Skincare product and application advice from consumers and professionals has rapidly become a popular subculture on TikTok, thus creating the “skintok” phenomena. This niche has been a game changer for many beauty brands, successfully reviving legacy products and boasting new product launches. As a result, heritage and indie brands alike have both seen an explosion in sales and popularity, evening the playing field for both.
#SKINTOK
This popularity is in part due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The last couple of years shifted many rituals in our lives, our beauty habits and practices being no exception. Consumers changed their focus from makeup to self-care and as a result skincare became a growing conversation online, especially on TikTok. Consequently, #SkinTok was born, which has since become a thriving micro-community full of derm tips and tricks for keeping your skin hydrated, healthy and youthful from the comfort of your own home. From product reviews to beauty routine hacks and ingredient breakdown and analysis, there’s a little bit of everything on the #SkinTok platform. It has become a useful source of information for app users – and a great opportunity for brands wanting to expand their audience. A recent CEW report featured data from Google and Spate, concluded that there were 2.6 Billion views for #skintok alone.
SKINFLUENCERS
Skin + Influencer = Skinfluencer. Skinfluencers swayed the curiosity of viewers over the pandemic who had a newfound interest in skincare. Mask wearing and staying home required less makeup and in turn generated an uptick in consumers prioritizing wellness and self-care. Skinfluencers using the hashtag #SkinTok, have racked up billions of views on TikTok with videos offering an easy-breezy, commitment-free way to dip in and out of dermatology advice. As a result, skincare brands have seen record breaking sales and engagement.
SkinTok has also given professionals such as dermatologists and estheticians the ability to reach a larger, general audience, giving consumers valuable and free advice, while promoting brands and products they recommend. From teens struggling with acne, to adults looking for the next best anti-aging procedure or product, there’s someone for everyone, even for those who prefer advice from real professionals. NPD reports that 68% of female GenZ consumers rank “is backed by a doctor” as very important and the same accounts for 53% of consumers of all ages.
Users find and follow professionals they like and trust and are able to not only access advice, but also information about the complicated ingredients in skincare products—like retinol and exfoliating acids and how they work, all in a way that is easily understood by the everyday consumer, and all accessible at their literal fingertips. Furthermore, professionals can highlight more of themselves and their personalities, while creating content that goes behind the scenes at their company, and highlights the care and ethical values that their products are made with. This builds trust which in turn gains them followers, which converts into sales.
SKINVESTORS
Skinvestors make skinvestments. The term skinvestor refers to a population of primarily Gen Z consumers who tend to gravitate to brands that are backed by science based facts and claims – and Tik Tok is their app of choice when it comes to obtaining skincare information. The NPD Group’s The Female Facial Skincare Consumer Report 2021 shared that 52% of female GenZ consumers obtain skincare information from Social Media, with TikTok ranked as their number one app. This group prioritizes anti-aging ingredients and buying products backed by a doctor” is extremely important to them, more than any other demographic of users on the app.They are willing to make skinvestments if they discover products backed by science that yields results.
As TikTok continues to dominate skincare influence, it is also important to be aware of who you are getting your advice from. The platform gives anyone and everyone the ability to talk about skincare and there is also information that is unfortunately false and incorrect as opposed to being science based and backed by professionals. It is crucial that users do their due diligence to assure that they are receiving correct advice and therefore buying product that is appropriate for their skin.
As TikTok Beauty trends continue to evolve, we want to keep you in the loop! Be sure to follow @Premier Executive Recruiting on LinkedIn to stay up to date with the latest beauty industry social trends.
