Voice of Atypica‘s Friends #1: How Atypica.AI Helped a Skincare Marketer Win on TikTok & Instagram
Intro:
At Atypica.AI, we’re making market research 100x cheaper, 100x faster, and 100x broader in user coverage. This blog series is built from real user stories and interviews and all shared with permission, showcasing how professionals across industries are using Atypica to turn complex research questions into actionable insights. We hope these experiences inspire and guide you on your own journey.
Research Story Snapshot
User: Sophie Martinez, Digital Marketing Manager at a natural skincare startup in Toronto, Canada
Use Case: Planning to launch a sensitive-skin body lotion in the North American market
Challenge: Unclear about main competitors, target segments, and how to craft a winning social commerce strategy
Key Result: Atypica.AI identified a white space combining clinical credibility with social appeal and pinpointed “Socially-Savvy Skintellectuals” as the ideal launch audience
Impact: Using Atypica.AI’s phased 3-month plan, Sophie’s team achieved over 3.5% engagement and a 2.3% TikTok Shop conversion rate at launch
When Sophie Martinez, a mid-level digital marketing manager at a natural skincare startup in Toronto, first reached out to atypica.AI, she was facing a classic product-launch challenge. Her team had developed a body lotion for sensitive skin and planned to sell it in North America, but they didn’t know how to position it or where to start. Sophie’s specific question to atypica.AI was straightforward:
“I want to sell a body lotion for sensitive skin in North America. Please identify the top 3 competing brands currently offering similar products on TikTok Shop and Instagram, and create a 3-month digital marketing plan including key messaging, channel selection, and launch activities.”
The Challenge
Despite years of experience running paid campaigns, Sophie had never faced such a fragmented landscape. Social commerce in North America was dominated by well-funded, trend-driven competitors. Her team lacked clarity on which brands to benchmark, which consumer segments to prioritize, and how to translate “natural” into a credible, differentiated message that would resonate with sensitive-skin users.
How Atypica.AI Approached It
1. Smart Research Methodology 🧠
Atypica.AI applied its Professional Insight Research Framework, combining a Competitor Analysis Matrix with STP (Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning) modeling.
Within minutes, it scanned more than 15 competing brands on TikTok Shop and Instagram, reviewed social media analytics, and simulated eight in-depth consumer interviews across three key segments within the sensitive skin market:
Clinical Purists – efficacy-first consumers
Eco-Ethical Shoppers – transparency and sustainability seekers
Socially-Savvy Skintellectuals – trend-aware but ingredient-conscious shoppers
2. Inspiring Findings 🤩
The research report gave Sophie a clear competitive map. It pinpointed three leading brands—Byoma, Cocokind, and Babo Botanicals—and highlighted each one’s price points, social strategy, and perception gaps.
Crucially, Atypica.AI identified a market white space: no single brand was successfully combining clinical credibility with social-media appeal for adult consumers with sensitive skin.
The STP analysis revealed that the Socially-Savvy Skintellectuals were the most promising initial segment for a TikTok + Instagram launch. This insight became the cornerstone of the marketing plan.
3. The 3-Month Digital Marketing Plan 📈
Armed with these findings, Atypica.AI generated a full phased launch strategy:
Month 1 (Authenticity): Micro-influencer gifting to 30–50 creators with sensitive skin history, plus TikTok-first content establishing radical transparency.
Month 2 (Education): Ingredient deep-dive carousels, dermatologist Q&A sessions on Instagram Live, and community polls on sensitive skin challenges.
Month 3 (Conversion): Launch on TikTok Shop and Instagram Shopping with limited-time bundles and a #MySkinStory UGC campaign.
The plan even included key messaging pillars—“Gentle Efficacy, Visibly Proven,” “Radical Transparency,” and “The Science of Nature”—each linked to the segment’s emotional drivers.
The Impact
Within weeks of implementing Month 1, Sophie’s team saw authentic reviews from micro-influencers drive organic engagement above 3.5%, while ingredient-focused posts doubled their Instagram saves compared to previous campaigns.
By Month 3, their first TikTok Shop bundle offer hit a 2.3% conversion rate, surpassing their benchmark and creating a fast-growing email/SMS list of early adopters.
In Sophie’s Words
“Traditionally, we’d spend tens of thousands on third-party research agencies and still wait months for insights. With Atypica.AI, we had a full competitive scan, real consumer interviews, and a concrete 3-month plan in days. We not only saved time and budget but finally understood how to speak credibly to sensitive-skin users online. Our launch felt strategic, not reactive.”
Want to understand your consumers in real time, get insights on-demand, and figure out your next move?
Activate your online research team at 👉 atypica.AI