Problem
Salonpas® is the pain relief brand name that carries the only FDA-approved over-the-counter pain relief products. According to parent-company Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co., Inc., more than 20 billion pain relief patches have been sold in the last 20 years.
Salonpas is a top brand in Japan and throughout Southeast Asia. The brand has done incredibly well in a competitive U.S. market, but management wants to increase growth rapidly in 2012. To reach this goal and remain competitive among North American pain relieving brands, such as Icy Hot and Bengay, Salonpas needs help.
“We needed a creative partner who knew exactly what we had to do to increase visibility,” says Salonpas Sr. Marketing Director, Patrick Carroll. “Inflexion Interactive demonstrated online branding intelligence. That’s why we chose them to help us.”
Salonpas hires Inflexion Interactive to create a stronger online presence on January 1.
Solution
At Inflexion Interactive, we pride ourselves on being able to produce innovative solutions, fast. Due to the tight schedule, we know we have to assemble the most experienced website design team with a knack for fast turnaround times.
Website designers Phillip Go and Justin Burns consider visitor behavior, first by examining data gathered by our partner, CRM Metrix. This allows our digital strategy team to develop website architecture that ensures the most user-friendly web presence.
Next, Go and Burns design the brand’s U.S.-focused website: Salonpas.us. The wave as seen on the brand’s product packaging is used to create a fluid and recognizable brand experience online. TV commercials are integrated to help provide additional information.
One important change to the website is the ability to now browse by symptom, rather than trying to find the right product. By asking “What are your symptoms?” visitors find exactly what they’re looking for more quickly and without confusion over product aim.
Another key improvement to the site is its responsiveness. This means the website can be easily viewed on a desktop or on a smartphone. Furthermore, this feature—especially the ability to change font sizes—appeals to a growing senior demographic.
To address the brand’s marketing goals for 2012, we have to make sure this site can attract new visitors quickly. That’s why Candace Howcroft, Inflexion’s SEO Specialist, develops a targeted keyword strategy. She helps Salonpas better understand how to use these keywords to produce content in conversational ways to bring more searches.
The site also has a WordPress content management system integrated. This customizable backend gives Salonpas more power to easily update the website.
Finally, to strengthen brand name recognition and retention, we redesigned all social media networking pages, including custom pages for Facebook, Twitter and Youtube.
Results
The website and all social media networking pages launch in less than six weeks.
“You’re a hardworking team who wasn’t afraid of our timeline,” says Salonpas Marketing Product Manager, Janelle Aslam. “I can’t thank you enough for your fast turnaround time.”
By using CRM Metrix to design a more user-friendly site, visitor behavior is already improving with more product page conversions since the changeover on Feb 12.
“The website looks fantastic,” says Aslam. “I still can’t believe you did it so quickly.”
During the next few months, as the business continues to grow, Salonpas management will use their WordPress CMS to add additional products to the expandable site.
“As our U.S. sales increase throughout 2012, we’ll be able to quickly adapt online,” says Carroll. “Gaining more power to compete—and to act swiftly—is incredible. Thank you.”
