Photo by pouriya kafaei on Unsplash

The beauty counter has long been the go-to destination for millions of shoppers for a number of good reasons:

• The in-store experience has always been just that – an experience
  
• Shopping has always been a highly social event that connected us with friends
  
• There is an element of instant gratification involved
  
• We were able to try a product out without commitment in a store environment
  
• We got to chat to experts who had deep product knowledge that we couldn’t find elsewhere

Things have changed.

In bringing the experience of shopping for beauty products and cosmetics into the digital realm, those who will succeed are inventing new strategies and re-inventing some old ones.

Brand discovery

Where the beauty counter might once have been thought of as a destination event, purchasing behaviour now tends to be more spontaneous. According to recent Google/Ipsos studies, 76% of consumers say they enjoy making discoveries while shopping, while 73% claim that they have become more interested in a brand or product atter seeing an ad that is related to what they are shopping for.

Search and Social are two areas where brands have focussed their efforts in recent time. But we suggest that there is room for further innovation.

Here are three things to think about:

Leveraging the long tail – providing an experience that amplifies the USP based on more meaningful search terms

Shoppable content – on social platforms – has become the dominant channel through which consumers interact with beauty brands

Social proof – beauty shoppers trust each other more than they trust beauty brands, making UGS more important than ever before

The purchase

On-site customer experience has replaced the beauty expert at the beauty counter. Marketers are getting creative when it comes to aiding the decision-making process and driving conversion.

Here are three things to think about:

Differentiate the onsite experience – we’ve mentioned amplifying your product USP above; once your consumers reach your storefront, make sure that the story they experience lines up with your brand

Get creative with sampling – we don’t have to look vary far to find success stories built on sampling; think Dollar Shave, Smashbox and others.

Loyalty – the returning customer, holy grail for all marketers. Loyalty does not mean the same thing for every consumer – curate and personalise the rewards.

Conclusion

Optimize the experience from start to finish; all the way from search to conversion. If you know where your customers have come from, what they’re interested in, it becomes easier to map out where they go next.

Focus on the USPs; the best way to differentiate your brand from the competition is a tailored user journey that tells your story.

Keep personalization at the forefront of how your communicate to customers.