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Rhode Marketing Strategy: The Secret Behind Their Rapid Rise
Market Valuation
Before
After
Key Metrics
- Products sell out within minutes of launch.
- 5M+ Social media followers
- 1.5M Organic traffic (monthly)
Marketing Objective
- Establish rhode as a unique Skincare Brand
- Establish a Loyal D2C Community
- Create Hype-Driven Product Demand
- Position as Affordable Luxury
- Global Brand Expansion
Key Highlights
- Celebrity credibility + Influencer marketing
- Skinimalism designs & Sensory marketing
- Social Media hype & Intentional scarcity.
Project Background
In a world where celebrity brands come and go, rhode Skin has done something remarkable. It has built a genuine cult following. Founded by global icon Hailey Bieber (wife of Justin Bieber), the brand has quickly risen to the top of the skincare ladder. But what really sets it apart isn’t just celebrity sparkle; it’s the rhode marketing strategy that turned this brand into a billion-dollar success story within 3 years.
This rhode case study breaks down how a clean & minimalist skincare line outpaced the cluttered market using
- smart content,
- community-first engagement, and
- calculated digital plays.
Business Background
Industry: Skincare | Beauty | eCommerce | D2C
Location: Beverly Hills, LA, California, USA
Rhode Skin is a minimalist and ingredient-conscious skincare brand.
They were launched in 2022 (during the clean girl trend) with the mission to deliver affordable yet effective products.
The company got its name from the middle name of Hailey and is now owned by e.l.f. Beauty, while Hailey will work closely with them to run the company.
What makes the brand unique is its “less is more” philosophy and laser-sharp cosmetic branding strategy that speaks directly to Gen Z and Millennials.
Although they are a big name now, they didn’t have it easy.
The marketing strategy of rhode is the reason why we all know rhode now, and Wildnet unravels its mysteries.
Challenges
Scepticism Around Celebrity Brands
Many consumers view celebrity beauty brands as quick cash grabs.
Thus, building the trust was crucial for rhode.
Highly Competitive Market
Skincare is a red ocean filled with established players like The Ordinary, Drunk Elephant, and Fenty Skin (owned by Rihanna).
We haven’t even mentioned L’Oréal, Lakmé, and others yet.
Supply Chain & Inventory Management
rhode’s initial product launches were sold out in minutes, creating pressure to meet the overwhelming demand.
And if they had failed there, the bad publicity would have caught up with the hype.
Establishing Unique Brand Positioning
In a market obsessed with 10-step routines, promoting a minimal, i.e., 3-product, routine required reshaping buyer psychology.
This meant that the rhode marketing strategy had to focus on branding & marketing simultaneously.
Solution
Solutions Used
- Innovative lines of products were designed to attract attention, such as the rhode lip case (lip balm in the phone cover).
- Teasing rhode campaigns such as hiding product names, Hailey Bieber’s makeup routine and an ever-looming sense of FOMO (fear of missing out) helped a lot.
- Products were launched laced with sensory marketing, which was a big part of rhode marketing strategy.
- Product kits helped in increasing the AOV, or the average order value, by combining Peptide Glazing Fluid (for doughnut-like glazy skin) with other stuff.
- The brand ambassadors garnered by rhode marketing strategy featured Jasmine Tookes, Claudia Schiffer and more ran various campaigns like #RhodeGlowUp & #RhodeRoutine.
- Their epic social media marketing campaigns included “One Step to Dewy Skin” ads, “Less is More” and “Get Your Glow”.
- The rhode World created a unique world for its customers, which became the desired lifestyle for Millennials, Gen Z and Gen Alpha.
- Their website engaged visitors via skin consultation quiz, CTAs like “Shop Now for Instant Dew”, and A/B testing while offering mobile-friendliness.
- rhode leveraged the current trends via eco-friendly beauty products, AR-try on features & personalization, skincare routine fatigue, and skin barrier health.
- Hailey Bieber (55.2M Instagram followers) being a celebrity helped in building the initial momentum needed for all the above solutions to work effectively.
Strategies Implemented
- Founder-centric branding strategy was leveraged to build the rhode’s narrative around Hailey.
- Disruptive Brand Positioning worked for rhode like magic. While the market loved 10-step skincare, rhode launched a 3-step minimal routine. Instead of launching 10 products at a time, rhode launched 3, which created a curiosity about the rest.
- As a strategy, rhode marketing team intentionally built scarcity which resulted in sold out situation and hype in the market.
- Influencer strategies used both micro & macro influencers to generate thousands of UGC (user-generated content) on social media.
- Gen Z targeting strategy was implemented via minimalistic visuals, fan shout-outs, BTS shots, and Hailey’s beauty routines.
Email funnel strategies ensured that warm leads were ready to boost sales, whether it was a product launch or a pre-launch campaign.
- Organic Marketing SEO Strategies – rhode marketing strategy helped them garner
- 54 Domain Authority via 57.6K backlinks.
- According to Semrush, they have 3.2K Ranking keywords and 1.5M organic traffic, which is almost 84% of market acquisition compared to their competitors.
Key Insights for Marketers
- A minimalist offering can outperform complex lineups if positioned correctly.
- Celebrity brands must offer transparency and involvement, not just endorsements.
- Scarcity and anticipation can build powerful conversion funnels if done authentically.
- AI digital marketing is how it can be done right.
Implementation
Process
The Rhode marketing strategy divided every campaign into four stages.
- Teaser phase leveraged Hailey to drop hints about the upcoming products in the “get ready with me” videos.
- Then, a pre-launch hype was created via PR buzz, waitlists and influencer UGC content on social media.
- Products were launched on their D2C Shopify website along with email campaigns and minimalist visuals.
- rhode World was used to ensure sales finished within minutes while keeping the demand high for the future.
Key Marketing Tools Used
- Klaviyo to segment email marketing based on user behaviours.
- To find the right influencers, used TikTok Creator Marketplace and Modash & Heepsy (Instagram).
- To ensure a limited product drop, Shopify + Back in Stock App.
- Linktree to add rhode’s website links in influencer bios.
- Semrush & ChatGPT to write FOMO content. AI Marketing Analytics tools to keep a real-time watch on your users.
Why does this Case Study matter to Skincare Brands?
- rhode skin marketing strategy analysis is like a masterclass for emerging as well as well-established beauty brands.
- Brands can learn the power of authenticity, marketing psychology and community-led engagement from the rhode marketing strategy.
- Also, the rhode marketing strategy for beauty products is a great example of using a marketing budget not for ads but for building scarcity, influence and a top-notch supply chain.
Screenshots
The Results
The rhode marketing strategy helped them garner
- 1.5M organic traffic, 84% of Market Share
- $1B Valuation achieved in under 3 years of Launch
- Everything Sell Out in Minutes
- 600K+ customers served worldwide
- 3-product routine became a trendsetter
- Brand love, not just hype, repeat customers > 35%
