Nish Hair Marketing Strategy: The Complete AIDA Playbook for D2C Success

Before diving into the article, I’d like to inform you that the research and initial analysis for this piece were conducted by Bhakti Mehta. She is a current student in IIDE's Online Digital Marketing course (April 2025 Batch).

If you found this helpful, feel free to reach out to Bhakti to send a quick note of appreciation for her fantastic research – she’ll appreciate the kudos!

About Nish Hair

Nish Hair's remarkable journey began in 2017 when Parul Gulati established the brand from her living room with a dream to empower individuals, particularly women, by addressing hair concerns - from hair loss and thinning to styling and growth needs - helping them feel more confident and beautiful.

While initial sales were modest, the major turning point came with their appearance on Shark Tank India in 2022, securing ₹1 crore investment for 2% equity from Amit Jain. This fame, coupled with a strong digital marketing strategy, resulted in a significant boost in sales and brand recognition, delivering 4X sales expansion and ₹17 Cr revenue in FY24.

Today, Nish Hair thrives primarily through its website, serving both domestic and international markets via strategic digital marketing.

The brand operates flagship studios in Mumbai and Delhi, plus maintains an Amazon marketplace presence for broader local reach.

Making headlines recently, they opened their first international store in Dubai's Al Seef in January 2025, marking strategic global expansion.

With Razorpay powering worldwide payments, they're bringing "good hair days to women worldwide"

Marketing Objective or Business Challenge

Entering a market dominated by well-funded international brands, Nish Hair faced three critical challenges:

• Lack of Awareness: For many Indian women, hair extensions remain an intimidating purchase. Most didn’t know clip-ins could look natural or solve hair concerns.
• Consumer Trust: Buying hair online, especially premium products, raises concerns about authenticity and proper fit.
• Standing Out: Competing against established brands and making ‘hair talk’ feel approachable, authentic, and relatable instead of intimidating.

Nish Hair addressed these business challenges through strategic marketing objectives structured around the AIDA framework, mapping specific content formats to each stage of the marketing funnel. Let’s see how they did it.

Marketing Channels Used by Nish Hair

Nish Hair follows a well-rounded marketing strategy that blends influencer campaigns, social media engagement, direct-to-consumer sales, and experiential marketing.

On the digital front, they invested in:

• Social Media Marketing (Instagram & Facebook) to showcase tutorials, transformations, and user-generated content (UGC) to build engagement.
• YouTube for educational content and product demonstrations, expanding the reach to a broader audience.
• Influencer Collaborations with micro-influencers on Instagram and other platforms to build credibility and foster organic promotion.
• Founder-Led Content with Parul Gulati actively sharing her personal journey, styling tips, and behind-the-scenes moments to strengthen the brand connection.

To build brand awareness and trust, Nish Hair also engages with traditional media channels, including features in various popular publications, to enhance credibility.

When it comes to sales, Nish Hair focused on a Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) Model via its Shopify-based e-commerce platform, complemented by offline experiences such as pop-up events and exhibitions to engage customers.

This multi-channel approach helped Nish Hair increase visibility, educate its audience, and convert potential leads into loyal customers.

Nish Hair Marketing Strategy Breakdown

1. Founder-Led Content & Social Media Engagement

• Instagram: Parul Gulati, the founder, leverages her personal brand to create authentic content, including styling tutorials, customer testimonials, and behind-the-scenes glimpses.
• YouTube: Utilises the platform for detailed product demonstrations and educational videos on hair care.
• Customer Interaction: Engages directly with followers through comments, DMs, and live sessions, fostering a community around the brand.

2. Influencer Marketing

• Micro-Influencers: Partners with influencers who share personal stories related to hair struggles, enhancing brand authenticity.
• Celebrity Stylist Partnerships: Collaborated with celebrity hairstylist Priyanka Borkar to launch a special extensions collection, expanding product offerings and reaching new audiences.

3. Experiential Marketing

• Pop-Up Events: Organises events where customers can experience products firsthand, building trust and brand loyalty.
• Exhibitions: Participates in industry events to showcase products and engage with potential customers.

4. Direct-to-Consumer (D2C) Sales Model

• E-Commerce Platform: Operates a Shopify-based website, providing a seamless shopping experience.
• Customer Support: Offers personalised consultations via video calls and WhatsApp, assisting customers in selecting the right products.

5. Traditional Media Exposure

• Media Features: Gained visibility through features in publications like The Times of India and Financial Express, enhancing brand credibility.

6. Innovative Brand Representation

• Cannes 2025 Appearance: Parul Gulati made a statement by wearing a dress made entirely of braided human hair at the Cannes Film Festival, aligning with the brand's identity and sparking public conversation.

Results & Impact

Sales Growth: Achieved ₹50 lakh in sales within the first three months without spending on ads.

