Are you looking for tips and strategies for marketing beauty products? A little while ago we reached out to our community of entrepreneurs and asked them to share their best tip on marketing beauty products and getting products into stores. Here are their best tips and strategies for getting your bath & beauty product line out there!
9 Tips for Marketing Beauty Products
1. Support others
Maintain relationships with a few key people who can help you inexpensively promote your business. (i.e., bloggers, beauty editors, friends, and family) Return the favor to them by also promoting their business and efforts. Meet, greet, seek and find your audience. Exhibiting at trade shows and conferences help your potential customer get to know you and your business. Help someone else. You will attract aspiring entrepreneurs, people who are trying to reach your level of success. Be a mentor to them and help them along the way however you can. By helping others you help yourself. – Thanks to don Monique Joyce of Kevin's Closet, LLC
2. Offer testers and samples
The most important factor in a customer’s decision to buy a bath and body care item is fragrance. So you need to make sure it is possible for the customer to smell the product. For bar soaps, this just means a permeable package, but for liquids, it means that you have to be willing to supply product testers. – Thanks to Joe Marks of Baudelaire
3. Get your products into your customers' hands
Bath and body products are hard to sell online because people can't smell it first. I like to gift my items to my daughter's teachers, coaches, etc. I also give my products to friends and family for birthday gifts. At craft shows, I have samples out for customers to try and I ask them what types of scents they're looking for and “hand them” the product to smell. I've found that they're more likely to buy if you actually hand it to them rather than tell them they can feel free to sniff. For the customers that I do have online, I always send them a sample of something else that I think they might like based on what they bought. I also occasionally ask for testers for my new products and mail out samples for them to provide feedback on. – Thanks to Angie Barrett of Angie's Suds ‘N Such
4. Make your products unique and eye-catching
Having an overall cohesive brand so that they stand out among all the other products you are competing with on store shelves and online. Pointing out the uniqueness of the products on the packaging is equally important. For instance, some of our products are vegan and all are vegetarian so we say that on every box, label, and catalog. – Thanks to Racheal Kash of Lulu Blossom
5. Connect Business to Personal
When I started marketing beauty products for the first time online, I started with budget-friendly social media outlets to spread the word. The key is to be patient and ride the wave. When you first put your products out to the public and you don't get sales or much of a response the first few days it is easy to have a crisis of confidence. But you have to be patient and focus. When you market your products, what you are asking people to do is change, do something different, spend your hard-earned money on THIS instead of what you normally spend it on. It takes time to convince people to try something new. But if you put the time and effort into properly branding and marketing your first products then your second push won't be as difficult because you would have already established your core following and customer base. Stick with it and stay focused. – Thanks to Jovan C. Speller of WildRoots, LLC
6. Be flexible and try different things
We sell online and in our Studio and we take our show on the road to several higher-end events such as Country Living Fairs and art shows. I speak at the Country Living events, so we garner media, online, and local attention associated with that. We also are adding wholesale venues this year. Over the past twelve years that we have been in business, the marketing ideas that stand out are knowing what our customers want, and being flexible enough to take that knowledge and use it across all venues of sales. For example, having a high-quality product isn’t enough – people want to know where the ingredients come from, how it is made, how to use it, etc., and they are not afraid to ask questions. Having a story connected to the product – either the back story of the business or a story about individual products makes the consumer feel part of the creative process and draws them in to try other items. – Thanks to Ann Marie Craig of Century Farmhouse Handcrafted Artisan Soaps
7. Find a niche
