Lowe’s and AP: Using data to drive outstanding content creation and new revenue

The Challenge

Lowe's wanted to elevate its creator marketing programme and introduce category-led campaigns and product support across its fiscal year, building on foundational growth achieved in 2024. The challenge was to move beyond a basic influencer programme and build a genuinely data-driven creator model that could deliver measurable revenue, not just reach or engagement.

The Strategy

Acceleration Partners deployed an influencer-as-affiliate approach that focused on equipping creators with the tools to succeed and actively supporting new ways to drive revenue. The strategy was structured around three campaign pillars, giving creators clear content frameworks while preserving their creative voice. Key performance indicators were set around creator volume, conversion rate, and revenue, ensuring the programme was held to commercial rather than vanity metrics.

The Work

Self-service educational tools were made available to creators to support content quality and consistency, reducing friction in the production process and enabling a larger number of creators to perform at a high level. Shoppable video content was integrated as an additional layer, suited to the longer-form video content natural to the home improvement category, with revenue from this channel counted as incremental to the main programme. The approach combined the structure of a paid influencer model with the accountability of affiliate, creating a hybrid that served both creative and commercial goals.

Results

The programme delivered a 2.2x return on ad spend, with monthly revenue increasing by an average of 760% across fiscal Q4. The results validated the influencer-as-affiliate model as a commercially effective approach for a major home improvement retailer.

The Judges' Verdict

Judges praised the clear objectives and the smart adaptation of paid influencer campaign structures into an affiliate framework, noting the addition of shoppable video content as a particularly well-considered tactical decision for the category. The self-service creator tools were highlighted as a thoughtful enablement mechanism. A well-executed programme with impressive commercial results.

"Clear goals, a tight strategy, and solid results."