Since ancient times, women have been passionate about all the things that could make them feel more attractive and beautiful. Fashion industry and its growth are the living proof that women developed a real interest in looking good and expressing their personality via the clothes they wear. Walking in the same line with fashion, there is  beauty industry, which provides women with products that bring a boost of self confidence and pamper them.

Companies like L’Oreal have proved that beauty is not only women´s priviledge, reinforcing announcements that their lines for men have seen spectacular growth rates in last years, especially in China. It is clear that beauty industry has reached a global level and exposure, and while products may be customized for different geographical areas, beauty companies are present all over the world.

Social media is a tool that helps companies target a more global market or test other ones for future penetration, so it was obvious that beauty companies would not wait long before engaging in social media. Another reason why companies in the beauty field should step in to social media is represented by the fact that their target audience is most likely to ask for advices or suggestions of what products to use. Clients have problems identifying the product that best fits their needs, and social media represents a channel where they usually ask for advice.

In the following, we would like to present some of the most important beauty companies that have managed to integrate social media into their marketing mix.

The Body Shop – Conversation engagement

The Body Shop is a company founded by the late Anita Roddick, a human rights activist.  She wanted to prove to the world that beauty doesn’t necessarily mean animal testing or the usage of any kind of animal products, therefore The Body Shop is positioned as a brand that only sells natural products. The company is widely known for their body care lines, based on natural ingredients, but they provide customers with a wide offer of products designed to address a broad range of beauty problems. Regarding social media, The Body Shop uses Facebook as a method to communicate with their customers, and actually engage in conversation with them by answering every inquiry that is made.

We were positively surprised by the fact that the US page contains a tab that links to all the other local pages in the countries the brand is present. That reveals the fact that Body Shop is aware of its target audience and willing to communicate customized news for every territory they are present in.  The brand also has an active Twitter account for the US market.

L’Oreal Paris – Beauty advisor

L’Oreal is the French beauty giant, known for its slogan “because you’re worth it” and for its glamorous movie stars and models that represent the brand in global marketing campaigns.  Thanks to Michelle, we found the official account of the brand on Twitter.  The official Facebook page in the United States of the brand can be found here. L’Oreal also has an official page for the branch offices in Mexico, Canada and Italy.

L’Oreal is a company that has managed to adjust its social media strategy according to the company’s positioning. The Facebook page features news about different products of the brand, media appearances and events, as well as beauty polls. They’ve also integrated a beauty advisor who is in charge of offering solutions for different beauty problems. What the company has managed to offer users via Facebook is the L’Oreal experience but translated into the social media environment.

The company has proved it cares about its consumers, and has taken the necessary step to engage with consumers on a channel that is more appealing to them.

Avon – CSR and charity programs

Avon is a company with an important and relevant international presence on the global beauty market. Regarding social media, the company has made initial steps by setting its official Facebook page. Via this channel Avon has managed to maintain its corporate image but in the same time adjust its communication for this particular social network. Avon is a company that develops a series of CSR, charity and social problems campaigns. On their Facebook page they’ve managed to gather a community of loyal customers of the brand, willing to support the brand in its fight to eliminate these problems. Avon is a company that cares about females’ problems, and that can be easily seen by observing the communication the company has adopted on social media.

They reunited with consumers on a user friendly platform, spreading their message, and building the corporate image of a company that cares about the world it’s living in. We weren’t able to track any official account on Twitter but this might be due to the fact that the company is still considering whether it should engage on this channel.

Conclusion

Major players in the beauty industry have realized the importance of their presence on social media. Although, none of the brands mentioned above has revolutionized social media like Starbucks did, we can’t have anything but respect for brands that try to understand this new field, and develop methods of engaging with consumers.

There’s a saying that ¨beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder¨, and how companies decide to present their “beauties” on social media has become a matter of shape, not one of existence. Beauty companies definitely must have a presence on social media, but the way they decide to establish one depends on a whole process described by us in previous articles.