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Marketing for beauty and cosmetics brands seems like it should be dead simple. Hire influencers, run paid ads, and publish a regular newsletter to turn leads into dollars–that just about covers it, right?
However, that is far from the truth, predominantly owing to the sheer competitiveness of this space.
Beauty and cosmetic products have a unique audience profile, mostly women, and has several challenges that every beauty marketer knows about. These include:
- Limited marketing budgets
- Transitioning to ecommerce from offline retail
- Differentiating a brand from other brands in the same price range
- Demonstrating product quality and efficacy
- The trend towards clean, organic, and eco-friendly beauty products
If you are completely stumped about what to do to refresh your marketing campaigns and want ideas on what to try next, you’ve landed on the right page.
In this article, I will describe the main to-dos for your marketing to succeed.
You can turn your business into a recurring revenue machine and stand out from your competition by implementing the following tips.
Note that all these examples are sourced from Panoramata, our competitor tracking and benchmarking platform made for marketers and agencies from all industries. Sign up for free below to give it a spin.
11 Best Cosmetics Marketing Strategies for the Modern Consumer
Incorporate UGC
User-generated content or UGC is a type of content that is made by customers or users and and posted on social media or other platforms.
UGC can be paid or unpaid. With paid UGC, you tap influencers or UGC content creators to make images, videos, or even podcasts about your product.
You can integrate UGC in your emails, brand pages, website, landing pages, and more.
Influencer and UGC marketing is heavily used by cosmetics brands for a reason. Content straight from customers is perceived as more authentic than brand content. It instils trust in your business.
On the customer side, creating UGC actually fosters brand loyalty because consumers become part of a community that use and like your products.
It also opens up further engagement because you can interact with UGC content creators and vice versa.
Here’s a great form of UGC posted by Lancome on social media. It features a creator using their Lash Idole Mascara and shows its dramatic effects on their lashes.
Add before and after pictures
Before and after pictures are a marketing creative that is used again and again because of how engaging it is to potential customers.
It works especially well for beauty marketing because of the visual effect that makeup has once applied.
These before and afters can be subtle or dramatic but no matter what, they have impact. People love a good transformation.
You can look at brands like Nars for examples of before and after videos and photos done right.
In the ad, the user shows how she applies the brand’s foundation and concealer and what a difference the products made on her skin.
Inject personalization through quizzes
Cosmetics, like many beauty products, are not one size fits all, so why have a blanket approach to product recommendations?
Maybelline shows that they care about their customer’s diversity and unique concerns by providing quizzes like the ones below.
They disseminate these quizzes through email. Note how nearly each quiz has a branded title (Babelline Quiz, Fit Me Routine Finder) and a CTA to take the quiz.
They all aim to give personalized recommendations to the quiz taker and help them make informed choices about what product to buy.
Highlight hero products
A hero product is the main character of your brand’s product lineup. It is usually a product that your brand is known for or the first thing customers look for when they see your brand.
For example, Lululemon’s hero product is their leggings. Urban Decay’s hero product is their All-Nighter Setting Spray while Glossier’s is (arguably) their Cloud Paint blushes.
You should flaunt your hero products because they convey your unique selling points better than any of your other products. They set you apart from other brands.
Even when you promote new products, don’t neglect your hero products because they are your primary revenue earners. They will attract customers like moth to flame.
Release limited edition products
To build on the previous tip, you should also aim to keep things fresh by pushing out new releases.
Limited edition products, like new colors of your existing lipstick or blush, are a fool-proof way to add something new to your collection without creating a brand new product.
You can also do limited edition seasonal bundles (e.g. summer sets) made up of existing products. Brands like Saie do this often.
In the same vein, beauty brands are also producing merchandise and creating demand for it by making it a limited release.
Check out Saie’s “Everything Bag” below, a summer drop that can be bought separately or received as a gift with purchase.
Integrate videos into your marketing mix
TikTok, YouTube, Instagram Reels–everything is about video now. Make it a point to create demos, ads, tutorials, testimonials, and other marketing content using video.
Nothing shows cosmetic performance and quality as well as video.
You should flaunt your hero products because they convey your unique selling points better than any of your other products.
Some brands take this further by placing shoppable videos on their website, an interactive type of video where viewers can click on a product on the video and be taken directly to a checkout page.
Other ways to incorporate video is livestreaming tutorials, Q and As, and product launches on your social media. These also have an additional benefit of creating community around your brand.
Here’s an example of a video ad from Milk that shows off their makeup lineup through a content creator’s get ready with me (GRWM) routine.
