Beauty & Cosmetics
TLDR: Cosmetics eCommerce involves everything from web design, search engine optimization, email, and social media marketing. To create a successful strategy, study your target audience and understand their purchasing behaviors. Equipped with information, run an informed strategy targeting successful strategy and digital marketing channels.
13 Strategies For Growing A Cosmetics Ecommerce Business
Are you running a cosmetics eCommerce business? The beauty market’s fierce! Cosmetics comprise products such as makeup, skincare, and hair care, a competitive space where standing out is crucial.
Cosmetics retailers today are deploying innovative strategies and sustainable practices to attract discerning customers.
In this article we shall examine the following:
Define Your Unique Value Proposition
Address Customer Queries and Concerns
Provide a Personalized Website Experience
Allow Customers to Try Before They Buy
Offer a satisfaction guarantee
Introduce beauty subscription boxes
Implement a loyalty program
Foster community on social media platforms
Leverage influencer marketing
Email marketing
Paid advertising
Social media marketing
Brand partnerships
Are you interested in learning more about enhancing your eCommerce experience?
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Digital advertising accounts for 34.1% of the total advertising expenditure in the beauty industry—including cosmetics. A McKinsey survey further shows that 22% of beauty ecommerce sales will take place online, and this keeps growing.
Now that we have an idea of what’s at stake, let’s get right into cosmetics ecommerce.
13 strategies for growing a cosmetics eCommerce store
Here are some growth tips beauty retailers should consider when starting out.
Define a unique value proposition
Is this a mission statement or a fancy slogan? The short answer is no. A value proposition sets you apart from other market players and convinces customers to hit "Buy Now." Communicate how your product addresses customers' needs and, in the process, share your brand's values and what it stands for.
Keep your message short, like 'Skin salvation.'
Make the value proposition simple like, 'Our smooth natural fragrance brings back childhood memories' targets an older demographic.
Distinguish your product by highlighting your values, community, ingredients, and pricing.
Understanding beauty customer demographics
Millennials (ages 25-40) are the biggest group of beauty product shoppers, followed by Gen Z (ages 18-24) and baby boomers (ages 57-75). With around 70% of buyers being 40 or younger, having a strong social media and presence is key to boosting online sales.
Come up with a strategy that focuses most on Gen Z and Millenials who make up the biggest chunk of your market. Ensure your beauty eCommerce website design is also responsive to mobile while maintaining a proactive social media presence.
A good example is Korendy that keeps its design short and sweet. And also, they provide seamless user experience for their customers.
Address customer queries and concerns
Today, sustainability is one of the biggest responsibilities that brands face. 45% of consumers consider responsible sourcing as a key aspect of sustainability.
Shifting consumer purchasing behaviors and preferences—more consumers derive a “feel good feeling” from consuming sustainable beauty products. Products are considered sustainable if they feature eco-friendly materials, minimalist designs, innovative packaging, reusable options, or are biodegradable.
Social media influencers—social media is huge in shaping consumer opinions and playing a huge role in beauty and cosmetic brand strategies. Micro-influencers are becoming more effective than macro-influencers, attracting brands in collaboration.
Personalization—AI-driven sales automation tools on popular ecommerce platforms such as Shopify, like lookfor, act as powerful shopping assistants by analyzing your needs and providing customized product recommendations. They have a range of functionalities that enriches the customer journey.
Provide a personalized website experience
Here is how a beauty eCommerce store can implement this:
Run product surveys and quizzes sent to beauty shoppers feel valued by inquiring about their individual needs with the answers informing product recommendations to users. Questions will likely center on skin type, skin concerns, preferred look, color palette, and use of makeup.
Offer a 'Skincare Profile' for logged-in users.
Send personalized product recommendations for new releases or promotions.
Use of sales AI sales assistants such as lookfor enable customers to get instant answers to their product searches without spending too much time combing through the website.
Allow customers to try before they buy
Augmented Reality (AR) is a new digitized testing way for consumers to preview their hair colors or makeup through virtual try-ons. AR merges both online and in-store shopping, visually previewing how products will look.
One good example is artlabs, which provides seamless solutions for brands, from virtual try-on to augmented reality solutions
Offer a satisfaction guarantee
Generally, ecommerce stores with return policies are considered more trustworthy by customers. Features like 30-day money-back guarantees or satisfaction guarantees are popular among buyers.
