Client: Carhartt
Services: Full-funnel social strategy, incrementality testing, asset planning and execution
Overview and Challenges:
Carhartt, a global premium workwear brand with over a century of heritage, set its most ambitious eCommerce goals to date ahead of the holiday season, aiming to drive record revenue and attract a wave of new customers.
Facing macroeconomic pressure, a shortened shopping window, heightened competition, and the distraction of an election year, the brand needed to break through with speed and relevance. Together with January Digital, Carhartt executed its largest-ever investment in social media, shifting budget toward Meta and TikTok based on incrementality insights.
The strategy centered on full-funnel performance, connecting emotionally at the top of the funnel while driving efficient revenue at the bottom. The campaign also required producing record volumes of platform-native creative, optimized for seasonal moments, diverse audiences, and evolving trends. Close cross-functional collaboration between media, merchandising, site, and creative teams ensured alignment from awareness to conversion.
Goals:
- Elevate brand awareness, ad recall, and purchase intent by leveraging social platforms that resonate with Gen Z, Millennials, and women
- Deliver a seamless full-funnel experience that guides consumers from discovery to purchase through cohesive messaging and content
- Accelerate new customer acquisition, expanding Carhartt’s reach and relevance with emerging audiences
- Drive both last-touch and incremental revenue through precision targeting, data-driven optimizations, and performance creative
Our Work:
January Digital deployed a full-funnel social strategy across Meta and TikTok, combining data-backed decision-making with tailored creative execution:
- Activated the Brand’s Largest-Ever Social Investment
Shifted budget away from lower-impact channels to Meta and TikTok based on media mix modeling and daily incrementality testing. The result was the brand’s highest-ever social investment. - Designed a Full-Funnel Approach with Tailored Messaging
Executed platform-specific strategies to engage consumers at every stage, from awareness campaigns using first-party data to performance messaging designed to convert. - Implemented Always-On Optimization and Measurement
Used real-time reporting, daily incrementality tests, and brand lift studies to continually refine targeting, budget, and messaging mix across platforms. - Amplified Key Brand Stories and Moments
- Luke Grimes Partnership: Used across platforms to connect heritage and modern culture through music, television, and shared values
- Creators and Campaigns: Supported “Pass the Jacket” and “Holiday Regifting” initiatives to emotionally engage new audiences
- Focus on Women: Increased investment in women’s-focused creative, helping expand reach and sales in this growing segment
Results and Business Impact:
By prioritizing on high-impact social channels and platform-native content, Carhartt and January Digital delivered record results across revenue, brand lift, and new customer growth:
- Surpassed eCommerce revenue goals, marking a record holiday performance
- Increased new customer acquisition, with +53% growth in new traffic and +18% increase in new customers
- Drove incremental revenue through Meta, with awareness campaigns contributing to a measurable lift in incremental orders
- Outperformed industry benchmarks across brand metrics, with notable lifts in awareness, favorability, and purchase intent on Meta and TikTok
- Expanded women’s business, with increased traffic and revenue driven
