$757K in Sales with Just 15% ACOS, Functional Food Brand Disrupts Amazon Snack Category in 30 Days
Energy Bar Brand scaled to $757K at 15% ACOS in 12 weeks
Introduction
Selling food on Amazon isn’t like selling any other product. You don’t just compete on keywords, you compete on taste, trust, and trial.
Jesse’s WAKEUP! wasn’t your average energy bar. It packed the caffeine of 3 espressos into a peanut butter crisp, delivering clean fuel for students, gym-goers, and professionals. But even the best-tasting product means nothing if you can’t get people to try it.
That’s where we stepped in.
Client Background:
A U.S.-based food startup launching a caffeinated rice crisp bar, targeting time-starved buyers who want energy without energy drinks. Laura Bennett had a niche product with high competition and a bold USP. She had a limited launch window and needed results fast to build confidence with investors and secure retail partnerships.
Before We Stepped In:
The product had launched with bold branding, but zero clarity on benefits. Traffic was coming in, but bounce rates were high. The bar was priced higher than average, and without review volume, it lacked trial trust. The listing failed to communicate why this food product mattered. Ads were burning budget on vague snack keywords, missing caffeine-specific shoppers.
Challenges:
– Low Trial Conversion: New food brands face higher hesitation. Buyers want proof of taste, texture, and benefit.
– Missing Dietary Triggers: Amazon shoppers filter for “kosher,” “gluten-free,” “no crash,” but the product wasn’t surfacing.
– Unclear Positioning: Is it a snack? A supplement? A pre-workout? The confusion lowered CTR.
– High Competition in Gated Category: Competing with well-established food brands with decades of trust and visual equity.
– Weak Repeat Strategy: No bundling, no subscribe-and-save, and no remarketing built into the launch.
Our SPINE Solution
Functional-First Listing Rewrite
Positioned the bar as a natural caffeine alternative, not just a snack.
Amazon Diet Compliance Optimization
Highlighted kosher certification, ingredient list, and clean label structure.
Benefit-Focused Ad Creatives
Used “coffee alternative,” “3PM energy fix,” and “no crash bar” headlines across creatives.
SPINE Method Implementation
Broke campaigns into trial-based vs repeat-based buyer segments
Bundling + Subscription Offers
Introduced 6-pack bundles and set up Subscribe & Save to lock in LTV.
A/B Testing on Taste vs. Energy Hook
Split campaigns showing delicious taste vs extreme energy, energy won by 2.3x ROAS.
Targeted Brand Defense + Competitor ASIN Ads
Protected brand traffic while conquesting weaker energy snacks.
Results
Spend: $115,491
Sales: $757,513
ACOS: 15.25%
ROAS: 6.56
Repeat Order Rate: 17% in first 45 days
Here’s what we got from our partner
Final Words
This wasn’t luck.
This wasn’t guesswork.
It was structured execution backed by data and experience.
If your food product delivers results but lacks velocity, it’s not the taste that’s the problem. It’s the positioning. Let us help.