Case study

s.Oliver

May 02, 2025

Three people sitting on a couch. The person on the left has curly hair and is wearing a white and orange patterned sweater. The person in the middle is a child with long hair, wearing a pink and purple patterned sweater, holding a stuffed toy. The person on the right has short hair and is wearing a black sweater with white patterns that include the text "HO! HO! HO!".

s.Oliver's Festive Campaign Shines with a 27% Conversion Rate with Impression-Based Remarketing!

Results at a glance

10.% lower CPM compared to other platforms
50x higher CTR compared to other platforms
27% conversion rate for impression-based remarketing lists (compared to 21% for in-market audiences)

The goal

With the festive season in full swing, the s.Oliver team faced the challenge of managing a high volume of advertising while keeping costs stable. Engaging the diverse audience dynamics of the gifting season was no small feat, but they were determined to connect with a broad, yet relevant target group. Their holiday campaign, "Celebrate Togetherness," aimed to strengthen brand awareness and foster emotional connections. Their biggest hurdle was the short, 14-day peak window—strategically positioned between Black Friday and Christmas—where they needed to maximize emotional engagement. This critical period was all about making sure their message stood out in the holiday advertising frenzy.

The solution

The team rolled out online video ads on the Microsoft Advertising platform over six weeks from early November to mid-December. Designed to tug at the heartstrings, these videos ramped up significantly during Black Friday and the pre-Christmas rush. Featuring diverse settings and a wide range of products, they aimed to get people ready to buy.

Using data-driven insights, the team boosted brand awareness among their most loyal customers and drew in new ones. Impression-based remarketing linked their upper funnel awareness efforts with lower funnel performance campaigns, driving major performance boosts. These remarketing lists were added to all existing search campaigns to gather valuable user interaction data.

“Our online video campaigns with Microsoft Advertising have been transformative, outperforming other video platforms with a higher CTR and a lower CPM! Additionally, the impression-based remarketing lists have helped us to clearly connect the reach in the upper funnel with the performance in the lower funnel! This is why Microsoft Advertising's full-funnel solutions are now a cornerstone of our brand strategy."

— Christoph Bornkessel, Head of Brand Strategy, Media & Digital Marketing, s.Oliver

The results

Overall remarketing performance was impressive, with impression-based remarketing standing out. This halo effect demonstrated the power of ad exposure linking upper funnel video campaigns and lower funnel efforts for driving greater efficiency.