My old coworker George (we worked together at SnackNation way back in the day) started a non-alc brand called hiyo. It has all but BLOWN UP. Which really is the most amazing thing to see. GO GEORGE!!!!
TODAY, let’s funnel hack hiyo. A brand that is ~3 years old, taking the market by storm, and selling in Erewhon, Sprouts, Whole Foods (+ so so many more retailers), but also ONLINE.
We’ll shop hiyo, because, as I so often say, there’s no better way to study a brand, or a business, than to behave like a customer…
STEP 1
🍏 Search for the brand on Instagram. 🍏
The bio is all business. That’s fine by me. The highlights are well-organized and aesthetic. Also fine by me.
I would like the bio to have a tiny bit more product info. Like the kicker here is it’s 0% alcohol and 30 calories. I learned that on module 2 of the homepage, and this is my favorite part of their entire site (I know I’m skipping ahead to the site but stay with me, please).
I think might be well worth it to either add those stats into the bio OR to pin a 2nd post to the bio that is a graphic of all of those AMAZING nutritional stats. ^
Right now, the brand just has 1 post pinned (a long form commercial – iconic), but would be so handy to pin a 2nd post and have it show the stats. These are gooooood stats and in that graphic I think they could also somehow show how many cans they’ve sold or how many 5 star reviews they have. Because the brand is BIGGER and MORE POPULAR than I realized (even though it’s sold in all of those amazing retailers – I didn’t understand the scale and there are THOUSANDS of 5 star reviews at play here and I love to see it).
A graphic that has the stats would be an amazing intro to the brand, and because hiyo is running ads on Meta… that extra pinned post would be handy to have waiting once someone clicks the profile in the ad they’re served. A challenger brand like this needs all the social proof and detail they can get – this would help!
Just to backup, I’m suggesting a 2nd pinned post here:
STEP 2
🍈 Facebook Ads Library time. 🍈
Usually I’d go straight to Google to search the brand (we’ll do that next) but I have always, always LOVED hiyo’s Meta ad creative so let’s stalk that next.
These 2 ads have been running since September 26, 2023 (thank you, Facebook Ad’s Library) – a very successful creative launch batch!
HOW GOOD? Dark mode vs light mode. Infographic vs. info in ad copy.
If you’re old like me, you might need a zoom in. Here you go:
I’d love love love for hiyo to make a gif that combines these details – and to make the ad copy social proof, e.g.
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10,000,000 cans sold, 0 hangovers.
0% alcohol, 100% float.
Founded in 2021 by 3 best friends.
Back to their organic social – how fun is this brand? I’d be thrilled to see them run this post as an ad. Throw it into an ASC. Organic content meets paid ad spend.
STEP 3
Google time!
🍋 Search for the brand on Google. 🍋
We’re boxing out almost entirely! Great. Brez is there, but for now we have the upper hand on reviews but appear more expensive ($44.99 vs. $40.00). Something to watch closely and to work on NOW is boosting our reviews.
1K (brez) vs. 6K reviews (hiyo) isn’t even close but hiyo is older so we need to please push the gas on this (especially because hiyo has the bigger footprint in retail so online reviews don’t capture the full scale of the brand). George, get ahead of this now please! Aggressive discount at the flow level and an occasional campaign, IDC. This is so important for all of our brands.
FWIW, I decide what to buy and click based on quantity of reviews – if I see something has 10,451 reviews and something else has 1,512 – I’m going down the road more traveled and buying the more popular product EVERY SINGLE TIME.
STEP 4
🍉 Click through to the brand’s website. 🍉
Rule #1 in supporting the brands you like – don’t click their sponsored placements. Scroll until you find the organic listing. Promise me, okay? (I OBVIOUSLY didn’t click the ad – I WOULD NEVER DO THAT TO GEORGE!)
Now that I’m on the site let’s stalk the tech stack. Here we can see a site equipped with:
📧: Klaviyo for email
📱: Attentive for SMS
🐳: Northbeam for attribution (recommend Triple Whale for them)
❤️🔥: Okendo for reviews
🍈: Skio for subscription (recommend Recharge for them)
😇: All on Shopify Plus (great to see!)
Would really love to see a slide cart added to the site – there’s a BIG upsell opportunity (quantity and flavor upselling) that’s being missed. This is my #1 recommendation. Please add!
The cart needs support ASAP…
I am into with the imagery on site across the board.
This ingredient highlight (below the fold on the PDP) – inspired.
P.S. I realized 1 more thing for Hiyo to please immediately add. A digital gift card (currently not on site). It’s Shopify native and won’t take long to add and makes Hiyo available for gifting (this is a great gift). Important! Copy the Olipop experience.
STEP 5
🫐 Let’s Order! 🫐
I got the variety pack – I can’t wait to float. The order confirmation pre-text is special. Fab! I appreciate a brand that takes time for the details.
P.S. Have I mentioned how happy I am for this brand? GO GEORGE!
