Revamping Solstice Medicine Company 20 Years Later
Solstice Medicine Company was brought to Los Angeles over 40 years ago by our Founder, Phillip So. Phillip recognized a void and demand to fulfill for traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) in the community.
Today, Solstice Medicine is the foremost wholesale provider of TCM products to Chinese/Asian markets, groceries, and pharmacies, acupuncturists, and other health and wellness retailers in the United States.
When Solstice Medicine Company reached out to SeedX, they were operating their online business on a website built in 2003 with outdated design, content, and technology. The company was also almost entirely reliant on wholesale sales.
We came together to accomplish the following goals:
1. Revamp and Modernize Website and Tech Stack (ERP, analytics tools, etc.)
2. Create Content to Educate the American Population about Traditional Chinese Medicine
3. Establish Customer Acquisition Channels and Scale Direct-to-Consumer Revenue
We began our relationship with Solstice by conducting in-depth sessions to get a complete idea of how to best set the company up for direct-to-consumer success. This included interviewing their staff and understanding their daily functions, setting short and long-term goals with their leadership, and a review of all current and past marketing and sales efforts. In doing so, we ensured that we built an appropriate scope of work for accomplishing our shared goals and that we understood the technology needs the company had before proceeding.
We then led the Solstice team through a branding process in which we defined a new and modern design style, color-palette, imagery, and language to describe their values and mission that would resonate with new American direct-to-consumer audiences while honoring the Chinese heritage behind their products.
Once we did the groundwork necessary to set ourselves up for success, we designed and implemented a website based on Shopify, along with a NetSuite ERP to transform Solstice’s business. We played an active role in training the Solstice team to interact with their new systems, and we oversaw the creation of versioning the Solstice Medicine website in Traditional Chinese and Modern Chinese, along with its English version.
Today, we are focused on educating American consumers about Traditional Chinese medicine through our media channels and scaling Solstice’s customer base.
We oversaw the branding and creative process, UX/UI design, and development of the new Solstice Medicine website on Shopify, along with the integration of its ERP. We have also overseen the addition of Traditional and Modern Chinese versions of the website for customers of Chinese heritage.
The before and after images of the Solstice homepage showcase how we transformed their brand. Our hope was to create a brand that was easy to interact with for consumers with any level of or lack of experience with Traditional Chinese Medicine.
At the same time, we wanted to ensure we honored the company’s Chinese heritage with imagery and touches that were an ode to their history and the brands they sell.
The about page showcases the Solstice Medicine story, making the brand more appealing and relatable to website visitors.
Large modern photos, UX/UI accents and cues, and updated content information make the new Solstice website an easy platform to engage with and find products that are right for specific health needs.
Solstice Medicine’s organic social media platforms provide us with an opportunity to educate people about principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the specific products Solstice offers. This leads to more brand engagement and loyalty.
This graphic showcases a traditional Chinese herb and its potential health impact.
Graphics that highlight the benefits of specific products lead to more purchases.
We oversee the capture and editing of high-quality lifestyle photography.
Establishing ad funnels on social media is one of the most important activities we do with CPG companies like Solstice, as we can leverage them to create scalable systems for growth.
Videos, especially vertical reels, that educate people about Traditional Chinese Medicine and products are engaging and lead to high-conversions.
This video explores the potential health benefits of one specific product.
Long-form blog/content creation serves two functions for Solstice Medicine. First, it helps us to continue to nurture and grow customer relationships by providing current leads and customers with more valuable information about Traditional Chinese Medicine. Secondly, it allows us to build Solstice’s search engine ranking around key phrases and words related to the ingredients of its products, the health needs the products help consumers with, and more.
Email marketing is one of the most important channels for direct-to-consumer brands. We helped Solstice Medicine establish their email strategy and continue to support with design, content creation, and management of automated sequences and ongoing campaigns meant to increase revenue and brand loyalty.
Our automated sequences strategically target customers based on their behaviors and demographics.
In our ongoing campaigns, we educate our email audience about interesting topics around Traditional Chinese Medicine and showcase products to support their health.
In our first year of working together, with the revamp of its website and tech stack and the implementation of best marketing practices, Solstice Medicine’s conversion rate online has increased by over 3,000%, with total orders up 76%.
We are looking forward to bringing Traditional Chinese Medicine to many more consumers!
