Social Media Marketing

INTRODUCTION
Within the last seven years there has been exponential growth within the cosmetics
industry. In 2017 the global beauty market was said to have brought in $445 Billion in
revenue according to Forbes. Social media had contributed largely to this expansion
due to consumers accessibility to product reviews posted by influencers they trust. This
report was designed to analyze the direct and indirect effect on business from sending
out PR packages of new products prior to launch to beauty influencers with large social
media platforms. Specifically looking to answer the questions:
● Will implementing this change cause significant increase in sales among
consumers globally?
● Will influencers generate more brand/product knowledge amongst their
followers? And if so, will it have a positive or negative impact on the brand's
reputation/sales?
BACKGROUND
Social Media
With advancements in technologies there has been a significant shift in societies
preferred method of communicating and accessing entertainment. More people than
ever are streaming content directly to their mobile devices through apps and websites
such as Youtube, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and Twitter. In 2008 Youtube had an
average of eight hours of video content uploaded per minute. Where as today more
than 300 hours of content is being uploaded every minute. On average Youtube has 30
million daily viewers and close to one billion videos watched. Other apps such as
Instagram have about 700 million monthly users and Facebook averages about two
billion monthly users. Due to increased activity among these platforms fewer people are
watching traditional television where ads are being aired. It has become more effective
to reach consumers via social media as compared to print media or cable television.
Advertisements
With over three billion active social media users globally social media sites have
become a vital medium for advertising products and services to potential consumers.
According to Forbes, the average person sees anywhere from 4,000 to 10,000
advertisements every day. With so many ads berading consumers, how as a company
do we set ourselves apart? And how do we reach our target audience? As the
cosmetics industry has grown so has the market for beauty influencers. With more
products ever to review, beauty “gurus” are producing content that has the potential to
generate incredible momentum behind products they speak highly of. Many companies
have made millions dollars off products that have become “cult favorites” due to a
positive reviews from highly influential youtube personalities. One example would be
Tarte Shape Tape which was launched by Tarte Cosmetics in 2016 and quickly gained
recognition among reputable beauty youtubers among the likes of Tati Westbrook,
James Charles, Jeffree Star, and Jaclyn Hill. Among those four youtubers alone they
have a total of 33 million subscribers. Two years after the product launch Tarte Shape
Tape is continuing to sell at the rate of one per every 12 seconds within the U.S.
echCrunch
Figure #1, Source: T
Figure #1 compares the user engagement statistics between eight major social
networking sites. This graph clearly shows that Youtube is bringing in more monthly
engagements than instagram, twitter, and snapchat combined.
Sorvino, C. (2017, May 24). Why The $445 Billion Beauty Industry Is A Gold Mine For Self-Made Women. Retrieved
December 06, 2018, from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/chloesorvino/2017/05/18/self-made-women-wealth-beauty-gold-mine/#fd3451b2a3a5
Dogtiev, A. (2018, June 01). YouTube Revenue and Usage Statistics (2018). Retrieved December 06, 2018, from
http://www.businessofapps.com/data/youtube-statistics/#1
METHODOLOGY
The following methods were used to create this report:
1. Utilized San Diego State Library database to access newspaper articles and
journals
● Sourced an article from Women’s Wear Daily regarding brands who have
partnered with Youtubers in order to gain recognition.
2. Researched statistics using online Business journals
● Incorporated relevant social media statistics from Forbes and Business of Apps
which including two visuals.
3. Sourced news articles that report on shifts in the industry
● I used an NBC news article that followed the attitude shift in consumers
surrounding brands/products when endorsed by beauty influencers.
DISCUSSION AND FINDINGS
Women’s Wear Daily

In Rosemary Feitelberg article for Women’s Wear Daily, “Youtube Influencers get Inside
Track to Dior”, she wrote about the experience of seven fashion youtubers who were
selected by Dior to travel to Paris for Fashion Week. All seven influencers were given
full backstage access at the Dior show. Feitelberg touched on the Youtubers broad
platforms and the global reach Dior was gaining by including a diverse group of
influencers on the trip. The Youtubers filmed vlogs and posted on their social media
accounts during their travels through Europe and gave inside looks to Diors upcoming
collection. The article states “Hailing from Australia, Spain, England and the U.S., the
seven influencers are giving Dior greater international reach. Combined, they have
more than 24 million subscribers around the globe ...The content these creators have
produced has been compelling, in part because it’s genuine, and a great model of what
the future of digital fashion media can look like” (Feitelberg, 2018)
This is an example of a brand who has expanded their reach globally via social media
influencers. Dior experienced heightened recognition and gained momentum behind
their launch due to the attention drawn from the youtubers loyal fanbase. Due to the
level of trust the audience has with their favorite influencer they were more likely to
purchase items based on their recommendation.
NBC News
In Audrey Cleo Yap’s article for NBC News, “ How Digital Influencers are Diversifying
the Multibillion-dollar Beauty Industry,” she features interviews with Youtube influencers
Patrick Simondac (aka Patrick Star) and Patrick Ta who have spearheaded the
movement towards inclusion in cosmetics. Both Star and Ta have brought awareness to
the lack of diversity among shade ranges within cosmetic lines of multiple big name
brands. Star has had a notable brand collaboration with Mac Cosmetics which helped to
diversify the brand and increase sales among Patricks followers and demographics now
included in the shade range. The article states, “Digital platforms like YouTube have
been a particularly welcoming space for content creators of color… With makeup
continuing to dominate sales in the U.S. beauty industry, Simondac and Ta say
inclusion is a necessity in order for brands to continue to be successful” (Yap, 2017).
This article highlights the positive and negative publicity brands gain by being reviewed
by beauty gurus. Patrick Star has helped Mac Cosmetics revamp their product line and
increase sales by emphasizing their diversity and inclusion on his Youtube channel.
Many influencers not only review the formula and performance of products but also the
ethics and beliefs within the company.
CONCLUSION
Major growth in social media has forever changed product advertising. With more
people than ever before streaming content via their mobile devices information is at the
tip of the consumers fingers. Print media and old fashioned TV advertising has gone out
of style and the digital age has completely shifted consumers expectations. Social
media influencers have gained tremendous power within the cosmetics industry due to
their trusting and loyal fan base. Because of social media sites such as
Youtube,Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter information travels faster and is more
accessible than ever. Consumers are learning to shopping smarter due to their ability to
research products before purchasing them. Positive and negative product/brand reviews
are becoming the defining factor whether a product will become a cult classic or
completely flop.

Social Media Marketing

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INTRODUCTION

The following methods were used to create this report:

DISCUSSION AND FINDINGS

Women’s Wear Daily

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