Include gifts with purchase
Cosmetic fans, like most consumers, love getting treats when they shop. A free item is a very compelling reason to buy more from a brand.
Try giving free products when a customer reaches a specific amount. This is great for increasing average order value and boosting customer loyalty.
Rhode includes a free Lip Peptide balm when a customer orders two Rhode products or a set.
To increase urgency, they only run this offer for a limited time. The details of their last call is highlighted in the email.
Post social proof
Tap into the psychological phenomenon of social proof when creating marketing campaigns, whether it be ads, emails, or the like.
Social proof is a phenomenon where people copy the actions of others in the belief that the crowd knows better than them.
In ecommerce and DTC, social proof can be incorporated by highlighting positive testimonials from users. Though simple, it’s a highly effective tactic to get your audience to check out your store and buy from you.
Other forms of social proof include press mentions, celebrity endorsements, influencer recommendations, and five-star reviews.
Now, it’s more common to emphasize a product’s virality on TikTok as a way to stir curiosity and produce demand for it.
Take a look at this email from Tower28.
They leverage the fact that their SOS Rescue Spray and Lip Jelly went viral on TikTok and comment on this by saying they have earned that badge of honor.
Practice sustainability and social responsibility
Sustainability and ethical sourcing is a huge priority for brands who want to reduce their carbon footprint and appeal to ecologically-conscious consumers.
This goes for billion dollar brands, niche brands, and everything in between.
Ways you can see this trend in the beauty market are using environmentally-friendly packaging, creating cruelty-free products, and finding ethically-sourced ingredients.
Brands also partner up with organizations with a cause and are becoming more transparent about their production practices.
You can also see the trend towards clean, organic, and natural cosmetics everywhere. Consider highlighting sustainable practices, if any, in your marketing.
Mented and Saie are two beauty brands that come to mind that feature sustainable practices or clean beauty in their marketing.
Mented celebrates National Clean Beauty Day by giving discounts on makeup duos.
Meanwhile, Saie produced a documentary in collaboration with Pact about how the beauty industry, particularly packaging, affects and harms the environment.
Then, they published a guide on how to recycle empties (empty, used-up cosmetic products).
Establish loyalty programs
Customer retention is as important as acquisition for cosmetics brands because you are up against numerous competitors and even current customers might jump ship if they see a better offer elsewhere.
Enter loyalty programs.
These programs reward loyal customers for patronizing your products by either giving points for each spend, establishing member tiers that dole out more benefits as members go up in tiers, and giving exclusive discounts and access to early sales.
Westman Atelier has a loyalty program called the Atelier Insiders.
They spell out the benefits in an email sent to their subscribers. These are: being the first to know product drops, receiving exclusive invitations to events, and redeeming points for every purchase.
Monitor competitors constantly
Competition is cutthroat in the beauty market so it makes even more sense to track your competitors’ marketing activities.
The benefits of competitor monitoring and analysis are not to be missed. To name just a few:
- Keeping tabs on the competition allows you to adjust your promotions, offers, and even products to differentiate yourself.
- You can implement effective strategies your competitor is using in their ads, emails, or landing pages.
- You can spot opportunities to one-up your competitors by monitoring their content calendars, reviews, newsletters, and other marketing content.
- You can see threats as they arise and keep up with social media and other trends so you don’t get left behind.
Competitor tracking doesn’t have to feel like a full-time job. Panoramata automates your competitor tracking and places all your competitor information in one feed.
You can be updated on your competitors just by viewing your dashboard and scrolling through a feed, just as you would social media.
Best of all, Panoramata is not limited to just one aspect of their marketing. You can view emails, ads, landing pages, SMS, products, reviews and tech stacks in one easy-to-access place, no separate log-in required.
Take it our for a spin and see the difference for yourself.
Take your beauty marketing into the 21st century
There you have it! By using these tips, you can really make your beauty or cosmetics brand shine and sparkle like a glossy lip balm.
Focusing on what truly resonates with customers—like authentic content, showing real results, and building loyalty—will help your business grow and keep customers coming back for more.
Want more ideas and inspiration? Check out our email swipe file with over 100 newsletter ideas you can use for your next campaign.
FAQs
Why is user-generated content (UGC) so important for beauty brands?
UGC is perceived as more authentic and helps build trust, while also fostering brand loyalty by making customers feel part of a community.
How can limited edition products help my brand?
Limited editions create a sense of urgency and newness, allowing brands to keep their offerings fresh and attract attention without always developing entirely new products.
What role does sustainability play in beauty marketing today?
Consumers are increasingly prioritizing eco-friendly and ethically sourced products, so highlighting sustainable practices can significantly appeal to this growing demographic.
