I thought this was interesting!

[Radicalpiloti]

https://www.pragencyone.co.uk/casestudies/oushk-pharmacys/

Oushk marketing case study

They are clearly a good PR agency!

I would imagine a lot of influencers and brand leaders have got similar PR companies behind them. This is definitely true for the 'leaders' in my sector all over social media. The subtle art of manipulation 👌

Interesting. I wonder if the cult like worship in their fan base was part of the strategy or conversely the reason they were hired as they are in fact a hinderance to their credibility.

Is there a particular part you find interesting or just the fact they used a PR agency?

Many companies have PR, communications agencies etc if they don’t have the in-house skills, it is good business. Medexpress for example used Bottled Imagination. Chemist4U used Cirkle……

I think the fact that they overtly state that positioning Hira as a thought leader was a goal is interesting, as so many seem to think they just ‘like her for some reason.’ Guess it shows the manipulation!

I don’t find it worrying or anything, but I’m not particularly inclined towards (or curious about) marketing.
Saying that, I’m curious. Did Oushk recruit Hira? I thought she was Oushk, but this has made me question that.

I've never heard of Oushk. This read like any other PR case study tbh.

This is how marketing and advertising work, are you surprised?
Any good marketing team would realise an qualified, eloquent, female, attractive owner of a company that sells to a mainly female client base which also has a beauty base element, was the best angle to pursue.
Whats unusual is their band positioning is out there for all to see/find on the Internet.
I can’t help but feel this post is attempting yet another dig at Oushk, I really don’t understand why there seems to be people here who seem to look for negativity about them.
They are just a business trying to stand out in a crowded market and they are using the most obvious USP a female owner.

I don’t understand all the Oushk stuff. I use them, as a customer, to buy stuff, just like I buy stuff from Waitrose or M&S. They have sent me stuff I’ve ordered and paid for, and been prompt and polite in responding to any queries. That’s all I want from a purchasing interaction. I don’t get the fan-girling bit, but I also don’t get the negative response to them, either. They are just a online shop.

@LittleMissContrari She is the joint owner with her husband, he seems to be more visible recently on Instagram posts.

I think the reality is that when you create a parasocial relationship with your customers, as Oushk have done, you'll create fans and haters. It's just how people work. Their PR company would have warned them I am sure, and hopefully the lady at the forefront has plenty of support.

I remember watching a jewellery brand owner - won't say which one - explode in popularity during COVID due to her social media. She's was really personal on insta, shared loads about her life, no doubt a PR machine behind her. Her sales went through the roof - £1 million+ in turnover. People being weird also went through the roof. I remember review after review on Trustpilot slagging her off, discussing her tax affairs, the value of her home. I nearly sent her a message I felt so bad for her (like she wanted to hear from me!) - she was effectively bullied off the back of her own PR. It's always made me very cautious about social media.

@JustPinkFinch that's the parasocial relationship though. People are really open so followers think you are friends and trust you, then after a point the followers realise you aren't their friend, they made you rich, and feel betrayed.

@JustPinkFinch I think it’s so interesting how so many people on SM seem ok about opening up their whole lives to complete strangers.
I follow several people on Instagram that really overshare about their family, homes, health, holidays, all on the back of promoting their business.
I don’t think I could do it, often I even regret telling close friends stuff after I’ve told them, can’t imagine how I’d feel if I’d opened up to general public.
I think getting followers becomes the drive and it’s easy to loose perspective, I can’t imagine it’s good overall for one’s MH.

It is personality driven marketing, very common, think sponsorship with celebs. Big ones that comes to mind is Tesla and Musk, showing Musk as a futurist, the visionary Steve Jobs and Apple, Virgin and adventurous Richard Branson, - that is all PR, happens in smaller companies in too.

They looked at Hira, saw her as attractive, likeable, can come across as compassionate (whether she actually is or not is debatable) and decided to stick her on the company mood board. It is not "manipulation" it is basic run of the mill marketing.

What is funny is you have obviously dug up the PR strategy to have a go at the company (deservedly or not), doesn't that count as "manipulative" too?

I didn’t ’dig it up’, I actually googled her name as I kept hearing about her on here and this was only a few results down!

............then you couldn't wait to post it like you had found something scandalous - "interesting!", "manipulative" - when really you found a standard run of the mill PR strategy 🤷‍♀️🥱