CyDen SmoothSkin hair removal

Introduction of digital asset management software makes it quicker for the UK-based company to work with an increasing number of distributors worldwide.

CyDen, the world’s largest Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) manufacturer, and owner of SmoothSkin, the number one IPL hair removal brand worldwide, has deployed new digital asset management technology to help drive its ambitious global growth.

The Swansea-headquartered company commercialised the hair removal technology invented by founder Mark Clement in the late seventies. It now has over 450 employees, selling into over 50 markets globally, including APAC, North America, Europe and the Middle East. In 2019, they received the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for International Trade.

Conducting 90% of its business through distributors, CyDen has adopted Canto digital asset management (DAM) software in order to work fast and efficiently with more channel partners worldwide. Its network links to major retailers such as Boots and Best Buy and fast-growth ecommerce sites.

Advertisement

Canto provides a centralised library where digital content – such as imagery, video, documents and presentations – can all be stored, managed and shared. It has streamlined CyDen’s process of distributing the right product, sales and marketing assets, and ultimately, is helping drive expansion of its global distributor network.

Pivotal to CyDen’s international success is development of product video, product images, lifestyle images and how-to content which needs to be in the hands of the right distributors at the right time. This is enabled by Canto’s ‘Portals’ feature, which allows controlled release of files to distributors in different regions.

Jen Pascoe, Channel Marketing Manager for SmoothSkin, said: “Canto now gives us a professional way to communicate with our channel partners. Every distributor has different requirements, so we create a separate Portal for each one. This means we can manage which assets are available on a case-by-case basis and cater to international variations. When rolling out innovation to primary markets, using Portals keeps the launches contained to those markets. This protects the integrity of contracts and negotiations with distributors for each product range.”

Onboarding new distributors, faster

The technology is simplifying the onboarding of new distributors, as they are provided with everything they need to launch – including pricing, strategy, influencer campaigns, and digital marketing assets – through their dedicated Portal which is personalised to them. CyDen uses a selection of languages available in Canto to support distributors in their native tongue.

When the product launches in a territory, it is as simple as pressing a button and distributors have access to everything they need, all set up and ready to use. Distributors in turn can give Portal access to retailers and media partners they work with, helping to ensure consistent branding in every consumer market.

Reporting features also help CyDen to keep track of who is logging in and accessing files.

“We’ve already been able to identify some distributors who are under-using their Portal,” adds Jen. “Having this insight gives us the opportunity to start a conversation and see how we can help to enable them.”

Advertisement