In the thriving beauty and personal care industries, getting your skincare brand to stand out can be tough. This space is saturated with fierce competition, and as a brand owner you need to be at the top of your game to establish a loyal following of repeat customers.
As you continue to grow your brand in 2023, it is critical to incorporate the latest advancements in products and treatments, focus on your research and development practices, and access greener and more sustainable ingredients in line with growing consumer demand for ethical, vegan, and plant-based products. This does not just apply to smaller niche brands and indies: global and heritage brands are facing pressure too.
The international marketing research body Euromonitor agrees. In its report, How Beauty and Personal Care Companies Compete Strategically, it indicates that some of the hottest topics and strategies are focused on the growth of sustainability initiatives by tackling technological, environmental, and economic challenges. This will continue to drive demand for more naturally derived ingredients while adding multiple new angles to the green beauty category.1
But while this takes care of the formulation and new product development side of things, there are other considerations, and this is where lines can become more blurred.
Beauty brands today must be proactive in line with our society’s changing dynamics. These are manifold, including growing awareness around topics such as gender-fluidity and broader social issues, for instance the #metoo and #blacklivesmatter campaigns. In the beauty industry we can and should focus on enabling real change by celebrating our differences in a positive and inclusive manner.
This means that while highlighting your brand’s transparency and sustainability positioning, you should also focus on alternative business concepts by highlighting your company’s ethics, backstory, and narrative.2
Taking a people-first approach will build brand loyalty. It is important to invest the time and resources in identifying and honing in on specific concerns and movements that resonate with your consumers and, your beauty or personal care brand.
Increasing competition and shifting parameters ensure that the sector remains vibrant, but now is the time to think out of the box and support your brand’s goals and aspirations for a better future. At Oleon Health and Beauty, we believe that focusing on these four areas can assist brands in securing their foothold in this highly competitive industry:
- Stand up for what you believe in
Whether your brand is invested in safeguarding biodiversity, doing its bit to offset climate change, or fighting racial and gender injustices, now is the time to speak out!
Global powerhouse and heritage brand L’Oréal is vocal in its fight against climate change by transitioning to low carbon business model. The company recorded a massive 81% reduction in CO2 emissions from its production sites and is fully transparent about its commitment to carbon neutral processing by 2025. 3
But standing up for what you believe is much broader as seen by the brand support for initiatives such as #MeToo and #blacklivesmatter. Beauty brands, both big and small, are throwing their support behind fighting injustice. A few examples include Indie brands Peach & Lily and Herbivore, Instagram powerhouse NYX Professional Makeup and even drugstore beauty giant Maybelline, who are all speaking out in support of these causes thereby highlighting and affirming their commitment.4
2. Engage with your customers
Consumers crave authenticity with 90% of millennials saying it is the deciding factor in the brands they will support in the future.5 While the internet and social media means we can basically have our own beauty advisor in the room, it is still important to engage with consumers by communicating your goals -whether using sustainable and plant-based ingredients or assessing your obligations and responsibility to diversity and inclusion across all spheres of your business. Listening to your community and understanding their concerns and aspirations is now more important than ever. Consumer trends are constantly changing, and it is imperative to adapt. This could mean introducing new line extensions or updating your packaging to reflect these requirements. Staying in touch and connecting with your consumers is a sure way to ensure success in the beauty industry.6
3. Be nimble
Flexibility should remain at the core of your decision making. Whether you are developing new formulations for women of color and across genders, launching a novel or disruptive product to the market or simply rethinking your packaging to make it more sustainable, the speed with which you can implement these changes is a key requirement for success. You must be ready to embrace change but always keeping in mind your brand’s core positioning.7
4. Your reputation is everything
If your brand is in the public eye, you will be seen and judged. Often a single negative review can do irreparable harm to your brand. If you are not actively managing your reputation you are leaving your brand wide open to competitive forces. By simply taking a more proactive approach to reputation management you will allow your brand to flourish.
The beauty industry is primarily about providing solutions to consumers and it is up to you to build a positive reputation that will foster loyalty and inspire confidence.8 Paying close attention to the chatter about your brand, both positive and negative, presents an opportunity to engage and learn to better meet consumer and market requirements. This is not a once off, but a continuous process to resolve any issues that may arise. 9
Competition in the beauty industry can be fierce. But by breaking through the clutter and positioning your brand in line with you ethical and sustainability strategy, communicating with your consumers, being flexible and nimble and paying meaningful attention to your reputation will allow you to succeed in today’s cut-throat market!
For information feel free to contact the Oleon Health and Beauty team at www.oleonhealthandbeauty.com
References:
1,2 How Beauty and Personal Care Companies Compete Strategically - Euromonitor.com
3 L'Oréal Group: Our Purpose (loreal.com)
4 These Beauty Brands Are Speaking Up And Taking Action To Support Black Lives (forbes.com)
5 Content Marketing for Beauty Brands: 5 Ways to Engage Consumers | Stackla (nosto.com)
6 Trends in Customer Engagement in the Luxury Beauty Market — Pioneering Collective
7 100 Things You Need To Know To Succeed In The Modern Beauty Industry (entrepreneur.com)
8 What is Reputation and why is it Necessary to Grow Your Business | ReviewPoint
9. Brand reputation management is crucial for growth — here's how it's done (bazaarvoice.com)
