Despite concerns about inflation and uncertainty in most global markets, the beauty industry keeps growing. In 2023, global beauty market retail sales grew to $446 billion, up 10% from 2022. While these numbers are moving in the right direction, much of the growth was attributable to price increases rather than volume gains. With inflation stabilising in many major markets, the beauty industry is forecasted to reach $590 billion by 2028, with an annual growth rate of 6%. eCommerce beauty sales are projected to account for 26% of the total worldwide market by 2027.
While online sales growth continues to grow, in-store sales made a comeback in 2023. Specialty beauty retailers became a destination for discovery and in-store beauty services and grew 14% in 2023. These open-concept stores, favoured by younger consumers, allow shoppers to test and compare products without having to interact with store associates. Many of these specialty retailers lean into the power of social influence and use trending insights to help merchandise the in-store experience.
The beauty industry is not only growing in sales – but the number of new beauty brands and products on the market seems to be growing by the minute. From new must-have products from established brands to the latest beauty phenomenon and celebrity launches, there is never a dull moment in the beauty category. Have you been to a Boots store lately or shopped on debenhams.com? Both offer great shopping experiences, but the sheer volume of choice can be overwhelming. Looking for a new mascara? On boots.com, you have a whopping 380 items to choose from. Need a new foundation? You’re in luck; debenhams.com has a selection of 1231 different kinds. To stay competitive in such a high-growth, high-volume market, retailers must deliver a frictionless, customer-centric shopping experience centred around product discoverability, ease and trust. For the in-store experience, it pays off to invest in continuous education and digital clienteling tools that empower frontline staff to provide the best shopping experience possible. But how do you replicate the same high-touch experience in online shopping?
How the makeup and beauty eCommerce experience has improved to date
From advanced search and navigation to AI-assisted guides and augmented reality, the way we shop for beauty products online has changed significantly over the past years. Online beauty shoppers often need guidance, and that is harder to provide when they cannot just grab the nearest sales assistant for advice or physically try on a product. Smart retailers invest in new technologies to bridge the gap between the physical and digital, helping shoppers discover new products and make more confident purchase decisions. Here are just a few examples:
- Faceted navigation and advanced search functionality
Search and navigation are functional elements that help shoppers navigate through large product catalogs have become a standard in eCommerce today. Most retailers and brands in the beauty category have implemented more advanced functionality to help shoppers narrow down product choice such as faceted navigation and advanced search, including image search.
- Live chats, chatbots, and conversational commerce
These digital tools connect shoppers to experts (or artificial experts) who can offer personalised recommendations and provide instant answers to product-related questions, helping shoppers find the right beauty products suited to their needs. These tools boost customer satisfaction and help shoppers make more informed purchase decisions while fostering loyalty through 1:1 interactions.
- Augmented Reality and guided selling
Augmented Reality (AR) tools that provide shoppers an opportunity to try on cosmetics products virtually have become very popular among brands and consumers. Some beauty retailers leverage augmented reality to enable shoppers to try on new products, while others have introduced guided selling tools that cleverly help shoppers discover products through a series of questions or prompts.
How leveraging social proof can increase shopper confidence in beauty purchases
Guiding shoppers through advanced search, AI, AR and expert help is not enough, though. Social influence has such a significant impact on how we shop and what we buy that retailers shouldn’t overlook the power of social proof. Social proof works on the theory that individuals are more likely to make a decision – or, in our case, purchase – if they can see others doing the same.
But how can this be applied to the online beauty shopping experience? Social proof messaging collects and displays retail-time trends about what others are buying, what’s popular and what’s selling fast, and when retailers like Boots invest in social proof, browsing a massive selection of mascaras online becomes less daunting.
By leveraging real-time social proof messaging from Taggstar, beauty retailers and brands can deliver a wide range of customisable messages across the entire customer journey. From product listing and product detail page to the basket page, our social proof solution ensures that the most relevant and best-performing messages are delivered at every stage of the customer journey and optimised for any device. By including social proof messaging in display advertising, social media and email marketing, retailers can drive more qualified traffic to their sites while assuring shoppers that they are making the right buying decisions.
How our favorite beauty retailers use social proof messaging
- #1 bestselling foundation
- All time favourite lip gloss in June
- 56 people are looking at this right now
- 121 sold in the last 48 hours
Ratings/review messaging
- 98% rate this 5 stars for coverage
- 214 people rate this 5 stars for best value
- Clean Beauty – 37 sold in the last 24 hrs
- 18 bought Vegan and Cruelty-Free in the last hour
Personalised messaging
- Purchased 71 times since your last visit 4 hours ago
- 24 purchased since you added to your bag
Introducing social proof is a low-risk, quick-to-execute decision. It will have a positive effect on conversion rates and sales, but most importantly, it will help customers at the virtual beauty store buy with confidence.
Read more about how social proof helps beauty retailers and brands improve customer engagement and accelerate growth.
