Jan 8, 2021
The Beauty Industry: How to Make Sales Daily
The beauty industry is a dense jungle full of similar brands. Learn how to make sales and be a successful beautypreneur.
Learning how to make sales starts with reaching your target audience. Imagine being stuck in the middle of the ocean on a boat. While you have the tools necessary to escape the situation, no one taught you how to sail. Think of the ocean as the beauty industry.
Nobody ever taught you how to run a business. As a new entrepreneur, there is a lot to learn. My goal is to give you the resources upfront with no fluff. I am not here to beat around the bush. I am here to help you make decisions for the growth of your business.
Do you fit the description? Awesome, let’s start learning!
What Makes Your Target Audience Different From the Next Beauty Business’s?
Here is a mistake that lots of new businesses make. They study a business like theirs and copy their tactics. They rely on others’ goals instead of setting their own.
There are a few reasons why this will not work.
Reason #1:
The other business is at a different stage of growth. Compared to yours, they have been around for a few years. They already have a set of strategies that work for them.
You do not want to copy them because you are on two different levels. Also, you have yet to know your audience. You do not know what their preferences are, and making assumptions is risky.
As an entrepreneur, wasting time is not the right move. Spending your resources on dead-end strategies is a good way to kill your business.
Reason #2:
The other beauty business might have more money to spend. If they turn a profit, then a portion goes toward reinvesting. Brand new entrepreneurs do not have as much money to spend on marketing, and some strategies can backfire quickly.
Reason #3:
Originality shines above everything. The beauty industry is huge. Businesses tend to steal tactics from each other, and audiences notice that. It is much better to be a trendsetter than another generic beauty brand.
Even If You Sell the Same Product, Your Audience Will Be Different.
Why does a potential customer choose your cosmetics brand over another?
Brands differ from other businesses in the same industry. They have calling cards, special marks, and things that make them unique. The stress of being a forward trendsetter starts here.
Having a strong brand name gives you a competitive edge compared to others. While I am an advocate for community over competition, you do have to compete with others. Selling the same products is the main example, but there are ways to overcome direct competitors.
Here are a few reasons why your audience picks you over others:
- They trust you.
- You present more information than another beauty brand.
- They can afford your prices.*
- You post in the right place at the right time.
- You listen to your audience’s pain points and give solutions.
- Your audience prefers faster shipping or faster results.
* Competitive pricing is a slippery slope! “Affordable” should not be your only calling card. Combine “affordable” with other strategies to get the most out of competitive pricing.
What Is the Biggest Market in the Cosmetics Industry?
In 2019, the beauty industry reached over $530 billion in yearly revenue. By the year 2026, analysts are estimating that it will reach over $600 billion. While these are only estimates, the upward trend holds true in the cosmetics market.
For new business owners, this is excellent news. That means that there is still room for you to make your mark. No, it is not too late to open your cosmetics business, and yes, you still have time to create a name for yourself.
That being said, skincare is a large part of the cosmetics market. A large percentage of sales come from that area, and each corner in that market is filling quickly. Many consumers still prefer all-natural and non-toxic skincare brands. As more customers become eco-conscious, it is important to appeal to their needs.
What does that mean?
Skincare brands specifically need to stand out. They have a lot of competition to overcome, and it’s essential to set yourself apart from the crowd. There is still plenty of room too!
Makeup is another huge part of the market. About 10% of makeup enthusiasts create 90% of the sales revenue. They are big spenders and usually include collectors and makeup artists. Targeting them gets very specific, as they usually prefer overhauls, tutorials, and long-form video content.
Unlike online brands, Hair salons are location specific. Setting a hair salon up takes a lot more than an online presence. You need to be in a high-traffic area with lots of hair enthusiasts. You have to consider supply and demand, demographics, the growing population, and the average income of the area.
I could talk about specific markets in the beauty industry all day! There are 1001 sources of information for them. I hope that I have inspired you to do some of your research in your specific market.
Back to Target Audiences: What Are Some Other Ways to Reach Them?
When I research my clients’ target audiences, I use statistics first and foremost. They tell you everything you need to know to start your journey. After that, it is all a matter of trial and error.
