eCommerce Success Story: Burrow, a Different Furniture Store (2)
Miguel Nicolás
18/03/2025
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Let´s expand on Burrow's eCommerce success story, focusing on its marketing and communication strategy.
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Surely the first post of this success story left you wanting more. So, we will not keep you so.We have thoroughly reviewed the actions this furniture brand takes, both organically and paid, and even how they operate in the retail environment.Are you ready to learn more about Burrow? Keep reading!
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The Channels of Burrow's Strategy
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In the following lines, we will analyze their SEO, SEM strategy, and especially how they work with content, social media, and email marketing. Basically, the digital channels that most online stores use to sell.They also have 4 physical showrooms, and we will share some insights about them; it may not be the most relevant, but they have some curiosities worth noting.
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INSIGHT: An omnichannel or multichannel strategy is the best way to position ourselves on all active fronts in our niche, reaching the target audience in any context and level of the conversion funnel.
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Burrow's SEO
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Let’s start with organic positioning, which is, not by chance, usually one of the biggest traffic contributors for an already established online store, as is the case with Burrow.To get the main insights, we will use a tool that you probably already know. I am talking about Semrush. Let’s take a look at this screenshot of its SEO module.
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We can draw several clear conclusions:
- Their markets are the United States (over 30,000 keywords ranking), followed at a distance by Canada and the United Kingdom. It is understood that they are interested in working in English-speaking markets and that Canada, in addition, is logistically less complex.
- It is a brand that has been well developed, which is why it has a good volume of branded traffic (Burrow, Burrow Furniture, Burrow Sofa...).
- Non-branded traffic also contributes an interesting monthly volume and is on the rise.
- The majority of queries have informational, commercial, or transactional intent, which means they are doing things very well.
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INSIGHT: The traffic graph is an indicator of organic work without shortcuts. SEO efforts take a while to materialize, but if consistent and in accordance with Google's guidelines, growth eventually arrives and consolidates.
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Burrow's SEM
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Reviewing their investment in Google Ads, the most obvious thing is that they have maintained a consistent policy in recent months, but over the past year, they have run much more aggressive campaigns in April and June, nearing 200,000 visits at those times.
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When we put this in a historical global context, there are very marked peaks and valleys, without a structure that seems similar from one year to the next.
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INSIGHT: When conducting this type of analysis, it is advisable to look at results over a period longer than a year to interpret the strategy properly.
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Based on the ads and keywords they use, we can extract some more interesting conclusions:
- They invest heavily in brand keywords, indicating competition for their branded traffic, and they prefer to pay for it rather than leave that margin to competitors.
- They also bid on generic keywords like “washable rugs” and for their own products like the “Dune sofa.”
- They run promotional campaigns on important dates, for example, having special ads for President’s Day.
- Other campaigns focus on specific advantages, particularly on the washable aspect and pets (pet-friendly furniture).
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INSIGHT: Always seek a balance between the different types of campaigns you are running and, above all, focus on product, brand, and user benefit.
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Burrow's Social Media Marketing
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When we mentioned the quality of the multimedia content on their website, we expected that they maintain that level of quality on their social media. The truth is that it does not disappoint; it is even better than what we find on their online store.
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INSIGHT: If you invest in creating content and building community, both your content and user-generated content become social proof that you must integrate into your product pages, homepage, and any other landing pages in general. It adds aspiration and credibility to your website.
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First of all I must say, that I really like all their social profiles. That is why I am surprised to see that they do not have as many comments, likes, and shares as I think they deserve. The explanation is simple and a lesson in itself: algorithms have evolved to a point where if you do not pay for advertising, you will be very limited in terms of organic positioning.Does this invalidate the content? Absolutely not; it is clear that it is:
- Of high production quality.
- Strategically planned.
- Adapted to each network.
- Well balanced between inspirational and commercial content.
- Aware of seasonality or important events for their audience.
- Self-explanatory about the brand, at times almost tutorials.
- Supported by influencers who prospect for the brand.
Everything is well done from the content perspective, but the absence of investment in paid campaigns does weigh down the strategy somewhat.With this clarification, let’s look at that content with some examples from their own social profiles. -
INSIGHT: The case of Burrow is noteworthy because it has a relatively small mix of networks; the two from Meta, TikTok, and an X account that is practically testimonial. Sometimes less is more: why have profiles that you are not going to update?
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They use a lot of static images. This, although we know it is not what the algorithm prefers, makes sense. When making a thoughtful purchase, you value the ability to pause and look at details, calmly. You simply don’t need as many stimuli.That is why, for example, we see that they frequently share albums with several photos in different environments and styles.
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INSIGHT: By working with modular systems that allow for many configurations, it makes sense to convey that versatility with the content on their networks.
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Honestly, their work on Instagram seems much more interesting than on Facebook. Here we can say they have perfectly adapted to the language of the network.They have brilliant examples, like this one that I show you below.
