1-800 Contacts built a strong direct-to-consumer business and is well-known as the largest contact lens retailer in the U.S. However, growth became harder to sustain as the media landscape evolved. As audiences shifted from linear TV to fragmented digital environments, the brand faced rising acquisition challenges and a loss of signal from traditional targeting. At the same time, it needed to stay relevant to new generations of consumers while continuing to drive measurable business results.
Rain responded by designing a future-ready growth framework built around audience intelligence, full-funnel integration, and media innovation. Using first-party data and insights derived from ConsumerID™, Rain’s proprietary customer segmentation analysis tool, the team redefined the brand’s most valuable audiences and identified new segments for growth. Those insights shaped a unified connections platform that synchronized media and messaging around a more ownable brand story, giving 1-800 Contacts a clearer way to speak to both existing and untapped consumers. From there, Rain aligned strategy, creative development, and measurement across the funnel so that awareness channels and demand capture tactics worked as one system rather than as disconnected efforts.
To bring the strategy to life, Rain developed a new creative campaign, “We See You,” built around a series of customer portraits designed to reflect the diversity of need states within the 1-800 Contacts audience and showcase the flexibility of the brand’s solutions and services. That creative platform was then adapted across media and customer communications in multiple formats, while Rain’s media teams simultaneously onboarded the platforms, technology, and data partnerships needed to support growth. The team aligned channels and tactics to a full-funnel demand strategy, introduced cross-channel dashboards tailored to 1-800 Contacts, and built a test-and-learn roadmap to uncover new performance insights, optimize investment, and prove the incremental value of emerging channels over time.
To reduce reliance on third-party data, Rain developed custom algorithmic solutions within private marketplace environments, combining first-party data with real-time signals to identify high-value users in a more privacy-conscious ecosystem. At the same time, the agency introduced ongoing testing, budget optimization, new social channel expansion, and more tailored creative to keep performance improving over time.
The result was measurable improvement across reach, efficiency, brand health, and revenue. Cost per order fell 69% year over year, while cost per visit declined 55%. Meanwhile, brand momentum growth doubled industry norms, consideration increased 16%, and brand health showed improvements across all imagery and personality measures.
A different RTB focus for each ad, expressed through a target audience type. This approach enabled mixing and matching of creatives, message testing, and running creative tailored to more specific target audience behaviors. This spot highlights Bianca, highlighting the fast, free shipping right to your door.
Our Mike character speaks to customers who may not know as much about ordering contacts and need superior customer support.
Helen's character is used to plant the seed for contacts wearers who are used to "old school", in-office ordering and could benefit from the ease and convenience of buying contacts online instead.
These gains translated into business impact, including a 10-20% YoY increases in new customer sales and millions in incremental revenue. More broadly, the work gave 1-800 Contacts a more modern, resilient growth model, one designed not just to perform in the short term, but to keep scaling in a fragmented advertising ecosystem.
