out a free audit of your marketing and show you where your budget is being wasted.
The client’s objectives
The client set out a clear and ambitious objective:
Increase sales to 300 000$ per month, regardless of the season.
“Regardless of the season” — this is a key point. The cosmetics market is highly seasonal: it peaks in November–December and slumps in spring. Achieving consistent results means building a comprehensive marketing system that generates demand even during the “quieter” months — through organic traffic, content, email, and engagement with the existing customer base.
First of all, we broke the objective down into operational tasks: to establish a clear positioning, rectify the website’s technical shortcomings, launch a structured advertising campaign, and develop a content strategy and affiliate network.
💡 A million a month isn’t about advertising. It’s about a system where each channel reinforces the others: organic traffic drives visitors, content engages them, advertising converts them, and CRM brings them back.
Market analysis: where and why opportunities are growing
The Ukrainian cosmetics market is one of the most stable in the consumer goods sector. It has been growing for ten consecutive years. The only exception was 2020 (–8% due to COVID-19), and even then, the dermocosmetics category grew by 2.2%.
According to forecasts by European analysts, the global cosmetics market is set to grow from US$152 billion to US$174 billion by 2027. For a Ukrainian brand focused on high-quality formulations and natural ingredients, this presents a wealth of opportunities.
Market structure and brand potential
The mass market accounts for 40% of the market, the mid-price segment (natural and organic cosmetics) for 45%, and the premium and niche segments for 15%. This brand fits naturally into the mid-price and upper segments — this is where the most interesting growth is taking place: consumers are becoming more informed, more discerning, and willing to pay for quality ingredients.
Key trends
- Skincare culture: consumers read the ingredients, follow skinfluencers, and understand the difference between 1% and 2% hyaluronic acid. The brand’s scientifically-backed formulas are fully in line with this trend.
- Self-care and naturalness: moving away from synthetic products, and a demand for vegan and eco-friendly products. That’s exactly what the brand stands for.
- Expanding the audience: the “grooming” category is no longer exclusively female — it now includes men, teenagers, and Generation Z.
- Online sales: 42% of Ukrainians buy cosmetics online — higher than the global average (35%). This is a clear signal for online shops.
What people are searching for in Google Trends
An analysis of search queries has revealed an interesting trend: broad queries such as “cosmetics” are losing popularity, whilst more specific ones — “skincare”, “natural cosmetics”, “organic cosmetics” — are steadily on the rise. The audience has matured and is now arriving with specific queries. A brand that tailors its SEO and advertising to these queries attracts a “warm” audience straight away, without the need for costly lead generation.
💡 Today’s cosmetics consumer is someone who Googles a specific ingredient, reads the list of ingredients, and compares products. Your job is to be there for them with the right message.
👉 Want to find out what share of the market you actually hold and where there’s room for growth? Book a free consultation — we’ll give you the full picture.
Touchpoint audit: where customers are lost
Website
The company’s website looks appealing and is well structured. However, behind the façade lie a number of hidden issues that are systematically reducing conversion rates.
The first thing a visitor encounters is the wheel of fortune. In itself, this is a decent tool: a lead magnet for collecting contact details and securing a first purchase. However, immediately after that, another pop-up form appears for booking an appointment with a beautician. The simultaneous appearance of two lead magnets scatters the user’s attention, which hinders the effective performance of each tool.
Home page
The first screen is a slider featuring text and an image. This is a suitable format for presenting categories. Immediately after this comes the “Bestsellers” section, where all products are marked as “for partners”. A new visitor is left wondering whether they can actually buy these items. This is a classic example of how B2B and B2C elements are mixed together, leaving both audiences without a clear answer.
Product cards
Product names are too short and generic — they generate neither search traffic nor a call to action. The correct formula for a product name is “action + product type + skin type + active ingredient”. For example: “Gentle gel-milk cleanser for sensitive skin with lavender extract” — this combines both SEO and sales in a single sentence.
Blog
Content marketing for the cosmetics sector is a goldmine. At the time of the audit, the company’s blog had not realised its full potential: there was no SEO markup, no H1–H3 headings, no keywords, and articles were shorter than 2,000 characters. This represents a direct loss of organic traffic — people who are already searching for answers to questions that the brand could provide.
💡 Every blank page, every product title without keywords, every article without SEO — these are customers who have found a competitor instead of you.
