‘Multi-faceted brand experience’: Beiersdorf pilots smart packaging across Nivea Men via Google Lens

In partnership with Google Lens, Beiersdorf had designed a series of digital experiences across 1,000 limited edition packs of Nivea Men Active Energy Wake-up Instant Effect Gel,​ including application tips, detailed product information and an interactive encounter with actor Edin Hasanović. All of these were obtained by simply scanning the product packaging with the Google Lens mobile app.

A customisable, multi-faceted brand experience at the point of sale​

“This innovation enables us to strengthen the connection to our consumers in a new and unique way,”​ said Martin Böhm, Chief Digital Officer at Beiersdorf.

“With the interactive Google Lens technology, we can offer a customisable, multi-faceted brand experience directly on the product and at the point of sale,” ​Böhm said.

Anke Schmidt, VP of corporate communications and governmental relations at Beiersdorf, agreed: “This Google Lens technology enables us to connect the offline and online world seamlessly and make relevant information accessible to them everywhere, like skin care consultancy at the shelf.”​

Speaking to CosmeticsDesign-Europe, Schmidt said Nivea Men was a “particularly good fit”​ for this pilot project as the brand wanted to actively engage younger generations who were typically more “digital savvy”.​

“With this pilot project, we are testing the developed Lens experience in the real market. From this, we will learn, gather insights and evaluate its further potential cross-category, and also cross-brand,”​ she said.

This tech can ‘revolutionise the shopping experience’​

Beiersdorf had opted to pilot the packaging technology across 1,000 items, she said, as this number enabled it to “learn and improve quickly and effectively based on a sufficient amount of valuable feedback and insights”.​

“…We are convinced that this technology can revolutionise the shopping experience, not only for consumers in Germany, but also globally and particularly in digitally advanced markets,”​ she said.

Nivea was cited the number one most chosen beauty and personal care brand in Europe​ earlier this year – bought by 52.2% of households in Europe, according to Kantar Worldpanel’s 2020 Brand Footprint report. This household penetration was only matched by beverage titan Coca-Cola.

Beiersdorf recently spotlighted its focus on expansion into China​, with Nivea and its other skin care brands, suggesting the market would grow “steadily and healthily in the coming years”.​