We are pleased to announce the publication of the second year of Beauty Survey consumer survey data. The 2016 edition tracks results about consumer habits and preferences related to usage, path to purchase, and brands.
Go inside beauty users’ minds, stay ahead of emerging trends, and pinpoint strategic opportunities
Unique to the research industry, the Beauty Survey system offers an unparalleled set of survey results standardized across 20 markets and collected online every year. These results are cross-comparable across markets, as well as among custom consumer segments and from year to year. The Beauty Survey system enables users to further explore the ‘who’ and the ‘why’ behind the market trends illuminated in the Beauty and Personal Care system. With this next level of information about which consumers are doing what in terms of usage and purchasing of different products and brands, as well as what consumers’ motivations, desired product features, and brand perceptions are, Beauty Survey subscribers can better predict how beauty trends will impact respective their hair care, skin care, or colour cosmetics product and brand lines. In turn, strategic plans become stronger and more future-proofed.
Three examples of how users can translate Beauty Survey data into strategic insights are summarized below; for more on each, please see the Beauty Survey 2016: Key Insights and System Update report (extract available here).
1. Targeting Premium Buyers
Premium beauty is an area of strong growth, reaching historic highs of 6% in 2015. In response, beauty companies are offering a widening set of higher-quality and more personalised solutions. At the same time, consumers in most markets still need to justify spending on premium, so their expectations are shifting from status-driven purchases to those that are more result-driven and individualised, especially those in some shade of natural or green. For instance, in China and South Korea over 50% of premium buyers have ‘extensive’ beauty routines, while in countries such as France, Germany and the UK, premium buyers tend to be ‘moderate’ users; products should be tailored to their respective routines. Beyond quality and efficacy, premium buyers’ values are shifting towards ethical credentials and authenticity, as shown by the higher preference for natural or organic formulations, as well as connection with a brand’s story. Looking ahead, premium beauty brands’ most promising new consumers are Generations Y and X, with over half of these consumers expressing premium preferences across all three categories tested (hair, skin, cosmetics).
Breakdown of Beauty Buyers by Type of Hair/Skin/Make-up Routine 2016
Source: Euromonitor International Beauty Survey 2016
2. Refining Naturals' Beauty Strategies
The beauty space is turning green, and smart companies are greening right along with it. Green features are secondary only to efficacy, suitability, and a quality-price balance in consumers’ decision-making for beauty products, and are actually more salient in purchasing deliberations than low prices and strong brand names, according to the 2016 Beauty Survey results. So what are the best shades of green and which products should be greened first? In particular, “all natural” product claims matter to 50% or more of green-minded buyers in all markets, while other green features, like water efficiency, 100% organic, or botanically-derived ingredients, exhibit regional appeal even to buyers who prioritize green product features. When developing new products, it also becomes more important to go green the more the product is associated with concentrated chemicals that are perceived to penetrate and/or permanently change the composition of skin or hair, such as face masks and hair relaxant treatments. Then, to help assess ROI on any future green investments, Beauty Survey explores consumers’ willingness to pay more for green. The results are promising: nearly six in 10 green buyers definitely prefer natural or botanical ingredients, even when it means forgoing lower prices.
Desired Green Product Features 2016
Source: Euromonitor International Beauty Survey 2016
3. Beauty Routines by Generations
Consumer demand is moving from ‘suitable for me’ towards a ‘made for me’ level of customisation. This is achieved through individual product formulations, digital consultation on brands’ and retailers’ websites to find the most suitable product options, and smart devices and applications that provide near constant feedback on efficacy. At the same time, consumers’ expectations for a healthy and extended youthful appearance continue to hold strong across many age groups. The Beauty Survey provides insight into how concerns with ageing and customization are impacting consumers’ purchase decisions, including how users’ beauty routines change over time – from life stage to life stage as well as from the pre-digital to the digital beauty era. Within hair care, for instance, damage repair and anti-dandruff solutions, among the top features sought by younger consumers, stop being the most desired feature for the over 35s, and overall scalp health takes relative priority, including concerns about hair loss among both genders. In skin care, facial cleansers and hand care are amongst the top five most frequently used products by all ages, despite the fact that innovation is not that intense in these spaces. If a health tracker can remind a user to stand up and move or to drink a glass of water, could it also remind a user to reapply hand lotion?
Desired Hair Care Product Features by Generation 2016
Source: Euromonitor International Beauty Survey 2016
Refined and expanded coverage in the 2016 Beauty Survey
The 2016 edition of Beauty Survey includes the following updates:
- Even more well-rounded grooming routine and product usage insights
- Usage of electronic beauty devices to track emerging trends
- Information about bathing and showering captured to better contextualise use of hair and skin care products
- Grooming routine sub-divided into additional, more detailed steps, to better analyse cleansing vs treating of skin and hair
- Additional product format/type detail on hair colour; hand, body, and foot care; facial moisturisers, anti-agers, face masks, facial cleansers, and foundation products; eye make-up
- Deeper treatment of path to purchase
- Expanded set of motivations for purchase (eg, special occasions, formulation strengths).
- Additional purchase influencers measured, including five new digital marketing types.
- Importance of diversity-related product features now measured.
- More “green” product features tested, as well as more trade-offs relating to green products, functional benefits, efficacy and price.
- Extended list of potential obstacles to purchase.
- Expanded brand coverage
- In 2015 we tested the top 10 mass and top 10 premium brands in each category in each market. In 2016 we expanded coverage to the top 20 mass and top 20 premium brands in each market.
- That means we tested 283 hair care brands, 316 skin care brands and 278 cosmetics brands in 2016.
Learn more about Beauty Survey
More on the findings summarized above, as well as additional detail on the Beauty Survey system, can be found in the system refresher.
Euromonitor International’s Beauty Survey data comes from consumers aged from 15 to 69+. Results from 2015 and 2016 include 1,000 online survey responses in each of the following markets: Australia, Brazil, China, Colombia, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Middle East (includes Egypt, Qatar, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates), Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, and the USA.