If you know your audience, you know whether you should post in a video format, podcast, or social media post. You will know if they prefer shorter or longer descriptions, want to be entertained or want advice. They will be online at certain times, and you will know the best time to post. All of those things and more are super important for reaching them!
The cosmetics market attracts people of all shapes and sizes. Each of them has preferences, and it is your job to figure them out. Once you understand their interests, you are on the right track.
Here are some resources to start off strongly. I use all of these to get insight for my clients in the beauty industry:
- Projected Revenue for the Beauty Industry in 2020.
- Market Overview, Leading Brands, and Online Trends.
- Consumer Spending, Growth, Natural Ingredients, etc.
- An Overview of Important Statistics.
After You Familiarize Yourself With the Statistics, It Is All About Trial and Error.
Your followers are unique. Though they fit into statistics, each is an individual with their wants, needs, and preferences. Statistics can only take you so far.
Once you pass that stage, start experimenting with your content. You may find something new that industry leaders missed.
Here are a few ways to know your followers better:
- Polling
- Live Streams
- Q&A Events
- Measuring Insights (Impressions, Clicks, Comments, Likes)
- Measuring Behavior
- Surveys
Different Mediums to Present to Your Followers
Social media is popular, and as a result, we have plenty of options. Choosing between video content and text content is as simple as signing up with a website. With up and coming sites such as Cloudnet, social media is about to undergo another transformation.
So, what exactly do you want from each post? Are you looking for an engaged audience that hangs on your every word? Will you be posting in quick succession? How much time in your day do you have to post content?
Tips and tricks for your perfect social media experience:
- Tutorials do well on YouTube (longer videos) and TikTok (shorter videos).
- TikTok is great for starting a quick, new trend.
- YouTube takes longer to grow, but you can open another income stream with it (ad revenue).
- Posting quality content daily on Instagram is enough to attract customers.
- Most online buyers in the cosmetics market hang out on Instagram.
- Facebook’s beauty community is smaller, but the size of the website makes up for it.
- Blogging platforms give you another stream of income (ad revenue, sponsorships, etc.).
- Twitter is great for quick, consistent posts throughout the day.
- You can find trending topics on Twitter with a few clicks.
That seems like a lot of information, and it is! When you break it down piece-by-piece, you can see where I’m going with it. You should consider your followers’ preferences and your skills.
We do not have unlimited time to figure things out. There simply are not enough hours in the day. It is vital to use a social media platform that works for you as much as you work for it.
For example, I have never understood Twitter. It is like a different language to me. I have never found a corner of Twitter that works for me, and it is not my first instinct to pull out my phone to Tweet about something.
However, I love Instagram. I was intimidated by the need to post quality content 24/7, but the platform is worth it. I love the community that I built, and posting there is like second nature. My customers hang out in those areas, and it is easy to reach them.
Do you see what I mean? Make social media work for you. If you are not comfortable, consider switching platforms.
Once You Make Your Mark, Do You Know How to Make Sales?
All in all, my point is this:
Learning how to make sales starts with your target audience. There should be a certain point in time where potential customers consistently approach you. You should have a steady flow of visitors to your online store.
When you reach your target audience, this happens naturally. People click on your website, follow you, engage with your posts, and try to contact you. To get consistency, you need to reach the kind of people who engage and buy from you.
Do you keep getting these types of people in your inbox? The problem is that you are not reaching the right people. Go back over your content, and see what went wrong.
They are not your ideal customer if…
- You are out of their budget range.
- Your products do not solve their problems.
- They leave negative reviews or comments. (Welcome criticism, though.)
- They receive no benefit from your product.
- They do not understand what you offer.
How to Turn Leads Into Customers
Thank you for reading!
My name is Destiny. I create content like this to help beauty businesses understand the industry. It’s a tough world for entrepreneurs, and I’m here to ease the workload a bit.
I write content for people without the time or skills to do so themselves. Blogging about your products and business increases sales and retention. If you need a content writer, I’m only a few clicks away.
Let’s stay in touch!