This takes out the risk element of buying a cosmetic product online without the worry that it will not work. Clearly outline return conditions, return address, and timeframe in your returns policy.
Introduce beauty subscription boxes
New business models around subscriptions have emerged recently such as Birchbox. For beauty brands with trusted customer bases, subscription strategies are suited for growth.
Variety of beauty boxes—offer subscription boxes tailored to customer preferences, including seasonal collections, themed boxes, and those for specific beauty needs.
Replenishment subscription boxes—replenishment subscription boxes offer a mix of unique main products and a few additional items that customers can choose from before delivery. If customers like any of the additional items, they can purchase the full-size versions separately.
Efficient recurring billing—pick a convenient payment processor for your subscription model that can easily handle recurring billing.
Implement a loyalty program
Get to encourage more purchases by inviting brand loyalty points and rewards. Over 90% of brands run a loyalty program of sorts, with 57% spending on brands they are loyal to.
For instance, you can give a point for every amount spent above a certain threshold to incentivize customers to increase their order value and claim the perks.
Foster community on social media
Creating a community around certain brands and products has a dual effect. It makes them feel valued (customer satisfaction) while at the same time increases the conversion rate (sales revenue). Ways of doing this is by e-newsletter subscriptions, community sections on ecommerce websites, or through social media usage.
Leverage influencer marketing
Partnering with influencers is a powerful form of market penetration and reaching online beauty shoppers. According to a Harvard Business School study, 62% of women are influenced by beauty influencers on social media.
Go for the influencers who are popular on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, or Instagram and share your values. Ensure they get trained on the product, how it's correctly used, and how best to relay their messaging.
So how can one leverage influencer marketing?
Share products with beauty influencers asking them to give their own authentic reviews.
Work with influencer networks to create a buzz around new products or collections.
Foster long-term relationships among few influencers asking them to post content regularly in form of tutorials or makeup videos, creating a level of social proof.
Co-create products or product ranges with influencers.
Email marketing
We know you're tired of seeing irrelevant emails in your inbox. However, email is still one of the oldest yet cost-effective cosmetics eCommerce marketing strategies.
While currently branded as an old-fashioned way of brands interacting with consumers, email is still the most popular form of interaction and engagement. Main strategies applied here are:
Welcome subscriber thank you emails for new customers
Transaction emails for regular updates
Promotional emails providing exclusive offers and deals that redirect to product pages
Emails announcing new products
Paid advertising
For fast results, paid advertising is fast at delivering a large amount of traffic to your site. Consumers shop for new products on digitized platforms, particularly on social media where they will run ads that help in reaching audiences interested in those products.
When running product advertising for beauty eCommerce brands, you use these tips:
Showcase your products in use showing the varying skin tones.
Use tempting product images to drive clicks and boost eCommerce sales.
Clearly define the product benefits for premium products.
Social media marketing
A lucrative strategy in cosmetics eCommerce is social media posting. It is an organic way to engage audiences and can be custom-tailored to only appear to the relevant audience. Today around 43% of consumers discover new products and brands through social media.
Here's the playbook:
1. Serve memorable and enjoyable content
2. To the right audience
3. With the right messaging
4. With our own consistent personal flavor
Brand partnerships
Partnerships are a simple yet effective way of product cross-promotion. Two brands leverage each other’s audience to promote their products. It is most prominent in the beauty industry, making it highly recommendable.
The key to monetizing partnerships among brands or individuals is how they will utilize that shared audience. A good example is beauty commerce brands partnering with mega-celebrities or public figures whose fanbase falls within their target demographics.
A good example is the Fenty Beauty partnership with Rihanna where she directly promotes the products and endorses their use.
Conclusion
The global beauty ecommerce market has grown exponentially driven by demand for cosmetics, skincare brands, and personal care products. The increase in disposable incomes and social media influences contribute to this booming market.
To remain competitive, as a cosmetics ecommerce brand, you should constantly engage your customers while adapting to emerging trends. An AI technology chatbot like lookfor is a powerful sales and customer experience tool that simplifies the customer’s online shopping experience resulting in more conversions.