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They could have just used the image, but by adding that interface in a kind of “augmented reality,” what they are indirectly saying is that with this piece of furniture, your home will be worthy of showing off on social media.Sometimes content is used to enhance the effect of opinions, after all, a social media audience is especially sensitive to peer recommendations. There are many, many different examples on their profiles. Here’s one with more depth than it seems at first glance.
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INSIGHT: Social networks and the website feed off each other, and in Burrow's case, they do so bidirectionally. They don’t just use their followers’ photos on product pages.
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They also do not hesitate to use memes, which ties into the target audience they are addressing. If they were targeting a higher age range in a socio-demographic bracket, they would probably prefer to use less colloquial or familiar resources.Costumbrismo (depictions of everyday life) always works, especially if you tie it to seasonality, current events, or any other daily life situation.In this example, a real user asks her husband if they should go out that night, and they end up sitting on their couch—something many of us can relate to.
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Do you want another great example? Look at how they "laugh" at the overuse of Artificial Intelligence while also highlighting their craftsmanship.
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One more, I cannot help sharing this small stroke of genius designed (and very well thought out) for Valentine’s Day. I think it is hard to say more with less. This is how you show love for a couch.
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Their furniture is known for using durable, washable upholstery, which, translated into internet language, means kids and pets. This is as old as social media itself; people find it hard to resist photos and videos of babies and kittens (and you know it).That is why these protagonists are commonly found across their profiles. Babies drawing on a couch…
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Or pets resting peacefully on designer furniture.
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INSIGHT: Content must always sell, whether it is a product or, as in this case, the company’s values and competitive advantages.
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And since we have started posting some videos, it is worth seeing how they produce them. They have excellent technical quality, but they also put a lot of effort into the script.Many brands make the mistake of thinking that being on TikTok means having the marketing team making employees dance in the warehouse. But if you want it to be effective, you need to think about what and how you want to communicate.Do you want to say that assembling a couch is easy? Then it’s always better to show it rather than just talk and talk. A one-minute video with two people is more than enough to demonstrate it.
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@burrow So easy, even our founder can do it.
? original sound - Burrow -
The same applies to having easy-to-clean fabrics. You can create a quick cleaning tutorial using a real piece of furniture and some of the toughest stains you can think of.
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@burrow Want to know how our Nomad performance fabric fares when it comes to gochujang? Keep on watching. Cleaning instructions below ?? ???? ?? WHAT YOU NEED ?? ?? Distilled water (preferably warm) ?? Bleach ?? Rag Blot stain with distilled water and bleach solution (1 tablespoon of bleach for every 4 cups of water). Apply more if necessary. If possible, place a clean towel between the fabric and foam cushion to absorb excess moisture. Afterwards, thoroughly rinse the fabric with warm water until it is clean. Let the spot air dry and your sofa will look good as new! What should we test out next? #sofacleaning #stainremoval #cleanhome #tidyhome ? original sound - Burrow -
INSIGHT: There is something every brand should engrave in their minds when it comes to social media, no matter what you say, you cannot be boring. Burrow manages to make everything engaging without jumping on meaningless trends just for the sake of it.
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Burrow’s Email Marketing
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We were talking about being engaging, and since this post is quite long, I hope it is keeping you entertained. We could stop here given the length we have already covered, but we always like to at least take a look at the email marketing of online stores. Let’s check out a few examples.Let’s start by looking at how they handle promotions with this fairly recent one.
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What we like about this email:
- Very clean, the product is the visual focal point.
- Generation of urgency. The headline "last chance" is really impactful and is reinforced in the body of the message with phrases like "last chance to save."
- They take the opportunity to create curiosity with a teaser about the next launch that has taken "two years to prepare."
Now let’s look at a multi-product email with a more general objective: -
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What we like most about this email is:
- They work on FOMO (fear of missing out): "discover why everyone in the city is talking about us," creating interest.
- Well-chosen image, it’s aspirational in a subtle way. It is well-aligned with the urban and sophisticated look of their audience.
- Variety of best-selling products, which increases the chances of generating clicks and, ultimately, conversions.
The last example I’d like to highlight is this email from their referral program. -
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This email is great because:
- The idea of a referral program itself and paying customers who bring in new customers.
- It focuses on community-building, the focus is on sharing the good stuff. The economic benefit is almost secondary (though very appealing).
- Reference to Instagram, something that can’t be missed when talking about community.
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INSIGHT: Email is an amazing ally for eCommerce. It serves to introduce yourself, maintain contact, announce news, promote... and acquire new customers, with measures like referral programs.
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Keys to Burrow’s Success
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- Modular and scalable product, perfect for ensuring repeat purchases.
- Custom design as added value. Burrow products can only be bought at Burrow.
- Showrooms in major cities for personalized advice.
- Products that solve the lifestyle needs of their customers. People in the age range of having children and usually having pets need furniture that adapts to them.
- Simplicity in assembly taken to the extreme. No tools are necessary, thanks to their lever and spring system.
- Communication based on content, which is exactly what the audience expects right now.
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What do you think of Burrow’s success story? Have you gotten many ideas?
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Images: burrows.com