Amid buzzy headlines and use cases for artificial intelligence, customized skin-care brand Proven launched a new sister brand on Thursday called Noteworthy that uses AI for personalized fragrance recommendations.
To take advantage of the tool, customers can take a 5-minute quiz that asks for age amd location, plus how extroverted they are, where they like to travel to and which fragrance notes they prefer. They will then receive recommendations of four fragrances out of Noteworthy’s 17 total fragrances — the brand will launch another eight fragrances soon. For $25, Noteworthy then ships fragrance samples for people to try before they buy, as well as a $25 code toward their full-size purchase. The launch follows a seven-month beta period where the company generated over $2 million in revenue and over 65,000 customers. Its prices range from $37 for a travel-size spray to $125 for a full-size, 3.3-ounce bottle.
Noteworthy is trying to appeal to customers who are uncertain about what they desire when faced with abundant fragrance choices. That’s where the strength of personalization comes in, according to Ashley Boyce, CMO and co-founder of Noteworthy.
“As we were going out to solve this pain point, we realized [from our research] that 63% of women think it’s hard to find a fragrance they love, and 74% wish there was an easier way to shop the category,” said Boyce. “Many of our customers are not quite sure where to start, so a [customized] process doesn’t necessarily get them where they want to be. Our approach is focused on using what consumers tell us through the quiz and letting the algorithm and AI decide what will work best.”
Today, personalized recommendations are available on almost every beauty brand’s e-commerce website, from Living Proof hair care to Tula skin care. There is scant data on the extent to which personalized recommendations convert to sales, compared to non-personalized recommendations. But some case studies demonstrate that the difference is significant. According to Dynamic Yield, the activewear brand Sweaty Betty experienced a 57% higher average order value after launching personalized recommendations. Meanwhile, Nars worked with Jebbit on personalized quizzes that resulted in more customer engagement.
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“The business is profitable already, which [demonstrates] that we’ve been able to hit the sweet spot and get this right for consumers,” said Luke Weston, CEO and co-founder of Noteworthy.
In early January, parent-company Proven expanded to Sephora.com via a co-branded partnership. Customers can locate Proven on the Sephora website and click through to be redirected to Proven’s website to take a three-minute co-branded quiz and purchase products. In August 2021, Proven notably announced it was offering company shares for sale to the general public via a Reg A+ under the name Life Spectacular Inc. According to Proven’s 1-K filing in May 2022 for the 2021 fiscal year, Proven revenue increased by approximately 116% to nearly $21 million. The revenue increase was primarily due to an increase in customers.
Boyce said the brand’s beta program marketing and formal launch plans are both focused on social media platforms. Specifically, it’s zeroing in on areas like #PerfumeTok on TikTok, which has proven to be hugely influential in the online fragrance space. But there is also a focus on building Noteworthy’s CRM and gathering feedback to suggest additional fragrances, convert customers to purchase either the travel or full-size fragrance option, and improve on future offerings.
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“[Our marketing] leads with the pain points because that resonates with people. The in-store experience is overwhelming, not knowing where to start, and the online shopping experience is tough,” said Boyce. “Then we show how we solve the problem and that they can try it at home. It’s such an emotional category; scent is an extension of your personal style.”
