Kaplow partnered with Cosmetic Executive Women, the most prestigious beauty industry organization, in 1994 to redefine the brand and establish it as the undisputed “insider source” of all things beauty to consumers.
We developed a thought-leadership campaign so powerful that it continues to drive growth — both for the association and for its member brands — more than two decades later. The CEW Insider’s Choice Beauty Awards have truly become the industry’s “Oscars.”
We created a program to honor the most innovative new products each year, as chosen by CEW members. The Awards begin with a Product Demo at which hundreds of brands showcase their newest products. Thousands of CEW members attend to sample the products and vote. Finalists are announced in April, and the winners are celebrated at a gala event in May.
Our challenge was: how do we get consumers to come along for that three-month ride?
Over the years, we’ve blazed new trails while staying true to the CEW story.
When women first began going online for beauty information, we created a special Blogger Lounge at the Awards, so beauty bloggers could share Awards news. That lounge has evolved into a state-of-the-art, real-time communications center where key beauty influencers gather to hear about the top trends and share their excitement with their followers.
Today, our comprehensive social media campaign across all channels keeps beauty-obsessed consumers excited and engaged from the demo through the awards. Influencers and consumers share their excitement with CEW-branded hashtags. This year, we created such a frenzy of engagement that #CEWAwards became a top-trending topic on Twitter.
Our campaign has positioned CEW as the ultimate insider beauty resource and, says CEW President Carlotta Jacobson:
Kaplow’s work over the past two decades has greatly enhanced CEW’s value — building industry credibility, engaging consumers and driving bottom line results for our members’ products.