Social Media Growth: Grew Instagram following from 2,000 to over 1.6 million, significantly boosting brand visibility.

Customer Engagement: Enhanced customer loyalty through direct interactions and personalised services.

What Worked & Why

Nish Hair's foundational growth strategy was predominantly organic, with minimal paid advertising. The brand focused on building authentic relationships through referrals and influencer partnerships. They prioritised SEO for organic search rankings, achieving 46% organic website traffic.

As the brand matured, it evolved its strategy and included shoppable video integration via Whatmore.ai, which delivered impressive results with a 62X ROI, 8% conversion rate, and over 2,000 add-to-cart actions within just 7 days.

Nish's hair also expanded UGC testimonials and emotionally resonant customer stories (eg, alopecia patients), achieving 350K average reel views. While organic content remained strong (70% Instagram traffic), they strategically incorporated.

Meta ads for remarketing and introduced Google Ads support, maintaining 46% organic visibility through continued SEO optimisation.

What Didn’t Work & Why

Limited Focus on International Expansion

• Analysis: While Nish Hair performed exceptionally well in India, its international presence remained underdeveloped. They did not target Non-Resident Indians (NRI) or global markets, such as the US, UAE, or the UK, where similar hair care concerns exist.
• Reason: By not capitalising on the international demand for high-quality hair products, especially among global Indian communities, Nish Hair missed a key opportunity for growth in lucrative markets.

Mobile Experience & Checkout Issues

• Analysis: Despite improvements, users still faced issues with the mobile site’s navigation and checkout process, leading to cart abandonment.
• Reason: These usability issues on mobile impacted the user experience, leading to frustrated potential customers who did not complete their purchases. A seamless mobile shopping experience is critical in converting leads.

Missed Opportunity for Broader Keyword Strategy

• Analysis: Nish Hair predominantly focused on core beauty and hair-related keywords but did not expand into more long-tail keywords or broader lifestyle searches that could capture a wider audience.
• Reason: By not targeting keywords like “best hair care for alopecia” or “easy-to-use wigs for beginners,” Nish Hair restricted its visibility and potential traffic, especially in niche categories that could drive qualified leads.

Over-Reliance on Organic Social Media

• Analysis: While organic social media traffic (primarily from Instagram) accounted for a significant portion of website visits, there was limited diversity in their social media marketing approach.
• Reason: Exclusively relying on Instagram as a key traffic driver might have hindered the brand’s ability to diversify and reach customers across other platforms. Expanding to other platforms like TikTok or Pinterest could have unlocked new audiences.

Underdeveloped Email Marketing Campaigns

• Analysis: Nish Hair lacked robust email marketing strategies that could have nurtured leads through personalised communications.
• Reason: Without targeted email campaigns based on customer behaviour and preferences, the brand missed an opportunity to drive repeat purchases, offer promotions, or provide valuable content that could deepen customer relationships.

IIDE Student Recommendations: Key Areas for Brand Improvement

Based on the analysis of Nish Hair’s marketing strategies, it is clear that the brand has effectively built a strong presence through organic methods and influencer collaborations. However, there are several areas where Nish Hair can improve its strategy to capture a larger audience, increase sales, and address existing challenges. Below are the gaps, missed opportunities, and suggestions for how the brand can enhance its marketing efforts.

1. Expanding International Reach

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

While Nish Hair has found success in India, its international expansion remains limited. The global demand for high-quality, natural hair solutions, particularly in markets like the US, UK, UAE, and Singapore, is substantial. Additionally, there is a growing community of NRIs (Non-Resident Indians) who might resonate with the brand's messaging but have limited access to these products.

Suggestions for Improvement:

To tap into international markets, Nish Hair can:

• Target NRI Communities: Launch targeted campaigns in countries with a high concentration of NRIs, focusing on regions like the US, UK, UAE, and Canada. These campaigns can feature influencers from these regions to build trust and reach a broader audience.
• Localised Marketing: Implement localised website versions for these regions with currency settings and shipping information. This can improve the overall user experience for international customers.
• Global Influencer Partnerships: Collaborate with influencers who have a significant international following to introduce Nish Hair products to global markets, particularly in the beauty and hair care niches.

2. Improving Mobile Experience

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

Despite improvements in mobile optimisation, Nish Hair’s mobile website still has issues with navigation and checkout, leading to high cart abandonment rates. In today’s e-commerce environment, a seamless mobile shopping experience is essential to capture the growing number of mobile-first consumers.