Social media
Instagram: there’s a solid foundation — regular posts, Highlights, and a fully completed bio. Without CTAs in the posts, without niche hashtags, and without a clear message in the profile header, this potential is only being realised to a limited extent. The audience is there — the path to purchase needs refining.
Facebook: the page is active but isn’t linked to Instagram — it seems to stand on its own. There’s no logo on the profile picture, and the description needs updating.
Working with bloggers is a natural part of the process — it’s a major asset for the brand. Repeated collaborations are particularly valuable: they help the audience perceive the blogger as “one of their own” and build trust.
💡 Social media isn’t a gallery. It’s a funnel. Every post has a purpose: to warm up, attract, convert, or bring back.
👉 We’ll carry out a free audit of your social media and show you specific steps to help you grow.
Competitor analysis: what gives you a competitive edge in the market
To develop our strategy, we carried out a detailed analysis of the key players in the skincare niche in Ukraine (MOLA BRAND, Natureal, Hillary Cosmetics, and MARIE FRESH). Our team sought to answer the key question: which business models exactly are driving their stable growth.
The analysis made it possible to identify three successful strategies that dominate the market:
- A systematic approach and customer base management (LTV): Niche leaders focus on repeat purchases and maximising their presence on major marketplaces (Makeup, Rozetka, EVA). This forms the foundation of predictable revenue.
- Aesthetics and loyalty: Brands with active communities build their communication through visual style and openness. An emotional connection is the key factor in choosing “your” brand from among hundreds of options.
- Addressing expert queries: Those who create practical content — such as “before and after” analyses, answers to complex questions, and educational content for their audience — achieve the best engagement rates.
💡 Competitors succeed thanks to systematic marketing: clear positioning + effective communication + consistency = trust and sales.
👉 Want to know how you measure up against your competitors? We’ll carry out a free comparative analysis — simply submit a request for a consultation.
Target audience analysis: who actually buys
We have segmented the audience into two categories: B2C and B2B. Within each segment, there are key sub-groups that require different approaches to communication.
B2C: three portraits
“Problem skin” — women aged 20–35 looking for solutions to acne, sensitivity, and hyperpigmentation. They pay close attention to ingredients, read reviews, and look for specific results. Channels: Instagram, Google, recommendations from beauticians.
“Anti-Age” — women aged 35–50, seeking a comprehensive skincare routine. They value a scientific approach, are willing to pay for quality, and remain loyal to the brand if they see visible results. Channels: Instagram, email, and personal contact.
“Eco-conscious” — all ages; they choose products based on their ingredients and values. Willing to recommend the brand to her circle of friends. Channels: Instagram, themed communities.
B2B: two profiles
A beautician/dermatologist selects home skincare products for their clients. They look for reliable formulations, clear instructions, and the opportunity to recommend products with pride. They value partnership terms and support.
A specialist retailer is looking for brands with a good reputation, reasonable terms, and marketing support. Decisions are made on the basis of figures: profit margin, turnover, and returns.
💡 Different segments mean different pain points, different languages, and different points of entry. Speaking to everyone in the same way means failing to reach anyone.
👉 Not sure how to tailor your communication to different target audience segments? Come along for a free consultation — we’ll help you map out your audiences and messages.
Factors influencing choice: what people actually buy
Having analysed the market and our competitors, we were able to identify the key factors influencing purchasing decisions in the high-quality skincare niche:
- Ingredients and safety — consumers check the ingredients. The absence of harmful ingredients is the first criterion for choosing a product.
- A visible “before and after” result, showing the timeframe and methods used, has a greater impact than any advertisement.
- Social proof — reviews from real people, recommendations from beauty therapists, and user-generated content.
- Clear communication — a brand that explains its ingredients and educates its customers gains trust and loyalty.
- A hassle-free shopping experience — a user-friendly website, an easy-to-navigate catalogue, and fast delivery.
The brand has all the resources needed to meet these criteria; however, when the campaign was launched, these had not been sufficiently articulated in its communications — the audience was not receiving full information about these benefits.
Positioning: finally, a clear answer to “why us”
One of the main problems identified at the outset is the lack of a clear positioning. The brand tries to highlight all its advantages at once, and as a result, nothing specific sticks in the consumer’s mind.
We recommended identifying 2–3 clear competitive advantages on which the brand would base all its communications. For our client, these are:
- certified raw materials + scientifically proven formulas — trust through ingredients;
- the opportunity to consult a beautician — a personalised approach and building trust through the service;
- craft production + vegan formula — transparency and accountability.
