There’s virtually no industry that hasn’t been affected by the events and pivots that occurred over the last few years. When it comes to those that have been affected the most, though, the cosmetics industry ranks high.

According to Maria Osorio, director of marketing and product development at Cosmetica Labs, it wasn’t just the pandemic that caused the Toronto-based cosmetics manufacturing company to take a hit – supply chain disruptions, merging of physical and digital realities, and ever-changing consumer demands meant that creative solutions across manufacturers, brands and retailers were needed to re-ignite business growth.

“Many brands have reinvented themselves to create new value propositions to capitalize on even higher consumer expectations post-pandemic,” she says, noting that in the cosmetics industry, environmentally conscious and cruelty-free products have become expected, along with a strong digital platform and shared values to drive relevance.

“The tactics in place delivered results for many years, but started losing impact driven by the changing environment within the industry,” she says of the assessment of Cosmetica’s KPIs such as website traffic, social sentiment, and lead and innovation conversion.

It was time for a makeover at Cosmetica. In addition to a full marketing team revamp, which included Osorio’s hiring, the company also placed significant investments into rethinking its strategies to maximize its position within the cosmetics space.

Its first step was to consider what evolution looked like for the company. “The key to our strategy is leveraging tactics that were successful in the past, but through a different lens and with full focus on digital,” says Osorio. “We built a digital team from the ground up as well as an online footprint, and enhanced in-person experiences for our clients.”

The company relaunched its website – something that Osorio says has been pivotal to the company’s strategy. Now, the website has the ability to automate processes and execute updates to the company’s platforms more productively, and provides access to data and user journeys that enable Cosmetica to “future-proof” its sales and marketing strategies.

In addition, Cosmetica has incorporated a VR tour of its lab facilities, 4K videos of product textures to provide information about the development process and Instagram filters that demonstrate product application during seasonal campaigns.

The company exists IRL, too. Last spring, Cosmetica hosted a pop-up in New York City where the company blended its physical and digital worlds into an immersive experience for clients. This uncommon event in the manufacturing space paid off: Cosmetica posted double-digit ROI growth rates.

These new strategies are getting the manufacturer noticed. Cosmetica was named the winner of the BeautyMatter Next award for best contract manufacturer in 2022.

Looking to the future, Cosmetica’s product pipeline is filled with trend and market driven propositions for the next three years – and it continues to think outside the manufacturing box to keep evolving. The company is currently partnering with industry thought leaders and content creators for its next campaign, as well as developing a new physical and digital immersive experience that’s specifically tailored to clients’ needs, and a new, innovative way to navigate its product library. “This is a novel approach that’s sure to turn heads,” says Osorio.

Link to original article: https://strategyonline.ca/2023/01/17/cosmetica-gets-a-marketing-makeover-for-the-future-of-the-beauty-industry/