Vans: An Off the Wall Experience / Mathieu Gillain

Written By: MATHIEU GILLAIN Chief Growth Officer, Social Lab

In 2020, physical store visits and retail were put on hold because of the pandemic and consequential lockdowns. This sparked the relevance of social commerce: allowing users — like me — to discover and purchase products in a seamless, entertaining and immersive experience.

For Vans connecting with youth through culture, innovation and creative expression has always been at the cornerstone of its communication.

And regardless of a global pandemic, the brand aims to keep pushing the needle. So, right in the middle of the second wave of COVID-19, Vans needed to roll out its promotion plan for the all-new MTE All Weather Vans winter model. We identified a tension between the

category’s need to try on and experience the product and people spending more time online as they were locked in. As a consumer myself, trying shoes has always been key in deciding what product to purchase.

The challenge was clear: how can Vans make its MTE shoes accessible to customers, without leaving the house, minimising friction, and offering an overall fun experience.

In collaboration with Snapchat, we designed an AR lens that offered an entry point for consumers to virtually try on the Sk8-Hi MTE 2.0 collection.

As a consumer exposed to the AR lens, I would first be prompted to point the camera to my feet. An AR effect would then be triggered; allowing me to try two different shoe styles. As the campaign was built from Snapchat’s Shoppable tech, Snapchatters like me could purchase directly from the Lens via a “Shop Now” button. To drum up exposure the lens was promoted through paid media across Snapchat. To maximise sales, we focused on engagementled retargeting and re-routed the users who tried the lens to a product page featuring the new MTE All Weathers.

The campaign was a hit. The return on ad spend from people who tried the AR lens reached 14.5. And on average, people who engaged with the lens were 32% more likely to make a purchase. To top things off, it was shared 141,000 times, bringing 631,000 earned impressions to the table.

As a consumer myself, I am not surprised by the performance obtained by this campaign, which provides the audience with an amazing AR and buying experience, and as a Chief Growth Officer, I am very proud to have been involved in the making of this amazing innovative initiative.