Recently, LTK hosted a webinar to share findings from our Summer 2022 studies that surveyed 1,000+ participants about beauty trends. Review the insights, then watch the webinar playback to learn more!

Creator Commerce™ is a subset of e-commerce in which content creators, influencers, and bloggers share, promote, and sell their favorite products to their followers. It has become one of the most popular and successful forms of e-commerce marketing. 

For beauty brands, Creator Commerce™ has proven to be particularly successful. Across generations, beauty products are incredibly popular, and more and more beauty brands are partnering with creators to drive growth and increase customer loyalty through proven strategies.

In this article, you’ll learn about:

• The latest trends in beauty influencer content
• Best practices for beauty brands looking for influencers
• How to maximize your influencer marketing strategy

Let’s dive in! 

The Latest Beauty Trends in Creator Commerce™

During the summer of 2022, we conducted multiple studies by surveying 1,000+ participants in order to understand the latest consumer shopping trends within different categories and generations. Among our many findings, a few beauty industry trends stood out to us: 

• Among the general population, beauty products are the No. 1 shopper splurge category.
• Millennials and Gen Z shop online for beauty products more frequently than the general population.

These trends suggest that beauty brands need to be where current and future customers want to buy. And many are making it happen by leveraging social media influencers, with Instagram offering the largest audience for beauty influencers in the U.S.

Not only can creators help brands promote their products, but they can also help those brands and retailers predict and create beauty trends.

Here are the trends beauty brands and influencers are following: 

1. Short-Form Video Content 

Short-form content, such as on TikTok, Instagram Reels, and quick clips on YouTube, is increasingly becoming a primary channel for marketing beauty products. 

Not only do customers across platforms respond more to videos, but certain platforms such as Instagram also now prioritize video in the algorithm as they compete with TikTok, a video-based platform. 

2. Less Photoshop and Editing 

One of the most prevalent trends is in embracing a more “real” look. In other words, after receiving pushback against over-processed images, the beauty industry now values and celebrates a more authentic look in its marketing campaigns. 

Although most brands have not abandoned Photoshop outright, retouching is minimal. It’s no longer uncommon to see scars, body hair, stretch marks, and natural-looking bodies in today’s brand imagery. 

3. More Authenticity 

The trend toward more authenticity isn’t just about the look — it’s about how the creator lives.

Beauty influencers are shifting away from the traditional linear approach to their personal brands. They talk about their day-to-day life and the products that make it better. They bring consumers directly into their homes. They share what they eat, their nighttime routines, and the books they are reading.

4. More Diversity

Maybe the most important marketing trend in the beauty industry is an increase in diversity of models and products for different skin tones and hair textures to meet the needs of the modern consumer. 

In addition to more inclusive products, brands are also marketing more inclusive imagery with greater emphasis on diversity in race, gender, body type, culture, and lifestyle. 

5. Customizable Beauty Products/Regimens

Clear, specific personalization is at the heart of any good marketing campaign, and more influencers are showcasing products created specifically to meet customer needs. 

By customizing beauty products, such as placing the customer’s name on the product or utilizing clever language in their branding, brands can tap into a buyer’s sense of individuality. 

Best Practices for Beauty Brands Looking for Influencers

Now that we have a strong understanding of current beauty industry trends, let’s talk a bit about what to look for in an influencer. 

Focus on more than just an influencer’s follower count.

Someone with tens or hundreds of thousands of followers will likely catch your eye, but that follower count doesn’t necessarily mean they’re able to promote products well. Be sure to see if they align with your brand and can put up the numbers. 

Leverage audience insights and historical performance data.

To make sure you’re partnering with an influencer who will be able to drive revenue for you, use an influencer marketing platform that provides information to target the best influencers to work with based on audience insights and historical performance data.

Partner with influencers who can speak to Gen Z.

The youngest generation of buyers will provide you with the longest-term revenue if you can market well to them. The influencer you work with should know everything from where they buy to where they consume content to what they value in a brand.

Work with influencers with diverse backgrounds.

As we mentioned in the previous section, working with influencers with diverse backgrounds will help you reach the modern buyer. 

Work with influencers who are knowledgeable about social media platforms.

Earlier we mentioned the importance of video content, which is a current trend in social media marketing. With new trends and social platforms emerging so often, it’s important to work with influencers who know how to take advantage of new trends, not ones who stick with what they know. 

Drive Growth, Increase Customer Loyalty with LTK

Ready to learn more about current trends and strategies needed to react positively to those trends? Check out our Ultimate Guide to Building Beauty Brands with Influencer Marketing and  watch our “Beauty Trends in Creator Commerce™” webinar!

To find top-performing Creators, manage end-to-end campaigns, boost reach, and track the success of your influencer marketing campaigns, you’ll need a platform that enables brands to manage all of this in a single space. LTK’s full-service to self-service influencer marketing platform and five-star shopping app with millions of shoppers grow influence and sales for 5k+ brands of all sizes.