Building a Premium Canned Water Brand
NDO (NO DAYS OFF) Premium Water is an ultra-premium canned water line created by the same innovative team behind LEGACY gyms. This visionary product represents a unique entry into the beverage market, marrying the purity of water with premium packaging, a bold aesthetic, and environmentally conscious values.
The canned format of NDO Premium Water serves multiple purposes. It’s environmentally friendly, with aluminum being one of the most easily recyclable materials, aligning perfectly with the growing consumer demand for sustainability. Beyond its ecological benefits, the sleek, modern design of the cans enhances the brand’s premium positioning, resonating with consumers who seek both function and fashion. Additionally, the portability of the product caters to an on-the-go lifestyle, appealing to health-conscious individuals who appreciate convenience without sacrificing style.
Growing the Business
Challenges & Opportunities in Multichannel Distribution
As a canned water product, NDO Premium Water operates across both online and offline channels, presenting a range of operational, distribution, and organisational challenges. The dual-channel approach requires a delicate balance of supply chain management, inventory forecasting, and customer engagement strategies to ensure consistent product availability and quality. Offline distribution through retail stores, gyms, and events necessitates strong relationships with distributors and retailers, efficient logistics networks, and robust inventory systems. Conversely, online sales involve challenges such as selling on e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Walmart, and TikTok Shop, handling stocking and shipping effectively.
Scaling Ambitiously as a Startup
Just like any startup, NDO Premium Water has ambitious goals to scale rapidly over the next few years. The company aims to increase its market presence, achieving widespread recognition as a premium water brand synonymous with health, style, and environmental responsibility. Scaling involves expanding its distribution networks, solidifying relationships with key partners, and increasing annual sales to meet the company’s target of 50 million cans per year.
How did Neurotic Help
Neurotic began its collaboration with NDO Premium Water as a small, agile team, gradually expanding as we gained a deeper understanding of their unique challenges and opportunities. Today, our team of five continues to provide tailored support, with the potential for further growth as NDO's needs evolve.
Our mission was clear: to streamline operations, enhance technology use, and support NDO Premium Water in achieving its ambitious growth goals. Here's how we’ve made an impact so far:
Exploring and Optimising Technology Tools
- Initial Assessment: We began by exploring a variety of technology tools to identify those best suited to enhance NDO’s internal operations and organisation.
- Tech Radar Development: To provide clarity, we evaluated NDO’s existing technology stack and created a tech radar—a visual representation of tools categorised by their stages of adoption (e.g., trial, usage, replacement candidates). This helped NDO identify gaps and opportunities for improvement.
Business Process Analysis and Automation
- Process Mapping: We analysed NDO’s business processes in detail, identifying bottlenecks, inefficiencies, and areas with potential for automation.
- Visualisations: Clear and actionable visualisations of these processes allowed NDO to see where improvements could make the most impact, aligning efforts with their broader goals.
Data Centralisation
Fragmented Data Challenge: NDO’s data was initially spread across various services, including NetSuite, Amazon, Walmart, distributors, Google Sheets, Excel, and more. This fragmentation caused inefficiencies and made decision-making more challenging.
Solution Development:
After explaining the benefits of centralising data, we recommended a list of tools that matched NDO’s needs. NDO chose Airtable as their central hub, and we played a pivotal role in the transition by:
- Strategising the data migration process.
- Supporting the implementation and ensuring seamless integration of existing data into Airtable.
- Training the team to maximise the platform's functionality.
Strategic Guidance
- Project Management Strategies: We developed strategy documents outlining best practices for running projects effectively. These documents also included a list of key business focus areas for the short to medium term, ensuring alignment with NDO’s growth trajectory.
Notion Setup and Optimisation
Consolidation of Tools: To simplify workflows, we consolidated multiple tools (ProductBoard, Trello, etc.) into a single platform: Notion.
Enhanced Functionality:
Leveraging Notion’s advanced features, we:
- Created customisable dashboards for tracking key business metrics.
- Built tools for project management, ensuring teams had clear visibility over goals, progress, and tasks.
- Enabled real-time tracking, giving NDO leadership the right pulse on their operations.