The Bath & body category is a crowded space with many brands competing for a share of a consumer's attention. The brand needs to find a niche that makes it stand out and is significant to the target customer and solves a problem for the consumer. Problem/solution is the key to winning in this space. It could be a unique ingredient, better value or ease of use. Consumers are overwhelmed with messages so a brand's unique message needs to break through this clutter and must be communicated very quickly and succinctly. The message needs to capture a consumers attention so they want to learn more about the brand. For example, with 800razors.com, we understand that men and women want a great shave, they are just tired of overpaying to get that great shave and they are tired of the hassle of buying razors and blades at retail. We provide the Best razor for the best shave at the best price. Guaranteed. Quick, simple and easy to understand what we do. Once they learn more, they find that our blades are made in the USA and are just as high quality as the major brands, unlike our competitors who use cheap imports. This trust point of quality, along with our guarantee, gives them a worry-free incentive to try our product and stay with us as a customer. – Thanks to Philip Masiello of 800razors.com
8. Surround yourself with people who believe in you
When marketing beauty products and selling bath and body products, or any product for that matter, it is important to surround yourself with people that believe in your dreams and encourage you to achieve them. Surround yourself with people who have done, are doing, and will do big things and then you will, in turn, do the same. – Thanks to Shawn Childers of Alonus Fitness Wear
9. Don't rush
Don't rush when it comes to branding your product – closely survey the competition and think carefully about the messages you want to convey to your target audience. What sets your product apart, makes it better? Work with a professional designer to get a unique, high-quality design. On a tight budget or simply don't know where to begin in finding and working with a graphic designer? Try a crowdsourced graphic design marketplace like 99designs.com – Thanks to Lauren Gard of 99designs
Do you have any tips you'd like to share? If so, leave a comment below with your best tip for marketing beauty products.
Great article, thank you. Marketing beauty and skin care products can be an overwhelming task, but it doesn’t have to be. There is lots of information on how to market beauty products and sell them. Beauty consumers are some of the most educated customers. Therefore, utilizing content marketing campaigns drastically increases chances of success. We have been working with beauty brands for over 10 years now. Helping them grow and gain market share. We have also helped many entrepreneurs start brands. At Illumination Consulting we believe that even the smallest budget and brand can be very effective with their efforts. Many costly mistakes and pitfalls can be avoided when working with consultants who have industry experience.
Hello thank you so much for this information, I am new to marketing and I am so eager to learn. What would be my next step with your consulting firm?
Did you ever get this up and running?
This is all great tips! I’ve been doing this for 11 years. and always something new to learn. thank you!
These are very excellent tips! I recently started selling my products online and having a hard time getting anyone to buy. I make products from African shea butter with quality ingredients. My prices are unbeatable. Different sizes & over 20 different scents to choose from. But it has been one week with not a single purchase. Trying to figure out different perspectives on what I may or may not be doing wrong. I appreciate your help!
Totally agree with Ophelie on this one! It will take a lot longer than one week to build your biz… Keep going and you’ll start seeing sales soon!
Hi Ashley, I too have beauty brand and an online business, but no online sales as yet. Luckily I have a small client base that I sell to and I find market stalls quite good, as long as the people at the market fit your niche.
One week?? Oh girl, it’s gonna take a lot longer than that! Starting your own business takes patience – LOTS of patience. Most don’t turn a profit for at LEAST the first year. And the bath and body market is super saturated right now – with all the recipes on Pinterest, etc. everyone and their mother is making their own lotions, body butter, lotion bars, soap, etc. So it is very difficult to get attention for your products when there are thousands and thousands of others out there. I know because I make them too. You have to spend a LOT of time on marketing, especially on social media, and work constantly to get your product in front of as many eyes as possible. You can’t just list your stuff on Etsy and leave it alone. Trust me, I’ve done it! :p
As owner of body be silk an organic bath and body line, I realize that just being honest and up front with potential customers, is key. Thinking outside tbd box, such as giving pamper parties, and sample giveaways, is important.
These are really wonderful tips. I have started selling my Argan oil as first beauty product through facebook and twitter marketing. I recommend gather insights via giveaways to potential users. and spread word of mouth through social media channels.
Nice article …it is very helpful for me
Nice article and good tips. I have imported beauty products from different countries and using every marketing channel. There are some thing I offer to the customer such as 30 days return facility if the product is defective or cash delivery if they are afraid of using credit cards. Its little effort but sometimes very effective.
