John Frieda saw a 2208 per cent search uplift over two days after announcing Rochelle Humes as the new brand ambassador for their ‘Frizz Ease Dream Curls’ product. This shows that the right alignment can be powerful. The majority of consumers are searching haircare in the evenings, however 19 per cent of desktop users typically search in the lead up to lunch and late afternoon while at work. It’s important to understand the lifestyle of your clients or potential customers too and really understand when is the best time to remind them to purchase and buy. Surprisingly, if they’re a desktop job browser, who may not be really efficient, they aren’t always loyal consumers in the long run. Every salon’s profile will differ slightly but loyal customers are usually more time poor.
Killer insight: desktop (Monday to Friday 54.9 per cent), mobile (7pm to 10pm 36.9 per cent), tablet (7pm to 10pm 8.2 per cent)
behaviour, but ultimately it’s true reach that often goes unnoticed in the sea of followers that many claim. Remember followers doesn’t always translate to customers who click ‘add to cart’ at the end of a long day. They are still looking for a professional opinion in many cases, even though they may have first noticed the brand via an influencer, this is where salon’s need to be smart and use the same buzz words out there In the world of influence to be able to offer a better level of expertise. The most searched haircare influencers in 2018 were Jen Atkin (54 per cent), Tracey Cunningham (13.2 per cent), Sam McKnight (13.1 per cent), Scotty Cunha (3.8 per cent) and Sali Hughes (3.4 per cent). Now, in 2020, there very well may be individuals like Chris Appleton higher up on searches lists. One thing is for sure, the influencer profile for a brand is key.
UNDER THE INFLUENCE Influencer marketing is expected to be worth between five to 10 billion in 2020 – a large scope but in actual fact, depending on global conditions, (such as COVID-19 now, for example) the relevance of influencer marketing fluctuates a lot more than traditional forms of marketing. Brands are cutting up the pie to try and reach consumers rather than throwing big budgets on a single campaign. Brands are increasingly using influencer content as part of their core brand strategy to boost sales, increase reach and awareness while fostering trust and loyalty. It’s important to identify what brands are proactively searching and aligning with influencers if you are wanting to grab a piece of the influencer juggernaut. It’s just as much about being connected as it is about purchasing 24 INSTYLE
On average there is a 55.3 per cent increase in searches for influencers year on year however brand endorsements don’t always mean results – L’Oréal (consumer brands not their Professional Products Division), for example, saw just a 4.7 per cent increase in searches following their
Cheryl Tweedy Casting Crème Gloss advert back in 2018 despite a huge social following that should have resulted in a much higher result. So the question remains, are disruptors powerful or just a fad? It’s no surprise that in the past few years disruptor brands have come seemingly out of nowhere and shaken up many industries, haircare included. However, in hair, new disruptor products are often purchased as a one-off, with many customers reverting back to trusted brands or recommendations. To top it off, more recently, large haircare brands have been acquiring niche and nimble brands to become disruptors themselves.
COMPETITOR INTELLIGENCE Brands and businesses should arm themselves with unique competitor intelligence to intercept challengers. By identifying those with a high share of search, brands can target users actively searching around competing products. For example, retargeting is something that works well in the trade and consumer space when trying to track down more customers – by following them across multiple sites they visit with your advertising and messaging. For example Ouai by Jen Akten took off after she was named by the New York Times as the ‘Most Influential Stylist in the World’ and, incidentally, consumers instantly became five times more likely to search for Ouai than the same time the previous year.
Killer insight: People searching for Ouai are 92 times more likely to be searching for DIOR or 90 times more likely to be searching for the Kardashians.