Unicorn Orange amplifies Waken and becomes a finalist in the 2023 Amazon Ads Partner Awards

Caring for your teeth is a daily ritual. Consumers often need to consider a range of options for floss, toothpaste, mouthwash and more. Generally, they want effective solutions, and as more of them consider the impacts of their habits on the environment, some are looking for more sustainable options. Waken Mouthcare addresses this need, offering products with recyclable packaging that is more sustainable than traditional plastic options.

When Waken launched on Amazon U.K., they needed to stand out against established brands that had already captured customers’ attention. Amazon Ads partner Unicorn Orange devised a compelling full-funnel strategy to help grow Waken’s business – earning themselves a finalist spot for the 2023 Performance Award.

Founded in 2019, Waken has a mission to change the world of oral hygiene. They offer a range of sustainably crafted products; for instance, their mouthwash bottles are made from 100% post-consumer recycled plastic, and their toothpaste tubes use recycled aluminum. Waken’s mouthwashes are also carbon neutral; the brand compensates for the carbon emissions associated with their materials, manufacturing and packaging by investing in ongoing conservation projects.

Waken has sold their products through a range of U.K. and international retailers, and established a presence on Amazon U.K. in 2021. Despite their high-quality offerings, the brand faced competition from heavyweight brands in the toothpaste and mouthwash categories. To grow their business on Amazon U.K., Waken wanted a partner to help them build brand awareness and increase their monthly revenue.

In their early partnership with Waken, Unicorn Orange adopted a suite of mid- and lower-funnel advertising tactics, including a detailed keyword bidding strategy that incorporated terms such as toothpaste and mouthwash. During this phase, they set ambitious goals to increase their monthly revenue. Early results led Unicorn Orange to re-calibrate their strategy with a full-funnel approach, using Amazon DSP for upper- and mid-funnel activities. The partner set new goals: bolster year-over-year revenue growth and multiply ad impressions by 2.5X in three months.

During the first phase, which took place from October 2022 to January 2023, Unicorn Orange harnessed Amazon DSP to drive awareness of Waken’s brand. First, they identified seven products with conversion rates above 30% and a click-through rate above 0.5%.¹ Then, they deployed Amazon DSP ads to reach the upper funnel, blending contextual and in-market audience targeting within and outside of Amazon U.K. to help drive new-to-brand purchases. Unicorn Orange also deployed a re-targeting campaign to encourage consumers who had engaged with Waken’s ads but had not made a purchase.

The next phase, which ran from February to April 2023, pivoted to lower-funnel tactics. Unicorn Orange redirected ad spend from Amazon DSP to Sponsored Products, Sponsored Brands and Sponsored Brands video ads, adopting defensive, category and competitor targeting options. They also ramped up the brand’s Sponsored Display ads to reach customers who had viewed competitor brands or had previously seen Waken’s ads, aiming for consistent engagement.

In March 2023, Waken’s monthly revenue surpassed their target revenue by 8.5%.² At the same time, their ad revenue jumped by 27% – the highest-ever monthly earnings for the brand.³ New-to-brand customers increased by 24%, and subscriptions increased by 2.5X compared with March 2022.⁴ This positive trajectory continued, with Waken achieving a 10% uptick in subscriptions by May 2023.⁵ Approximately 33% of these subscriptions were direct outcomes of Amazon DSP campaigns.⁶ Additionally, the full-funnel strategies yielded a 4X increase in ad impressions over three months across sponsored ads and Amazon DSP campaigns.⁷

With these results, Waken is better positioned to grow their brand even further on Amazon U.K. This campaign not only underscores Unicorn Orange’s expertise but cements their position as a finalist for the 2023 Performance Award.