Positioning is the filter through which every decision passes: which photo to post, what to write in the highlights, what to call a product, and what to talk about in an advert.
“A craft cosmetics brand for those who want to know exactly what they’re putting on their skin”
💡 Positioning is, first and foremost, the image that forms in a customer’s mind when you are not present. Your task is to consciously shape and manage this perception.
👉 Want to find your clear positioning? Book a free consultation — we’ll help you craft your unique message.
What we have developed
Based on the results of the analysis, the SOLVE MARKETING team has drawn up a comprehensive marketing strategy covering all key areas — from positioning to specific actions within the advertising dashboard.
1. Positioning and communication strategy
Key competitive advantages have been identified, along with a message for B2C and a separate one for B2B. Recommendations regarding the tone of voice across all channels have been developed.
2. Website audit and recommendations
A detailed list of improvements for each page: home, catalogue, product pages, blog, “About Us”, “Contacts”. Separately, recommendations on creating a comprehensive page for B2B partners. SEO recommendations for organic traffic growth.
3. Content strategy
Content categories have been developed for Instagram and the blog, separately for B2C and B2B. Content strategy: each piece of content conveys the brand’s positioning, includes a CTA and addresses a specific problem faced by the audience. A content plan has been drawn up, covering topics for the coming month.
4. Lead generation strategy
A step-by-step plan spanning 3+ months: preparatory phase (analytics, GTM, Facebook Pixel, GA4), test launch (Meta Ads + Google Ads, audience and creative testing), optimisation and scaling. Separate campaigns for B2B and B2C.
5. Remarketing and repeat sales
Strategy for engaging with a “warm” audience: email triggers (abandoned basket, request for feedback, reminder after 3–4 months), detailed behavioural segmentation for remarketing based on website behaviour, and lookalike audiences based on existing customers.
6. Affiliate networks and marketplaces
A B2B partnership strategy has been developed: covering beauticians, dermatologists and specialist retailers. Marketplaces have been identified for product placement (Makeup, EVA, Notino, Parfums, Rozetka). Recommendations have been made regarding partnership terms and partner support.
💡 The client has been provided with a tool that they can implement either with our help or on their own. Everything is structured, explained and prioritised.
👉 Would you like to develop a similar comprehensive strategy for your business? The first step is a free consultation.
Strategic priorities
A marketing strategy is a living document. Once the first set of tasks has been completed, there are further priorities that we recommend the client keep in mind.
For a period of 3–6 months
- We’ll carry out a comprehensive SEO audit and prepare SEO-optimised content for the blog and product pages.
- We’ll launch an email marketing campaign: automated sequences for B2C (triggered emails) and B2B (partner onboarding).
- We’ll develop a loyalty programme to encourage repeat purchases and user-generated content (UGC).
- We’ll carry out A/B testing of landing pages and product pages to boost conversion rates.
- We’ll launch a YouTube channel as a supplementary platform (reviews, tutorials, Q&As).
For a period of 6–12 months
- Expansion into new marketplaces and geographical expansion (the Polish market, the EU).
- Development of an ambassador programme for cosmetic doctors.
- Regular collaborations with micro-influencers in the healthy lifestyle and skincare niches.
- Expanding the men’s range is a separate communication strategy.
💡 A list of priorities isn’t a “to-do” list. It’s a guide that helps you avoid getting lost in the sea of possibilities and prevents you from trying to tackle everything at once. Focus is the key to success.
Conclusion: the system solves
This project demonstrates how systematic preparation and the coordinated work of all channels can turn an advertising budget into consistent sales. We came into the project with a clear objective: one million per month, regardless of the season. To achieve this, we first needed to take a step back and get the full picture — where the gaps were, where the potential lay, and what needed to be done first.
Instead of a series of haphazard actions, we built a system. Positioning became the filter for all decisions. We have proposed a plan of improvements for the website, which directly impacts conversion rates. Advertising was given structure and logic. Content was given a strategy and categories. A separate sales funnel has been created for B2B.
A marketing strategy isn’t something we “do for you”. It’s something we build together, and it stays with you forever. No magic pills. Just a system that works.
Are you up for this sort of work?
Book a free consultation with a SOLVE MARKETING specialist. We’ll carry out an analysis of your business, identify areas for growth, and show you where to start.
👉 The first step is a free consultation!
