O'Cera
Brand Platform for a Pharmaceutical Skincare Launch
Here's the thing nobody wants to admit about eczema and sensitive skin: it doesn't go away. So we dropped the cure angle, and focused on the real win. A Good Day.
ROLE
Art Director · Brand Strategy · Creative Direction · UI/UX Design
AGENCY
WEBQLO, pitch Dec 2023
CLIENT
Xepa-Soul Pattinson
MARKET
Malaysian consumers, dry and sensitive skin category
BRIEF
Xepa-Soul Pattinson had O'cera skincare, a ceramide range for dry and sensitive skin aimed at everyday Malaysians, instead of healthcare professionals. The product worked, but what was missing was a brand: no positioning, no idea, and no reason to pick it off the pharmacy shelf.
I led the creative direction on the full proposal: big idea, positioning, content strategy, website, and campaign platform.
THE CHALLENGE
New name in a
crowded category
Breaking into dry/sensitive skincare against established brands like Cetaphil and QV, with zero brand recognition.
Science that
needed warmth
Pharmaceutical heritage signals credibility to clinicians. Consumer skincare needs something more human.
A sceptical audience
that needs trust
Malaysians with chronic dry skin had heard every promise before. Generic claims weren't going to cut it.
FINDINGS
Eczema and dry skin top Malaysian search trends
Google Trends data showed "eczema" leading searches, closely followed by "dry skin", indicating that skin concerns are a category with active, high-intent demand.
The cause is environmental, not just genetic
Tropical heat, humidity, air conditioning, and UV exposure are structural contributors to dry skin in Malaysia. Consumers need consistent daily care, not occasional treatment.
Existing buyers already trusted it for serious conditions
Early Shopee and Lazada reviews mentioned eczema, rashes, sensitive skin, and use on babies, proving the formulation worked, but the brand hadn't caught up to what users already knew.
The competitive gap
Most competitors were positioned around targeted, short-term relief. Nobody owned everyday care.
KEY INSIGHTS
The category sells a finish line. For people who'll never reach one, the next good day is the win.
STRATEGY
Position o'cera around consistent daily care instead of dramatic results.
COMPETITORS
Promised fixes
Led with clinical authority
Earn the science credibility through upfront claims.
O'CERA
Promise comfort
Lead with understanding
Earn the science credibility through ingredient education
The brand needed to speak to the experience of living with difficult skin before it earned the right to talk about solving it.
With three moves, each one responds to a different barrier in Findings.
Reframe how the brand can standing out
Move the brand off the clinical-authority arms race. Position around the good day, the territory nobody was claiming.
Surface the trust that was already existing
Shopee buyers had been advocating for the product without a brand to credit. Give them the language and platform to belong to one.
Build an system that matches how they live the condition
Learn it → live it → buy it. Three content pillars that mirror how someone with chronic skin actually relates to a product over time.
CREATIVE DIRECTION
A visual world that embodies the good day, not the symptom.
Most skincare brands sell the skin you want. I wanted to talk about the skin you actually live in.
People with dry or sensitive skin aren't looking for transformation, they're looking to be understood. The insight: they don't want to be fixed. They want to be cared for.
"Happy Skin Days" names the feeling most skincare brands ignore: ordinary days when your skin just isn't the problem.
TONE & MANNER
Informative
Approachable
Warm
We’re celebrating skin happiness and promoting o'cera's clinically proven solutions for skin concerns, inviting you to be part of the journey towards healthier, happier skin.
WHAT I BUILT
Brand Strategy
-
Originated the brand positioning and the "Happy Skin Days" platform
-
Led the audience and competitor research behind the findings above
-
Directed the 3-pillar content strategy and content calendar
Creative Direction
-
Designed the website mock and UI/UX, the core visual proof of concept for the pitch
-
Proposed the social media template system and demonstrated it in use
-
Built content mocks showing how each content pillar would look in practice
THE EXPERIENCE
WEBSITE
"With O'cera, every day can be your Happy Skin Day." The audience is greeted on a homepage that doesn't open with a clinical claim, but rather a dream they can visualise coming true.
The audience enters the webpage from three entry points, depending on their objective:
Homepage
Brand and emotional entry point.
Product Page
Clinical details for those who want proof.
Brand Story
For the audience who is finding out about the brand for the first time
HOME PAGE
PRODUCT PAGE
CONTENT & PLATFORM STRATEGY
Social Media Platform : Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok
The social strategy was built around three content pillars, each doing a different job in the audience relationship. A 12-month content roadmap was developed with post objectives, content type, and production requirements mapped out across the full year.
Pillar 1
Beat The Itch
(Awareness 50%)
-
Educate on Malaysian climate and skin condition basics
-
Skincare dos and don'ts, as well as ingredients knowledge
-
Where most people first meet the brand
Pillar 2
Happy Skin Days (Engagement 40%)
-
Celebrate user stories and everyday lifestyle moments
-
Quarterly Happy Skin Chronicles video as community anchor
-
Where daily use turns into something to share
Pillar 3
Your Skin Solution
(Conversion 10%)
-
Product info
-
Pricing
-
Where to buy
The content pillar strategy gives the brand an ecosystem across its channels. This is a new brand with no existing visible trust to draw on, so education and identity do the heavy lifting. The split leans toward proving itself before asking for anything. Focusing too early on sales would mean asking for trust the audience hasn't built yet.
OUTCOME
I presented the proposal to Xepa-Soul Pattinson in December 2023, however I left the agency before the client made a decision. The proposal was approved, and the brand launched in 2024. Execution was completed by the agency after I left.
Live website: ocera-skincare.com
CONTRIBUTIONS
Art Direction · Creative Strategy · Brand Positioning · Content Architecture · Website Design · Campaign Ideation Carmen Tan | Copywriting Carmen Tan, Aqlah Zailan
Agency WEBQLO
Client Xepa-Soul Pattinson (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd
