Carel carves out a place on the web for traditional craftsmanship
Carel has been making women’s shoes since 1952, offering hand-crafted products of the highest quality made with premium raw materials. With a limited web presence up to now, Carel is investing heavily in online communications – which represent 80% of its total marketing budget today.
After joining the company in the last quarter of 2014, Digital Marketing Director Helmut Kponton was tasked with revamping the brand’s communications by positioning it online: “We launched an online marketing campaign on YouTube with a one-minute mini-film and around ten fifteen-second videos. Since October 2014, we’ve already had more than 400,000 views,” explains Helmut. And after a three-month campaign, the company’s revenues tripled on the same period in the previous year. The company has also experienced a surge in brand recognition, thanks in part to its partnership with publisher Le Livre de Poche. “These results have brought our communications to life and reinforced the management’s decision to invest more in digital communications.” Sales on Carel’s e-commerce site have increased 45% compared to 2014, with especially strong growth in the last three months of 2014 and at the start of 2015. “YouTube and Google’s products in general have really helped to boost our reputation, and we can now reach specific targets with greater precision. Google’s teams listen to all our needs and help us to use their products as efficiently as possible.” Alongside greater visibility and record revenues, Helmut is looking forward to tapping into new opportunites for creative expression on the web. “Online marketing will be a major priority of ours in the future.” The company hopes to launch its next campaign in April/May 2015.
YouTube and Google’s products in general have really helped to boost our reputation.