Suggestions for Improvement:

• Mobile Optimisation: Focus on improving site speed, simplifying navigation, and ensuring that the checkout process is intuitive. A one-click checkout or integration with digital wallets like Apple Pay or Google Pay could enhance the mobile shopping experience.
• A/B Testing: Conduct A/B tests on mobile user experience to identify the pain points in navigation and checkout. Small adjustments like simplified payment methods or clearer product descriptions can have a significant impact.
• Mobile-First Strategy: Given the increasing mobile usage for shopping, Nish Hair should adopt a mobile-first design, ensuring that all elements, from images to buttons, are optimised for mobile use.

3. Expanding SEO Keyword Strategy

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

Nish Hair has primarily focused on core beauty and hair-related keywords but has missed out on long-tail keywords that could capture more niche, high-intent traffic. Expanding the keyword strategy to cover broader lifestyle-related searches and addressing specific hair concerns like alopecia could help attract more targeted customers.

Suggestions for Improvement:

• Target Long-Tail Keywords: Nish Hair should focus on long-tail keywords such as “best hair extensions for alopecia” or “human hair wigs for beginners.” These keywords have lower competition and are more likely to convert visitors into customers, as they capture specific, intent-driven searches.
• Content Strategy Optimisation: Create blog posts or articles around these long-tail keywords, addressing customer pain points and providing valuable information. For example, “How to Choose the Right Hair Extensions for Your Hair Type” or “5 Things You Should Know About Wearing Wigs for Alopecia.”
• Voice Search Optimisation: With the increasing use of voice search, optimising content for voice queries is essential. For example, targeting questions like “Where can I buy natural-looking wigs?” can attract voice search traffic.

4. Diversifying Social Media Marketing

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

Although Instagram has been the primary source of traffic, relying solely on one platform limits Nish Hair’s ability to reach a broader audience. Social media platforms like TikTok, Pinterest, and YouTube offer unique opportunities to engage with younger, diverse audiences who are likely to value Nish Hair's authenticity and high-quality products.

Suggestions for Improvement:

• TikTok & Pinterest: These platforms are rapidly growing, especially among Gen Z and millennial consumers. Nish Hair can experiment with viral challenges or “before and after” transformations on TikTok to showcase the effectiveness of their products. Pinterest is also an excellent platform for visually-driven industries like beauty, where users often search for styling ideas.
• User-Generated Content (UGC): Leverage UGC by encouraging customers to share their experiences on social media with hashtags like #NishHairExperience. UGC adds authenticity and helps in building community trust.
• Diversified Influencer Strategy: While micro-influencers have been effective, expanding into mid-tier or macro-influencers can increase reach while still maintaining credibility. Working with influencers across platforms like TikTok, Pinterest, and YouTube can create cross-channel brand awareness.

5. Enhancing Email Marketing Campaigns

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

Nish Hair lacks robust email marketing campaigns that can nurture leads, engage repeat customers, and offer personalised promotions. Email marketing remains one of the most effective ways to retain customers and keep them engaged with the brand.

Suggestions for Improvement:

• Personalisation: Implement personalised email campaigns based on customer behaviour, such as past purchases or browsing history. For example, an email campaign with the subject line “It’s Time for a New Look” could remind customers when it’s time to purchase new extensions or wigs.
• Segmentation: Segment the email list based on customer demographics, buying behaviour, or location to send more relevant content and promotions. This will improve email open rates and conversion.
• Automated Campaigns: Set up automated campaigns for abandoned cart reminders, product recommendations, and birthday discounts. Automated workflows help nurture leads and drive conversions without requiring constant manual effort.

6. Launching a Loyalty Program

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

Nish Hair does not currently have a loyalty or referral program in place to incentivise repeat purchases or reward customers for bringing in new clients.

Suggestions for Improvement:

• Referral Program: Launch a “Refer a Friend” program where customers can earn discounts or rewards for referring others to the brand. Word-of-mouth marketing is powerful in the beauty and hair care industry, and this could help increase brand awareness.
• Loyalty Program: Implement a tiered loyalty program, where customers can earn points for every purchase, social media share, or review they leave. Points could be redeemed for discounts, exclusive products, or early access to new collections.
• Exclusive Access: Offer early access to new product launches, styling tips, or virtual styling sessions with influencers as part of the loyalty program.

7. Smarter Retail and Pop-Up Collaborations

Gap/Missed Opportunity:

While Nish Hair has made strides with digital marketing, its offline presence could be strengthened, especially in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities, where personal experience plays a major role in purchasing decisions.

Suggestions for Improvement:

• Pop-Up Stalls: Set up pop-up stalls at high-traffic locations, such as malls, beauty expos, and salons. This gives potential customers a chance to see, touch, and feel the product before making a purchase.
• Retail Partnerships: Collaborate with high-end beauty retailers to stock Nish Hair products in physical stores. This not only increases visibility but also helps the brand reach customers who prefer shopping offline.
• Exclusive In-Store Events: Host styling sessions, product demonstrations, or influencer meet-and-greets at partner retail locations to create excitement around the brand.