Changes are continually happening. This challenging time, powered by COVID-19, perhaps made things a bit quicker, but it’s the inevitable truth that all industries change the way they do business through time. As far as the health and beauty industries are concerned, they have been regarded as two of the fastest-growing industries at the moment, with the expectation that they will increase by 62% by the year 2024. It is also crucial to mention here that these two businesses (often regarded as one industry) grew a great deal because of online presence – social media became an essential platform on which such products are advertised. But just like any other industry, the way we sell health and beauty products also changes. For example, it’s important to note that the makeup industry experienced losses in the last year, mostly because most of its clients shifted to skincare instead. So, what are the things that a health or beauty business should know? What tips or tricks should they have up their sleeve to succeed, and how easy is it to be the next best health and beauty business today?

Following social trends

One of the biggest challenges of most businesses nowadays is following the social trends that can either make or break your name and brand. It’s 2020; all people have access to the Internet, and paying attention to the well-being of our own bodies and the planet as well is of the utmost importance. This is why every single company that creates products should pay attention to being sustainable and very transparent. Raising awareness on the usage of plastic, animal testing, water pollution, and worker exploitation has never been more critical, and unless a business takes this seriously, they can quickly lose a significant portion of their customers. Take an example from L’Oreal, for example. Even though they state they have not been testing their products on animals in the last period of time, they are hardly regarded as cruelty-free. Why? Because they sell to China, and China is one of the countries that requires imported cosmetics to be tested. So, it’s essential to look at the bigger picture. Any decision that you make as a business can have consequences, so you have to think carefully and in advance, and that’s what makes it challenging. “Green cosmetics” (cosmetics produced using environmentally-friendly formulations, production practices, or packaging methods) is enormous at the moment. It will only grow in the future, so if you’re running a health and beauty business, make sure you familiarize yourself with sustainable and green practices.

Paying attention to online presence

Did you know that half of the growth of a health and beauty business comes from online sales? As you already know, social media is one of the most important advertising platforms at the moment, and this is the case with any industry. However, an online presence is mandatory when talking about the fashion, health, and beauty industry. Not only that, but a business really needs to make sure that they’re giving their customers the right customer experience. Generations and times change. Even though plenty of people liked shopping in physical stores and getting the full shopping experience with talking to the clerk and browsing around, newer generations grade your business and perceive your brand based on the experience they get from you online. This is why it’s essential to set an online store where you will sell your products, but also have a user-friendly page where customers can read your reviews, see other products they might find interesting and detailed information on the product (this is where you have to be very transparent). Having proper communication with your potential buyers on your website and social media is one of the most important tactics you should incorporate. Word of mouth is incredibly important, and this is encouraged by being friendly and helpful to everyone.

Handling shopping cart abandonment

We already talked about this in one of our previous posts, but it won’t hurt to remind ourselves that most cart abandonments occur due to a complicated, lengthy and tiresome checkout process. If you want an easy checkout process, you want it to be simple, short, easy to understand, and quick. So how can you do this in the best possible way?

• First of all, you can narrow down your lengthy and long checkout steps. Instead, ask your buyers to fill out only a single form with just a few details that you will need for the shipment.
• Avoid any hidden costs. People like everything to be transparent, and it won’t do your business any good if your buyer has to pay any additional fees. If, on the other hand, there are any additional costs that your buyer has to pay, make sure to state that beforehand so that everyone is clear.
• Make sure to implement alternative payment options. Plenty of people worldwide have their own preferred method of payment. If you want to improve their customer experience and give everyone equal shopping options, implement the most popular payment methods for your own industry and the countries where you want to tap into.
• The navigation during the checkout phase matters a lot as well. One of the buyers’ pet peeves is when they have to return to the previous page to correct something, and they either cannot find their way or all their information gets lost in the process. Make this easy and straightforward.

Using the perks of search engines

It’s also essential to understand the importance of search engines. Even though customers will come to your store (either physical or online) because of different reviews, advertisements, or recommendations, you will attract a lot more traffic if you play by the search engines’ rules. So, what are the things that you should know? Apart from Google being the first place people start when they want to find something new to buy, YouTube is also a fantastic search engine for this industry. This is closely related to the online presence that we have discussed – if you want people to know more about your products, make sure you place them on YouTube. A great thing to do here is to use influencers’ power – they are huge on Youtube, and thousands and thousands of young people worldwide search for beauty products on YouTube while watching their favorite influencers reviewing them. Apart from that tool (which is a must in this day and age and will only be even more important in the years to come), you can also learn how to place ads on Google, what you can do for your website to be on the first page of Google and how to implement different keywords that will attract customers onto your website.

Understanding the importance of skincare

As already mentioned, skincare is slowly taking the spot of makeup for the most purchased beauty products. The new generations that slowly start gaining financial independence understand the importance of keeping our bodies healthy, so it’s no wonder that many of them decide to spend more money on proper skincare than on actual makeup. Makeup, of course, has its clientele and will always be a popular thing to produce and sell, but if your business has no skincare products, now it’s time to reconsider that. Of course, pay attention to keeping your skincare products sustainable.

COVID-19-influenced issues

Suffice it to say that Coronavirus as an illness and all the precautions that we take to deal with it affect the way we conduct business. The health and beauty industry is no different; completely different products are on the “wished items” list. Of course, among the products on top of that list are soaps, hand sanitizers, and disinfectants. But apart from the fact that some products are in higher demand than ever, it’s important to note how COVID-19 affects and will continue to affect this business. First and foremost, bear in mind that indie brands will be more popular than ever. Now that we live in a world where enterprises go bankrupt more than ever, more and more people will start focusing on independent beauty brands to make them as connected to the public as possible. Apart from that, online presence has never been more critical, but this time, the stakes are even higher. That is why plenty of brands are encouraged to either organize or attend some of the online events. Ranging from seminars, presentations, and different kinds of training, now it’s the time to differentiate your business from the rest and host an online event that will make your brand more visible and help your website reach more traffic.

It is always beneficial to know about the challenges your industry experiences, whether you have them or not. This will only help your brand – it will help you expand it, think outside of the box, think in advance, and thus eliminate any threats that might be coming your way. It’s not enough that we are all witnessing a huge technological revolution in all industries, we’re also in the middle of the pandemic that will only make things worse. So think ahead!