Winning Before the Sale
74%
80%
Enterprise
Consumer Goods & FMCG
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Speak to a BrainlabberWinning Hot Sale meant winning the weeks before it
Henkel entered Amazon's Hot Sale season — Mexico's equivalent of Black Friday, and one of the country's biggest annual online shopping events — with a clear-eyed view of what wasn't working. For years, their Amazon strategy had focused exclusively on lower-funnel conversions, efficiently retargeting existing customers who were already close to purchase. It was a reliable approach, but a limited one. It captured demand that already existed rather than creating new demand, and it left a significant portion of the available audience untouched.
The deeper issue was timing. Research into shopper behaviour within the Amazon ecosystem showed that consumers weren't making snap decisions during Hot Sale itself. They were researching, comparing, and forming preferences in the weeks leading up to the event. By the time the sale launched, many purchasing decisions had already effectively been made. A strategy built entirely around capturing in-sale conversions was arriving too late to influence the outcome.
Key friction points:
- A lower-funnel-only strategy was efficiently targeting existing customers but missing new audiences entirely
- Shopper research showed purchase intent was forming weeks before Hot Sale, not during it
- Without upper and mid-funnel activity in the lead-up period, Henkel had no presence at the moments that shaped buying decisions
"We are pleased to work with such a professional and high-performing team in our operation in Mexico.”
From capturing demand to creating it
The first step was rebuilding how Henkel's Amazon audiences were defined. Rather than continuing to serve repetitive ads to the same pool of existing customers, the team analysed and redefined audience segments using Sponsored Display and Amazon DSP in combination. High-intent shoppers were identified earlier in their journey, and audience overlap was reduced so that every impression was reaching someone new rather than reinforcing to someone already familiar with the brand.
2. Shifted activity into the pre-sale window to capture intent as it formed
With the research insight established that purchase decisions were forming weeks before Hot Sale, the team moved Henkel's campaign activity upstream. Rather than waiting for the sale to launch and competing at peak cost for in-sale conversions, ads were placed during the consideration window, reaching shoppers while they were still weighing their options and Henkel could still influence the outcome.
3. Prioritised high-impact placements at the precise moment of decision
Strategic placement was treated as a core performance lever, not an afterthought. Henkel's ads were positioned in high-visibility locations within the Amazon ecosystem to capture attention at the exact moment consumers were moving from consideration to purchase. Visibility on Amazon's digital shelf directly shapes buying behaviour, and placement decisions were made accordingly.
4. Optimised performance in real time throughout the campaign
Rather than setting the campaign live and monitoring from a distance, the team tracked performance metrics continuously throughout Hot Sale, making live adjustments to bidding strategy, audience targeting, and placement to maximise efficiency as the event unfolded. The campaign remained agile from launch through to close.
74% more sales. Built on a strategy that started before the sale did.
- 74% surge in Amazon sales during Hot Sale
- 80% average viewability rate across the campaign
74%
80%