Great Article! we are starting our new business in Montreal as well. Île de beauté cosmetics we are distributing a German brand – called Rosa Graf. We will definitely will follow the advices of everyone. above
I am just starting out with a great anti aging skin care product, I look forward to all the advice I can get. Looking forward to being part of the facebook group and learning, a lot! My website will be live June 1st.
This is great advice and i will definitely work a lot harder on my social media outlets. I have had my own skin care line (Lucy May Natural Skin Care) for around a year now and in that time realised how saturated this market really is.
Great read! I have been working on Waterroots Organic Skin & Hair Care in Australia for a few years and it is hard work! But we love it!
Great article! I agree, If you cant afford to have a booth at a trade show then walk around and mingle. You can make great connections when at a trade show.
Thank you for all the helpful marketing tips. I launched my company, A Neet Look ~ Majestic Beauty & Skin Care Sept. 2016 (aneetlook.com). I have a lot of experience branding & marketing on social media platforms but, have had a slow start on building sales. We have all natural ingredients & most are mineral based with an excellent line of age defying, acne & sensitivities skin care treatments. The back story of A Neet Look’s beginnings (named after my Mom, Anita (Neet) is very different & special way for me with her gone as we both had a dream to provide quality, affordable skin care & beauty products. My goal is to educate people on the long term benefits of good skin care & offer specialty treatments for young & nature skin. A Neet Look’s skin care products are fantastic but, I need more people to try them & see the results themselves- open to ideas (^_^)
All that said being on a tight budget I need to find a more effective way to drive sales.
Appreciate everyone’s tips here great article & comments (^_^)
Have you tried partnering up with beauty influencers on social media by sending them free product in trade for a product review?
Thank you!! I have a skin care line called Dolphin’s Kick. I’m a swimmer and started swimming at 40. I couldn’t find anything to combat chlorine. So got excited to make it and never realized how hard it would be. I refuse to give up!! So it was great to hear all the suggestions.
Thank you for all the tips. I will use all tips to help my business. You know I just started to sell the organic soap. And It’s kind of hard to push the customers to believe in the product. And I will do my best.
I agree that getting your beauty product in the hands of your customer will help. I’ve heard that people are six times more likely to make a purchase after they’ve had physical contact with it. If you’ve got a booth or something at a tradeshow, it might pay off to hire event models to promote what you’re selling.
I started my business about 3 years ago. I used social media extensively in the beginning. In my experience it’s been more of a brand builder than a sales generator. What worked very well for me is above the line platforms, like newspapers. Choose a targeted paper that is read by your target audience. Another important requirement is distribution. Get the product into small independent stores and ensure you have the infrastructure to supply that base.
Great insight . Just starting out on a cosmetic business and feeling overwhelmed. Stumbled upon this site and I’m like what a relief. The tips are excellent and will start using them now
These suggestions are fantastic. I have just launched my first e-commerce site for my organic skin care range. I also attend local markets in my area which is currently paying the bills. Social media is a great tool for introducing your product/s. I have a couple of small boutique business owners interested in stocking my products. Just use your imagination and keep up to date with demand.
talk to me in 3 plus years….
I just recently launched my martial and organic skincare line. I’ll be doing an expo in about a week for which I’ve made A TON of samples to hand out. I was asking myself if maybe I’ve gone overboard, but was happy to see that in on the right track so far. Thanks so much for all the great advice!
Great article!
Nice and informative article. Thanks for sharing the information with us. Learned a lot of things.
I am about to sell my homemade products on a market stall..how to I keep organic creams from melting..Thanks.
Colleen.
I am about to launch a new beauty product on the market and this article has helped a lot. I will definitely use these tips and also be on the look out for more articles and i will also give an update of my progress in a years time. Thanks a lot
I’m getting ready to launch a natural skincare line and this article has helped alot
Hi, I am a small business owner of She Natural Beauty. First thanks for those tips.
As a business owner please be honest with your clients, it is so easy to lose customers and clients over dishonesty.