Internet Consumers Profitable for Cosmetics Industry
If you follow this blog you will realize I touched on women consumers shopping online quite often sometime back, yes, they are on the rise.
Here is a report to confirm my prediction was correct.
Who are the biggest shoppers for Cosmetics? Women. Yes, you are right too, more and more men are buying cosmetics product by bulk. 
) Another market to pay attention to.
New market research has found that female beauty consumers are now using the Internet more than the average person, and suggests cosmetic brands should follow three simple steps in order to capitalize on this growing trend.
The report ‘Marketing Beauty With The Internet Beast’, by Mary Beth Kemp of Forrester, shows how the average beauty consumer is now favouring online media portals as the way to view product descriptions for beauty and cosmetic products as opposed to more traditional media.
And with just under half of those browsers taking the step from merely ‘window shopping’ to buying, this news will no doubt be encourage cosmetic manufacturers to step up internet campaigns.
In order to benefit from the increased usage the study encourages the manufacturers to embrace the trend by, advertising and selling online, keeping in regular relationship driven contact with consumers, and to try ‘new’ moves to add value to products.
With 42 per cent of internet beauty buyers allegedly sharing and telling friends about products discovered, the ‘word of mouth’ marketing tool is key to the increased sales of cosmetic products.
The study highlights that in order to reach these particular consumers, brands must become aware that advertising and selling online clearly works, stating that ‘fashion conscious consumers expect to see ‘their’ brands present when they are on the Internet, and welcome the communication.
This is possibly due to the fact that beauty consumers are considered to be commercially aware, and are said to receive more commercial emails and newsletters than the average.
Indeed, these emails are the basis to building a beneficial relationship between the consumer and brand, with up-to-date exclusive news being an enticing content offer for fashion fans.
Enticed by promotional tools more commonly found on Internet sites, such as free product samples and product coupons, 46 per cent of female consumers are apparently more likely to purchase products than if they had they seen the same advertisement in a print publication.
With cosmetic and beauty products being of such significance on the internet, coming in as third behind books and clothing as the most common products researched and bought online in the last three months, it seems that a personal relationship is the key to successful marketing.
The study advises manufacturers to ‘get to know the online consumer’ by trying new concepts to add value to products and ‘initiating a conversation’.
For example collaborative and interactive decision tools that allow the consumer to relate personally to the site, such as Maybelline’s initiative to allow buyers to upload a photo so they can test the cosmetics.
Many cosmetic giants have already altered their marketing strategies accordingly to captilize on these beneficial browsers, with companies such as CoverGirl from Procter and Gamble offering online chats with beauty consultants.
However, manufacturers are now being advised that, to take their brands further, they need to ‘deepen the dialogue’ and to profit from the female consumers willingness to communicate.
Virtual cosmetic wardrobes are mooted as the way forward, suggesting that they would allow women to ‘try on make up and share’, before ultimately buying the cosmetics brand.
Article Source:
http://www.cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/news/ng.asp?n=75732-procter-internet
