In at the moment’s fast-paced advertising panorama, innovation and shopper connection are paramount, particularly within the quickly evolving magnificence trade. A groundbreaking growth on this subject is the mixing of ChatGPT expertise, revolutionizing how shoppers work together with magnificence merchandise. Main this revolutionary cost for Dove Hair is Ekaterina Anikina, a seasoned advertising and product growth specialist at Unilever. With over a decade of expertise, she has efficiently pushed world initiatives and product launches. As one of many main consultants in magnificence innovation, she shares her insights into integrating AI expertise into model eco-systems to create significant engagement with shoppers, her profession path, and her mission to problem magnificence stereotypes via inclusive and real looking promoting
Q: Ekaterina, it’s a pleasure to lastly discuss to you, regardless of the restricted period of time now we have. So, let me get straight to the purpose. You have got traveled via half of the world, engaged on behalf of one of many foremost firms within the magnificence trade. For a kind of introduction earlier than we get to the very subject of our assembly, may you briefly stroll us via your method to success?
Ekaterina Anikina: Good afternoon! Sure, it really took a while to coordinate our schedules, and I’m glad to lastly meet you. Answering your query, I started my advertising profession fairly a while in the past, in 2010, in Unilever’s hair care class – one of the fast-paced, emotional, and disruptive classes in magnificence. Right here I found my ardour for product and promoting growth whereas engaged on iconic manufacturers like Dove and Clear and launching new premium manufacturers comparable to Toni&Man. My journey took me throughout continents, from the UK to Argentina and now to the US. Right here, I lead innovation and communication growth for Dove Hair in North America. As you possibly can think about, it means main improvements for fully completely different markets, whereas understanding shopper routines and advertising landscapes. In a nutshell, it’s been a journey, actually and figuratively, however it formed me as a marketeer and a magnificence crafter.
Q: Certainly! And talking proper about improvements, I want to ask you in regards to the Dove scalp + hair remedy venture. As I already discovered, the mixing of Synthetic Intelligence into the wonder sphere came about with this one. Inform us extra!
Ekaterina Anikina: Sure, this launch marks a big and thrilling milestone for the model. Dove Scalp + Hair Remedy is a brand new vary of holistic scalp + hair care merchandise. Past merchandise – it’s an built-in expertise that options an AI-enabled private marketing consultant to assist individuals discover the merchandise that work greatest for his or her hair and scalp wants. This venture addresses the lack of information about scalp care and merchandise/routines greatest suited to completely different scalp varieties, or steadily – even the flexibility to determine one’s scalp sort accurately. We developed a device that gives individuals with the mandatory information about their scalp and provides customized product suggestions from the Dove Scalp + Hair Remedy vary, along with offering recommendations on scalp care, related knowledgeable articles, recommendation on methods to apply merchandise and methods to construct your scalp care routine, similar to many people construct our face care routine. We constructed our product by harnessing the facility of enormous language fashions. It has gained worldwide recognition and was offered at London Tech Week in June 2024.
Q: Please present us with extra technical particulars. How does it truly work?
We needed to construct a conversational answer that feels human-like and as a way to obtain that, we harnessed the facility of pre-trained giant language fashions like GPT. We created a customized mannequin educated on our model intelligence that may reply a variety of queries on hair & scalp. This venture is enabling us to innovate in the direction of a extra dynamic, conversational AI-driven expertise. It paves the best way for a future the place net experiences are usually not simply responsive however really interactive and customized, answering primary inquiries and producing micro net experiences tailor-made to extra complicated questions via easy chat interactions. Accessible by way of Dove.com, this device will advocate the most effective Dove Scalp + Hair Remedy merchandise for you after studying about your hair sort and targets by way of an interactive, 12-question evaluation.
In fact, as with all digital device, it can not change an in-person session along with your trichologist or dermatologist, however it’s an amazing academic expertise.
Q: I assume that is one more instance of how expertise is altering each a part of our lives. What components helped you obtain success with this venture, and what obstacles did you face?
