Background
Venice Body, a renowned brand in the skincare market, sought assistance from Aybee to boost sales by optimizing the pricing strategy of their best-seller product, “Self-Tan Drops.”
The primary objective was to identify the optimal price point among three options: the current price of 35.99€, a lower price of 24.99€, and an intermediate price of 32.99€. Additionally,Venice Body aimed to enhance the perceived value and competitive edge of their product against top competitors.
Übrigens: Alles rund um Marktforschung auf einen Blick gibt es in unserem Marktforschung ABC
Business Questions
- Should Venice Body decrease the price from 35.99€ to 24.99€ or 32.99€
- How can Venice Body improve their product to increase sales?
- How does Venice Body’s product compare to the main competitors?
Methodology
Aybee did a pricing test with three prices: 35.99€, 24.99€, and 32.99€. This test was done using a monadic method, meaning each person only saw one price to keep it fair. Here’s how it worked:
- 600 people took part, with 200 people seeing each price.
- Each person was shown just one price to avoid any bias.
- This helped us see how different prices affect what people decide to buy.
By using this method, we got clear results about which price people liked best.
Results
The analysis revealed that maintaining the price at 35.99€ generated the highest revenue.Lowering the price did not lead to increased sales volume sufficient to compensate for the lower price, indicating that consumers valued the product’s quality at the higher price point.
Detailed Insights and Recommendations
From the test results, it became evident that a price reduction was not the optimal strategy.Instead, the focus should be on reinforcing the product’s superiority to justify its premium pricing. Here are the detailed insights and recommendations:
- Product Superiority - Consumers value the quality of Venice Body’s “Hyaluronic Self-Tan Drops,” noting its low margin of side effects, premium packaging, key benefits, and ease of integration with daily skincare routines. The product’s unique formulation with hyaluronic acid and its dual benefits of self-tanning and anti-aging make it stand out in the market.
- Marketing Communication - Emphasizing the anti-aging benefits and hyaluronic acid content in marketing materials can further enhance perceived value. Highlighting these aspects in the primary and secondary images can effectively communicate the product’s superiority.
- Visual Strategy - Venice Body has already initiated a change by updating the primary image to emphasize the anti-aging effect using a magnifying effect on the packaging. This strategy should be extended to include redesigned secondary images to showcase the ease of mixing the product with daily skincare routines and to highlight the product’s key benefits.
- Competitive Positioning - To strengthen competitive positioning, Venice Body can draw inspiration from competitors like Asam and Garnier, who effectively communicate product benefits through visual strategies. Through our test environment, we know the drivers and barriers for each competitive product. Weal ways know why consumers buy brand A, B, or C. Using this knowledge, Venice Body can refine their messaging and marketing strategies to better compete in the market.
ROI Case for Venice Body
Background
In the first week of May, Venice Body collaborated with Aybee to conduct a pricing A/B/C test and implement recommended changes to their product’s primary and secondary images. The aim was to optimize the pricing strategy and enhance the perceived value of their best-selling “Hyaluronic Self-Tan Drops.” This case study evaluates the return on investment (ROI) resulting from these interventions.
Investment and Costs
- Total cost: 3.000€
Revenue Analysis
- Revenue in March & April (Before the test): 52,252€
- Revenue in June & July (After the test): 67,400€
The implementation of the recommended changes resulted in an increase of 15,148€ in revenue over the two months following the changes.
By investing 3.000€ in a pricing test and implementing strategic changes to their product images, Venice Body achieved a significant increase in revenue, resulting in an ROI of 405%within 2 months. This clearly demonstrates the value of the test and the effectiveness of Aybee’s recommendations in driving sales and enhancing the product’s market performance.
The success of this case study highlights the importance of continuous optimization and strategic marketing in achieving business goals. Venice Body’s collaboration with Aybee notonly optimized their pricing strategy but also provided valuable insights into consumer behavior and market positioning. This approach can serve as a blueprint for other companies looking to enhance their market performance and achieve high returns on investment.
🏔️ CHALLENGE
Venice Beauty, a renowned skincare brand, was unhappy with the sales performance of their best-selling product, "Hyaluronic Self-Tan Drops," on Amazon.
♟️ CLIENT'S HYPOTHESIS
The client believed the product was too expensive and that lowering the price would drive higher sales volume and revenue.
💰 AYBEE TEST RESULTS
The product was not too expensive—but customers didn't understand the value. Testing revealed that consumers were willing to pay a premium if the product clearly communicated its anti-aging benefits and hyaluronic acid content. The higher price point (€35.99) actually generated the most revenue.
📊 ACTION POINTS:
Update all product content to emphasize the two key value drivers: anti-aging benefits and hyaluronic acid. Redesign the hero image to magnify these elements and upgrade visual presentation to justify the premium positioning.
✅ OUTCOME:
We helped Venice Beauty uncover the real barrier to sales—and fix it. After implementing the content changes, an Amazon A/B test showed a +194% increase in conversion rate, nearly tripling performance without changing the price.
