Beauty Marketers: How natural beauty brands can make a greater ‘social’ impact

As a beauty marketer, you are witnessing a major shift from traditional media to social to connect with the beauty conscious woman. As a marketing and communications graduate student at Northwestern University passionate about living a healthy lifestyle, I have found two articles which provide interesting insights into social media and the marketing of beauty brands. 

In an interesting article in Forbes Magazine titled, How Social Media is Fueling The Next $1B Beauty Brand, entrepreneur Jane Park discusses how she uses social media to create, test and sell new products. Since many of the businesses in this industry operate on a small scale, social media is the best tool to create awareness and generate mass appeal. In addition, there's a growing mistrust in mass-produced products, where consumers are avidly reading labels and demanding chemical free alternatives. Therefore, social media is a good tool for organic/ naturally based beauty brands to offer consumers reassurance.

Another article recently printed in the New York Times, entitled Younger Skin Through Exercise, emphasizes how running can help keep you skin looking younger. Consumers making the commitment to invest in natural products often want ideas on how to live naturally in other aspects of their life. For example, many beauty enthusiasts are constantly looking for ways to improve their appearance overall without having to resort to chemicals or surgery. It’s not enough to just be on social media to grow your customer base; it’s important to continually aggregate content that appeals to this audience.  Who wouldn’t choose to work out over paying thousands of dollars for Botox? 

Based on my analysis of the two articles, here are three action items I recommend you consider in developing you future social strategies.

• Think multi-channel- Sometimes video is more impactful than text or pictures bring your product to life. Whatever the case, be sure to explore and evaluate the best social media platform(s) you think will help consumers connect with your product.

• Think beyond your product- When deciding to invest in naturally based products, the decision doesn’t usually just apply to one aspect of their life. A lot of times they might want to start eating healthier, exercising more or even using chemical-free cleaning products. Establish your company as a thought leader on adopting a healthier lifestyle so you can serve a resource to learn more about natural ways of living.

•  Engage in social communities- People like to share their ideas and receive recommendations from those that are like-minded. Participating in social communities is a great way to see what people are talking about and trending topics.

Of course, there are many more ways to connect to this growing customer base through social and digital media. You can use social media to take a legislative stand against the labeling of organic products, which is currently a hot topic right now. Another idea, since many companies in this industry are locally based, would be to use social media to tap into other geographical markets that might not have direct access to your product. There’s no doubt social media can help your business stand out amongst mass-produced chemically based products and will help you guide consumers to leading a healthier, more fulfilling life. 

      

Jennifer Marzett previously worked in the Global Marketing Organization for AT&T Inc where she served as Lead Corporate Communications Manager and Associate Director of Executive Operations. Jennifer is currently pursing her M.S. in Integrated Marketing Communications from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University and holds a B.A. in Marketing from the University of Oklahoma.

Twitter Contact: @Miamarzett
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