Anna Impullitti

STC 359
Professor McKittrick
Sept. 6, 2018

Brand Communication Audit: Glossier

Emily Weiss, founder and CEO of Glossier, is a graduate of New York University. Prior

to the company’s conception, Weiss began a blog, “Into the Gloss,” in 2010 (Bruner, 2016).

After her growing success, she began a skincare line, Glossier. Though the blog still operates

today, it is a branch of the company’s brand. The organization is privately owned and has

increased its funding since the start of the company in 2014. This past year, its investors have

raised its funding to $52 million which brought its total funding to $86 million (Del Rey, 2018).

The company is now worth $34 million (Mandell, 2018) and has a one percent return rate on

products (Bruner, 2016). The start-up continues to acquire publicity across various news outlets.

Beauty and lifestyle magazines, such as Elle, Cosmopolitan and Allure, have released articles on

Glossier products, store openings and beauty editor reviews. However, it has received awareness

from business outlets, too, like Forbes, on the rapid success of the company.

Glossier is focused on reaching female millennials, which can be observed through the

models chosen for its campaigns and branded content. However, weaved into its Instagram is the

intermittent male and older woman consumer. Yet, the prominent factor of the organization’s

appeal is its multicultural perspective. The diversity of its models mimic the diverse

demographics of its consumers. According to interviews with Weiss, she admits the voice of the

brand is both “cheeky” and “millennial-facing (Bruner, 2016).” According to a 2017 report,

millennial women are more likely to perform beauty routines than women 18 or older (Mintel,

2017). Additionally, millennials are concerned with their physical appearance and are willing to
spend money on natural and expensive brands, and even experiment with new products (Mintel,

2017).

The organization’s business model aims to amend the flaws created by the cosmetic and

beauty industry. With the tag line, “Skin first. Makeup second.,” Glossier is fighting the status

quo of the traditional beauty paradigm by working in conjunction with its customers. This

consumer-centric methodology stimulates the company’s goal to formulate skin products that are

effective. This sense of effectiveness is measured by a consumer who is not quick to reach for

makeup sitting on a shelf. Rather, the customer feels confident in their own skin, embracing

imperfections and not relying on makeup. This prompts the main theme of its messaging:

empowerment. The idea around the products is to improve skin while contributing to personal

style through makeup – therefore, the two become synonymous. Glossier considers the brand a

“beauty-powered ecosystem” that cultivates the celebration of people. Its inclusivity is mirrored

through the diversity of models, but extends further into its branding of body positivity. The

brick-and-mortar and pop-up shops include body positive language throughout its interior

decoration. For example, circulating through social media, customers are seen posing in front of

the infamous mirrors that read, “You look good.”

Due to the nature of the company and its business model, the consumer-driven approach

is its greatest force. As 80 percent of growth and sales have come from peer-to-peer

recommendations and their own channels, one can infer that brand experience, reputation and

online presence is strong and positive (Mandell, 2018). Each platform combines various content,

ranging form campaigns, customer photographs and products. However, its strong suit lies on

customer service. The PR team responds to comments and tweets, answering any questions and

participating in the online conversation. The team also infiltrates its earned media by reposting
pictures, comments and other success stories throughout its platforms. Likewise, the Instagram

and YouTube channels offer makeup tutorials of women of all skin types and races. The

inclusion of diverse backgrounds and people reinforce its messaging of empowerment and

celebration. Lastly, Glossier has created an in-store experience that is memorable and

“instagrammable” – an immersive trend that is building social impressions for brands. Both pop-

up stores and brick-and-mortars are branded with the signature pink, body positive language and

trendy décor. This is an important aspect to the business as 66 percent of millennial women said,

“they would like to see more interactive beauty experiences in-store,” and 65 percent would be

interested in visiting a beauty pop-up shop (Mintel, 2017). In the San Francisco pop-up,

designers attached a café to the showroom, and the Los Angeles store created an area that

resembles a canyon, inspired by the Californian desert.

Despite its strengths, Glossier needs to expand its international shipping and spread its

content across all channels to intensify reach and optimize engagement. Firstly, limited

international shipping is a detriment to the company’s success of converting prospects into

customers. Below is an outline of a suggested international market for Glossier to focus on as it

extends its audience. Lastly, although the Twitter account uses a collection of blog posts,

Instagram photos, verbal tweets and gifs, the YouTube channel is seemingly inconspicuous.

Unless a customer scrolls to the bottom of the homepage on the website, they will not know that

a Glossier YouTube channel exists.

First, let’s begin with improvements to already existing platforms and marketing efforts.

