Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- What’s happening now
- Influencers play crucial role in product discovery, integral to customer acquisition
- Brands that transcend from advocacy to activism will win with consumers
- Renovate communication strategies to align with Americans’ shifting beauty ideals
- What’s next
- Retailers personified: increasing autonomy transforms influencers’ role as brand intermediaries into curators
- Create space for brand loyalists on private internet communities and boost repeat purchase rate
- Blurring physical and digital lives creates white space for technological beauty innovation
Market Factors
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- How to drive uplift and generate sales
- Take Gen Z’s love of Tik Tok’s entertainment value to the next level for continued engagement
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- Figure 1: Reasons for using TikTok, December 2020
- Improve customer acquisition and build connections through micro-communities
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- Figure 2: Youth To The People – Clubhouse Promotion
- Will beauty be #cancelled?
- Social media callouts are the modern day boycotts
- Renovation via reconciliation
- Reduce toll on mental health and boost inspiration with realistic and inclusive influencer campaigns
- Influencers are addressing pay inequities
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- Figure 3: Instagram post – Inclusion rider
- The advancement of 5G could give rise to new forms of communication
- New regulation in the UK could resonate in the US
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- Figure 4: Instagram post – #Filterdrop
- Impact of COVID-19 on beauty influencers
- Lockdown (March 2020-June 2020)
- Re-emergence (July 2020-December 2021)
- What Mintel anticipates during recovery (2022-2025)
Who is Winning at Social Media Marketing?
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- Brand founders and influencers using their platforms for activism
- Brands that genuinely address unrealistic beauty standards are poised for future success
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- Figure 5: Skin positivity: top account mentions – Global
- Consumers will gravitate to brands that prioritize the quality of influencer partnerships
- Brands that are transparent with their audience will create loyal customers and inspire repeated purchase
Market Opportunities
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- Instagram “Guides” create room for nuance on social media
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- Figure 6: Instagram Guides
- Digital beauty innovation sees brands tap into gaming communities
- Anticipate increased expectations of security via shoppable content on social platforms
- Will the beauty industry enter the NFT “chat”?
- Celebrate influencer autonomy with exclusive collaborations
The Consumer – Key Takeaways
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- Tackle misinformation with beauty experts
- Growth of new platforms opens doors for more influencers and opportunities to expand reach
- Capitalize further on Millennials willingness to spend by genuinely understanding what they need to hear
- Discounts and incentives drive men to purchase
- Influencers play a crucial role in product discovery
- Beauty brands that don’t appear relatable risk backlash
Influencer Landscape
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- Who follows beauty influencers?
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- Figure 7: Share of influencer followers, by age and gender, December 2020
Types of Beauty Influencers
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- Tackle misinformation with beauty experts
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- Figure 8: Types of influencers followed, December 2020
- Build relationships with women through brand communities
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- Figure 9: Select types of influencers followed, by gender, December 2020
- Gen Z adults feel personally connected to influencers
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- Figure 10: Bubble x Skincare by Hyram
- Figure 11: Select types of influencers followed, by generation, December 2020
Beauty Information Sources
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- Instagram and YouTube remain top destinations for beauty information . . . for now
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- Figure 12: Beauty information sources, December 2020
- Reach Gen X with age-inclusive digital marketing
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- Figure 13: Select beauty information sources, by generation, December 2020
Reasons for Following Beauty Influencers
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- Boost inspiration by partnering with diverse influencers
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- Figure 14: Reasons for following beauty influencers, December 2020
- Emphasize product efficacy to appeal to older Millennials
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- Figure 15: Azelaic acid Instagram post
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- Figure 16: Select reasons for following beauty influencers, by generation, December 2020
- Motivators vary by platform preference
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- Figure 17: Select reasons for following beauty influencers, by select social media visits daily, December 2020
Behaviors toward Beauty Brands and Influencers
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- Influencer recommendations drive purchases
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- Figure 18: Behaviors toward beauty brands and influencers, December 2020
- Discounts and incentives motivate men to purchase
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- Figure 19: Behaviors toward beauty brands and influencers – I do this, by gender, December 2020
- Drive purchases by promoting brand values online
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- Figure 20: Pull Up for Change – Make It BLACK
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- Figure 21: Behaviors toward beauty brands and influencers – I do this, by generation, December 2020
- Small but mighty: Tumblr and Reddit communities spark engagement
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- Figure 22: Supergreat
- Figure 23: Select behaviors toward beauty brands and influencers – I do this, by select daily social media visits, December 2020
Attitudes toward Influencers
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- Influencers play crucial role in product discovery
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- Figure 24: Instagram post – Cocokind
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- Figure 25: Attitudes toward influencers, December 2020
- Focus on quality over quantity
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- Figure 26: Select attitudes toward influencers, by generation, December 2020
- Expect more micro-influencers across social media apps
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- Figure 27: Select attitudes toward influencers, by select social media visits daily, December 2020
Interest in Innovative Content
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- Beauty brands that don’t appear relatable risk facing backlash
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- Figure 28: Glow Recipe – Instagram Post
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- Figure 29: Interest in innovative content, December 2020
- Tap into gamer communities to meet men “where they are”
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- Figure 30: Select interest in innovative content – More of, by gender, December 2020
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
Appendix – The Consumer
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- Figure 31: TURF analysis – Reasons for following, December 2020
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- Figure 32: Table – TURF analysis – Reasons for following, December 2020
- Methodology
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- Figure 33: Interest in innovative content – CHAID – Tree output, December 2020
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- Figure 34: Interest in innovative content – CHAID – Table output, December 2020
- Methodology
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