Exverus x Premier Protein: Reinventing Social Reach
- Jun 5
- 2 min read
The Challenge
Premier Protein (PP) had been a category leader in the past, but in 2025, our market position was in real danger. The protein craze in America brought a stampede of challengers nipping at our heels; marketing budgets were being slashed across the board, and brand loyalty was at an all-time low among Millennial and Gen Z consumers. The old playbook wouldn’t work anymore - we needed to think of something truly innovative if we were going to win without increasing budgets.
From July-September 2025, we were challenged with staving off the competition, driving immediate sales, and refreshing the PP brand’s image with a new logo and seven new product launches. Instead of replicating old tactics, we tested new ones. Our media plan had three main objectives across the funnel, each with distinct KPIs:
Build Equity: Lift overall brand awareness among target audience +7pts or more
Test Social Reach innovation, aiming for 10% more efficient video views than concurrent Meta campaign
Increase July’s Prime Day sales by at least 20% YoY
The Social Reach Solution
Paid Social had always been a strong mid-funnel performer for PP, but in a year when TikTok’s future in the US hung in the balance, and global social media use plateaued, we couldn’t rely on social platforms’ off-the-shelf tools – we invented new ones. Exverus VP of Planning & Strategy Tasha Day oversaw the campaign build, and VP of Performance Marketing Hillary Kupferberg pioneered an adtech collaboration:
This would deliver our top-performing social videos beyond the walled gardens with lightning-fast speed, using adaptive streaming technology. If it worked, it could exponentially increase our reach at no additional creative cost. Meta, TikTok, and Pinterest would run as part of a larger, omnichannel plan that included CTV, Audio, Search, and Retail Media.
Results
When it came time for quarterly reports, the halo effect created by our social-centered strategy blew us away.
Our Social Reach test achieved 3.3MM more completed video views than the Meta Ads running during the same period, at half the cost of Meta’s benchmark ($0.03 per click vs. $0.06) - in other words, Social Reach outperformed Meta by 50% efficiency!
At the bottom of the funnel, July’s Prime Day campaign delivered exceptional results, achieving a remarkable +31% increase in daily sales average compared to 2024 and an impressive 4.85x return on incremental investment.
These outstanding results underscore the power of coordinated paid media strategies during high-stakes retail events. And yes, Numerator confirmed Premier Protein shakes were the #1 selling product on Prime Day for a third straight year!
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