Key Details
- Client: Venice Beauty
- Industry: Skincare / Self-Tan Products
- Market: Amazon
- Product: Hyaluronic Self-Tan Drops (best-seller)
- Use Case: Pricing Strategy + Value Communication Optimization
- Participants: 600 shoppers (pricing test), 8,871 users (Amazon A/B validation)
The Full Story
The Performance Problem
Venice Beauty, a renowned brand in the competitive skincare market, faced a frustrating challenge: their best-selling product, "Hyaluronic Self-Tan Drops," wasn't performing as expected on Amazon. Sales were stagnant, and the team suspected they knew why—the price was too high.
At €35.99, the product sat at the premium end of the self-tan category. The conventional wisdom suggested that lowering the price to €24.99 or even an intermediate €32.99 would reduce the barrier to purchase and drive higher sales volume. But before making a potentially costly pricing change, Venice Beauty partnered with Aybee to validate their assumptions with real customer data.
The Test: Pricing and Perception
Aybee designed a comprehensive test to answer three critical questions:
1.Should Venice Beauty decrease the price from €35.99 to €24.99 or €32.99?
2.How can Venice Beauty improve their product listing to increase sales?
3.How does Venice Beauty's product compare to main competitors?
The test used a monadic pricing methodology with 600 participants, split evenly across three price points. Each person saw only one price to eliminate bias, and all interactions were tracked in a realistic Amazon shopping simulation.
The three scenarios tested were:
- Scenario A: €35.99 (current price)
- Scenario B: €24.99 (lower price)
- Scenario C: €32.99 (intermediate price)
The Surprising Truth About Price
The results challenged the assumption that price was the problem:
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The premium price point generated the highest revenue—€972 compared to €750 and €759 for the lower prices. Lowering the price did not drive enough additional volume to compensate for the reduced margin. In fact, customers who bought at €35.99 also had higher basket values, suggesting they were more committed buyers.
But if price wasn't the barrier, what was?
The Real Problem: Value Communication
Aybee's qualitative analysis uncovered the critical insight: customers didn't understand what made the product worth €35.99.
When asked what drives purchasing decisions in the self-tan drops category, consumers revealed two key value drivers:
🌟 Anti-Aging Benefits
- Female consumers placed exceptionally high value on anti-aging properties
- They were willing to pay a premium for products that offered dual benefits (self-tanning + anti-aging)
💧 Hyaluronic Acid Content
- Hyaluronic serum was perceived as a marker of quality and efficacy
- Consumers associated it with premium skincare and better results
The problem wasn't the price—it was that Venice Beauty's product listing didn't clearly communicate these premium features. The hero image and product description failed to emphasize what made the product special, leaving customers unable to justify the higher price point.
The Strategic Shift: Communicate Value, Not Just Features
Armed with these insights, Venice Beauty implemented a comprehensive content overhaul:
Hero Image Redesign:
- Enhanced Anti-Aging Focus: Added a magnifying effect to highlight the hyaluronic acid molecule and skin transformation
- Premium Positioning: Upgraded product presentation with sleek visuals and clear benefit callouts
- Maximized Visual Impact: Utilized the full hero image frame to create a more commanding presence
Content Strategy:
- Emphasized anti-aging benefits and hyaluronic acid content in all marketing materials
- Redesigned secondary images to showcase ease of integration with daily skincare routines
- Highlighted the product's unique dual-benefit formulation
Competitive Differentiation:
- Drew inspiration from successful competitors (Asam, Garnier) who effectively communicated benefits visually
- Leveraged test insights about competitive drivers and barriers to refine messaging
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The Real-World Validation
In the first week of May, Venice Beauty implemented Aybee's recommendations. Then, from July 6th to July 16th, 2024, they ran a validation test using Amazon's native A/B testing platform:
- Version A (original design): 4,393 users
- Version B (optimized imagery): 4,478 users
The result: a +194% increase in conversion rate—nearly tripling performance without changing the price.
The optimized imagery, which clearly emphasized the anti-aging benefits and premium positioning, resonated powerfully with customers. By helping them understand the value, Venice Beauty transformed browsers into buyers.
The Impact
By focusing on value communication rather than price reduction, Venice Beauty achieved:
- +194% conversion rate increase validated through Amazon's platform
- Maintained premium pricing and protected margins
- Deeper understanding of customer psychology and category drivers
- Competitive differentiation through superior value communication
- Blueprint for future optimization across other products
The team's initial instinct—to lower the price—would have sacrificed margin without addressing the real problem. Instead, by testing first and understanding customer perception, they unlocked massive growth while preserving profitability.
As Venice Beauty's results demonstrate:
"Through our strategic category screening, we helped Venice skyrocket its conversion rate by 194%! How did we do it? It's not magic—it's simply about testing and understanding the key factors that drive purchasing decisions on Amazon in this category."
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Why This Matters
This case study demonstrates a critical truth in e-commerce strategy: price is rarely the problem—perception is. Brands often assume that poor sales mean the product is too expensive, but the real issue is usually that customers don't understand the value proposition.
Aybee's behavioral simulations allow brands to:
- Test pricing strategies before making irreversible changes that could damage margins
- Identify the real barriers to purchase, not just the assumed ones
- Understand what customers value and are willing to pay for
- Optimize value communication to justify premium positioning
- Validate changes with real customer data before risking live performance
Curious what drives conversion for your product?
With Aybee, test visuals, formats, or messages in a real buyer environment—before you invest in production or advertising.
Validate before you launch. Optimize before you invest.
