Don't Show The Behind The Scenes of Your Product

(Or do). I found myself in David Jones the other day, spotted a beautiful new yellow candle in the perfume department, and moseyed on down to have a sniff. It was delightful. I love Glasshouse Fragrances candles - there's just something about them that seems so... je ne sais quoi. There's a million candles out there in the marketplace, so what makes the allure of these jewel-cut lidded beauties so intoxicating? The gold foil? Maybe. The scents themselves? Sure. The price tag? Definitely.

They're expensive. For a chunk of wax with a piece of cotton string sticking out the top of a stumpy glass, $60 is a high price to pay for a couple hours of your room smelling like caramel. Or a Christmas pudding. Or a Peach Bellini. So why do I have all three?

Glasshouse Fragrances have positioned their products as the height of luxury. It's not. I know, but they make you feel like it is. The flutter in my heart when I take one to the counter of the perfume department says it all. Their photography, the way they talk about their products (their brand voice), their website, social medias, branding, packaging - everything - communicates that this is no ordinary item. For the average gal, it's a special occasion; a real treat yo self moment, or perhaps a gift for someone that says 'I value you'.

Whilst running my clothing label, my husband and I took countless behind the scenes videos of our production; the sights and sounds of our warehouse and workers, manufacturing our beloved sweatshirts. Almost every time I posted an Instagram Story or a Reel showing off our BTS content, I'd get a message in my inbox from my business mentor.

"No one wants to see how the sausage is made."

I'd question her, "Why? I've built this community on the Internet. They're people who want to know how clothes are produced. They're curious! They at least care about me, surely?"

I was vehemently defensive about my BTS content... until about 20 minutes ago.

That yellow Glasshouse Fragrances candle has played on my mind. Played on my soul. The scent spoke to me in David Jones all those days ago, whispering sweet nothings that would make my husband chartreuse with envy. That's the power of marketing, of positioning. I know all the best tricks and they still get me! Imagine the average consumer. My goodness.

So of course, when an ad for Glasshouse Fragrances appeared in my Facebook feed, I clicked on it, scrolled through a tome of posts about their latest candles and perfumes, getting profoundly swept up in the evocative copywriting and brilliant photography. Luxe, luxe, luxe!

There's a sense of urgency in their styling - there's only one of this candle! This one.

I was mentally preparing to get out of bed and grab my credit card when I was stopped in my tracks: I saw something utterly horrifying.

Behind the scenes with Glasshouse!

Nothing says luxury like a poorly edited, ad hoc 'Shot On iPhone' Reel. Garish hi-vis vests replace their subdued hues. Their float-on-air look and feel evaporates on a steel conveyor belt. Oh dear. The prestigious candle has been snuffed out.

Unfortunately for Glasshouse (and me!), I no longer dream of this candle. In this video, we witness sweaty hands strangled in white latex gloves, stockpiling thousands of boxes in wilding rows, wielding tools, and wearing smart watches - none of which conforms to the enchanting, otherworldly branding of Glasshouse Fragrances. The illusion is gone.

Like a candle in the wind.

But BTS content can be very valuable, helping to communicate your brand story, build trust, and create desirability. However in order for it to be effective, and not make your target customer recoil in horror, BTS content must be just as carefully crafted as your main content. Even if it is shot on a phone, or a piece of user-generated content, what do your surroundings look like? Is there a brightly coloured folder in the background that could distract the viewer? What are you wearing? How's the lighting?

...Or do you make it up?

Take Lindt, for example.

There is no way this man is single-handedly churning out three thousand pounds of chocolate an hour. Watch any food factory tour video on YouTube for twenty seconds and you'd know this isn't how food is mass produced. But Lindt knows the power of the illusion. I've Googled 'Lindt factory', and literally every image that comes up is completely contrived. They know their ideal customer would be demystified and put off if they saw the truth. The thing is, we know the truth, but knowing and seeing are two different beasts.

We want to be swept up in the story. We want to believe reasonably hot actors in chefs hats really are making the pralines we stuff into our faces when we're having a bad day.

So the next time you're tempted to whip out your phone for the 'Gram, ask yourself: What am I really showing my customers here? Do my customers really need to know this? Does this look good? Is this helping me?

I hope that Glasshouse Fragrances continues to make beautiful content that allures and inspires its market, but it's going to take me some time to forget those all-too-candid snippets from the factory floor. I want the whimsy. I want the story. I'm sure that you do, too.