Restoring Trust and Driving Strategic Growth for NDO on Amazon
NDO had previously partnered with a prominent agency that relied heavily on automated software and standardized processes to manage the brand’s growth. This approach resulted in significant advertising budget waste, with little transparency or strategic oversight. When concerns were raised, the agency provided excuses instead of actionable solutions. Over time, the account stagnated, performance declined, and advertising efforts became unsustainable.
This is where we stepped in.
Objectives
- Rebuild trust and establish control over the account, creating a stable foundation for strategic, scalable advertising growth.
- Maximize ROI from advertising spend by eliminating inefficiencies and reallocating resources to high-performing opportunities.
- Enhance brand positioning through a strategic rebrand, leveraging audience insights and A/B testing to improve messaging, engagement, and long-term differentiation.
Approach
Our approach blended data-driven insights with hands-on expertise to deliver measurable growth. By leveraging powerful software tools alongside expert analysis, we ensured every decision was informed by both hard data and actionable strategies. This balance allowed us to adapt quickly to market changes, optimize ad spend, and make strategic adjustments that aligned with NDO’s long-term goals.
Here’s how we achieved it:
Account Audit & Scorecard Creation
- Conducted a thorough audit to identify inefficiencies in advertising spend.
- Created a detailed scorecard aligning client goals with actual performance, offering clear, actionable insights.
- Defined achievable goals mixed with accountability to rebuild trust and establish a stronger foundation for success.
Category & Competitor Analysis
- Analyzed the water/beverage market and competitor strategies to uncover untapped opportunities and critical trends.
- Used both data and market intelligence to identify the brand’s competitive edge.
Rebrand with A/B Testing & Audience Insights
- Proposed and implemented a rebrand to align with evolving customer preferences.
- Conducted A/B testing on ad creatives, product messaging, and imagery to identify high-performing elements.
- Leveraged audience data to refine targeting and ensure messaging resonated with the ideal customer base.
Strategic Plan Development
- Designed a focused plan emphasizing optimized keywords, tailored ad placements, and an improved bidding system.
- Set clear milestones and realistic timelines to guide the client back to sustainable growth.
ACoS Optimization
- Over 90 days, streamlined ad spend, targeting high-converting keywords while reducing waste.
- Focused spend in key growth areas to align with both immediate and long-term goals.
Results
We achieved a dramatic reduction in ACoS from 110% to 50%, while maintaining high revenue levels. This marked the beginning of a longer-term strategy to achieve even greater efficiency. The desired 30% Target ACoS, set out by the brand owners, is part of a broader plan to cement NDO’s position in the market. As part of this temporary higher ACoS strategy, we established winning terms, average terms, and loss leader terms, allowing for ongoing adjustments to refine performance. In short, we’ve developed robust control over marketing budgets to support the brand’s sustainable growth.
Results at a Glance
ACoS Improvement: From 110% to 50% (30% at the time of publishing, while achieving incremental revenue growth).
Revenue Stability: Sustained revenue throughout the optimization process.
Enhanced Brand Positioning: A rebrand that improved audience engagement and strengthened market presence.
Client Trust Restored: Transparent processes and clear communication brought the client back to confidence in agency partnerships.
Key Takeaways for Clients
Data-Driven Decisions: Deep audits and actionable scorecards.
Tailored Strategies: No cookie-cutter solutions—tailored solutions align with your brand’s unique needs.
Audience-Centered Branding: Effective rebranding that leverages real customer data for maximum impact.
Proven Results: High-impact changes with measurable outcomes.
By combining data-driven insights, strategic rebranding, and precise execution, we set the stage for scalable, long-term success.
Impact and Next Steps
Through these efforts, Neurotic has significantly improved NDO Premium Water’s operational efficiency, reduced complexities in their tech stack, and positioned them for scalable growth. Moving forward, we will continue to refine their processes, explore automation opportunities, and help them adopt cutting-edge tools that align with their evolving goals.
Our collaboration is a testament to how thoughtful technology and strategic support can transform a brand’s operational capabilities, setting them up for long-term success.