Since the addition of IGTV, users and businesses are able to connect with friends, peers and

audiences without the time restraints of regular Instagram stories. Now, the standalone app

creates video streaming that fits the mobile phone and lasts for up to 10 minutes. However,
verified accounts, like Glossier, are granted a longer time frame of 60 minutes. Indeed, Glossier

utilizes Instagram stories to advertise new products and show various application methods. Still,

replacing an extensive series of stories with the implementation of an IGTV channel will

increase engagement and reach among its followers. To fully optimize each platform, it is

imperative to understand how audiences use each. Organizing content and content strategy per

social media will help followers navigate and obtain information quicker. Thus, if the YouTube

channel consists of makeup tutorials using company products, then the videos should be tweeted

and previewed on Instagram. Optimize each channel and content by linking and sharing it

through owned media. IGTV videos can consist of interviews, success stories and topics covered

in “Into the Gloss.”

A new medium to consider are podcasts, or aural media. Its growing popularity is

especially prevalent in multicultural audiences. A recent report states that radio is gaining a

listenership among African Americans and Hispanics, counting as a third of the nation’s

audience (Nielsen, 2014). Podcasts, too, have increased its engagement with 16 million “avid

fans” in 2017 (Nielsen, 2018). This upward trend shows that there is an engaged audience in this

sector and indicates an opportunity for advertising.

Lastly, there is a growing niche in the online cosmetics market that offers profitability for

Glossier. Expanding international shipping will reach the target audience and provide an

opportunity to build and maintain profitable relations. As the company is working to complete

such endeavors, research shows that Chinese consumers are actively engaging in the buyer’s

decision journey (Nielsen, 2014). As the organization continues to penetrate international

markets, the PR team must strategically engage at each stage. Thus, while Chinese consumers

move from the initial consideration of a brand to active evaluation, Glossier representatives must
feed information where it’s needed to fulfill the expectations and wants of the consumer.

Prior to purchasing, these consumers are seeking brand interaction and community.

Importantly, it is crucial to establish a system that responds to questions, comments or concerns

during brand consideration; be involved in their research process. Providing customer support,

whether it’s direct communication or enhancing user-experience, can interrupt the decision

journey and drive out competitors. Implementation of personalized marketing at each touch point

will influence buyer’s decisions (Boudet, Gregg, Wong, 2017). To successfully engage with a

customer, Glossier can create a chat on the website that connects a representative with a user to

help during the evaluation touch point. This personalization tactic reaches consumers when they

are explicitly thinking about buying. Additionally, 96 percent of Chinese consumers visit a

company’s website, and 60 percent turn to social networking to learn more about a brand and its

products before purchasing (Nielsen, 2014).

Citations:

Beneath the Makeup, Online Cosmetic Shoppers in China are Young and Affluent. (2014,
January 13). Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2014/beneath-the-makeup-online-cosmetic-
shoppers-in-china-are-young-and-affluent.html

Boudet, J., Gregg, B., Wong, J., & Schuler, G. (2017, October). What shoppers really want from
personalized marketing. Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
https://www.mckinsey.com/business-functions/marketing-and-sales/our-insights/what-shoppers-
really-want-from-personalized-marketing

Bruner, R. (2016, May 24). This beauty startup has become so popular that it has 10,000 people
on a waitlist for lipstick. Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
https://www.businessinsider.com/how-glossier-became-so-popular-2016-5

Glossier | Skincare & Beauty Products Inspired by Real Life. (n.d.). Retrieved September 4,
2018, from https://www.glossier.com/

Nielsen. Connecting Advertising: How Avid Podcasters Influence Purchasing Patterns. (2018,
March 20). Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2018/connecting-advertising-how-avid-podcasters-
influence-purchasing.html

Mandell, J. (2018, February 06). Has Millennial Cult-Favorite Beauty Brand Glossier Jumped
The Shark? Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
https://www.forbes.com/sites/jannamandell/2018/02/05/has-millennial-cult-favorite-beauty-
brand-glossier-jumped-the-shark/#60b944312397

Mintel. (2017, February). The Millennial Beauty Consumer - US - February 2017. Retrieved
September 6, 2018, from http://academic.mintel.com/display/816239/

Rey, J. D. (2018, February 22). Glossier's investors have pumped $52 million more into the
popular beauty brand. Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
https://www.recode.net/2018/2/22/17039994/glossier-funding-52-million-series-c-makeup-
beauty-emily-weiss-ivp-index-ventures

State of the Media: Audio Today-a Focus on African American and Hispanic Audiences. (2014,
April 29). Retrieved September 6, 2018, from
http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/reports/2014/state-of-the-media-audio-today-a-focus-on-
african-american-and-hispanic-audiences.html