Ekaterina Anikina: We’ve got to confess most of us don’t pay sufficient consideration to scalp well being till issues come up: it’s a basic case of out of sight – out of thoughts. So, our challenges included low to medium consciousness of scalp well being fundamentals, issue that many shoppers could expertise in accurately figuring out their scalp varieties., and general confusion in regards to the function of every product which may be supplied in a routine. Success got here from aligning shopper issues with expertise from the beginning and pondering ecosystem and consumer-first, slightly than product-first. We began with an precise shopper drawback, present attitudes to the scalp, and foremost ache factors Do I want to make use of a scalp scrub day by day or as soon as per week? Can I take advantage of it if I’ve a delicate scalp? Ought to I apply a serum on dry or moist hair? The record goes on and on. Then we overlaid it with our shopper’s digital journeys, in addition to bodily product expertise to create a related ecosystem to handle these questions – from pack QR codes resulting in the expertise to e-com integration, to our model channels, in addition to bodily academic leaflets with rapid categorical scalp assessments and hyperlinks to a full expertise – all of it is concentrated on offering beneficial, tailor-made content material – from model consultants and dermatologists to create a significant digital expertise for shoppers.
Q: And the venture we discuss has already obtained its first recognition successful a number of awards because it was launched. Are you able to inform us extra about these outcomes?
Ekaterina Anikina: I’m thrilled that this launch has already gained recognition by the trade’s consultants. Dove Scalp + Hair Remedy vary has already gained six Magnificence Awards since its launch in January 2024, our hero product – Dove Scalp + Hair Remedy Serum is already a high 10 new remedy in gross sales amongst new remedies launched within the US this yr. General, the launch has gained quite a lot of consideration all through the skilled group, together with dermatologists and trichologists. Dove scalp + hair remedy vary was offered on the American Academy of Dermatology 2024 assembly. The AI expertise was showcased at London Tech Week.
Q: Awards given to initiatives should have an effect on the venture’s authors as effectively, don’t they?
A: Sure and no. The primary time a advertising marketing campaign I created obtained an award was again in 2011 after I was contemporary out of the College, so it felt surreal. Since then, this type of recognition has occurred in a number of international locations, and I see it extra like an immensely gratifying and humbling expertise, however by no means a aim in itself. For example, whereas I’m proud that the merchandise I’ve labored on have already gained over 50 Magnificence Awards within the US, and I personally gained the 2022 Better of Enterprise Award in worldwide advertising, and served on the jury of the Profitable Girls Award, however it’s all a consequence, not a aim. And if something, it’s a reminder to stay curious and by no means keep complacent, as a result of the tempo of improvements could be very intense, and the bar will get raised greater and better annually. So I consider in staying curious and consistently studying to achieve the longer term…
Q: …and talking of the longer term, what additional impression would you like your venture to have on different individuals? What’s subsequent?
Ekaterina Anikina: I hope this launch helps girls perceive the facility of caring for his or her scalp to attain extra resilient, healthy-looking, and nourished hair. In the end, we wish girls to have a constructive relationship with their distinctive magnificence.
Q: I additionally bear in mind you speaking about your future not solely as a goal-achiever but additionally as a kind of knowledge-distributor, if I’ll title it this fashion. Is this concept nonetheless on the desk?
Ekaterina Anikina: Oh, sure! Past a product launch, I’ve additionally authored a tutorial article on methods and methods of making new shopper habits, and one other paper trying into portfolio premiumization methods in magnificence, drawing on this expertise in addition to greater than a decade of working throughout geographies in magnificence and leveraging case research throughout the trade.
Q: It looks like you’ve discovered your ardour in elevating the wonder trade to new heights. What social impression do you try to attain along with your work? Do you have got a private mission?
Ekaterina Anikina: My mission is to widen magnificence illustration and problem poisonous magnificence stereotypes. For example, whereas girls are all too typically inspired to alter their hair to suit societal requirements, be it coloring their grays or altering their hair form, I led the Dove Love Your Hair Assortment, celebrating all hair varieties and inspiring girls to like and nourish the hair that makes them, them. This marketing campaign was a part of Dove’s dedication to actual magnificence, addressing the pressures and unrealistic requirements girls face relating to their hair. My aim as an expert is to make use of each device obtainable, even these by no means tried earlier than within the trade, to contribute positively to the dialog round magnificence.
