As TikTok proves, beauty is more than skin-deep tick tock

H.We grew up on an Arizona cattle ranch before moving to New York to work on a makeup counter for department stores. At just 24 years old, Hyram Yarbro is a skin care guru to millions of people around the world despite not having formal dermatology qualifications.

Yarbro belongs to a new breed of superstar social media skinfluencers who have grown in popularity during the lockdown – especially on TikTok – and are changing what we buy and why.

Lockdown affected grooming routines, shifting from makeup and perfume to skin care. It won’t surprise anyone who has tried to book a salon appointment since March that home treatment sales have increased, with teeth whitening products up 180% and hair dye sales up six times last year.

But it also had an impact on how we discover new products. “The number of people using social media has increased,” says Samantha Dover, senior beauty and personal care analyst at Mintel, frequently. This meant they were exposed to more nursing practices. “

Social media already has an established effect on product sales. “Half of beauty consumers look for reviews online before they buy,” says lifestyle and skincare blogger Lesley Buckle, also known as @freshlengths. “There are also a lot of satisfying videos. Dramatic before-and-after pictures are going viral. “

In 2020, however, one platform emerged as the winner: TikTok. “Facebook and YouTube are important to beauty brands, but TikTok users are most likely to receive care advice through social media,” Dover says. Influencer marketing firm Traackr found that TikTok user engagement for skin care videos has increased more than 1,000% since last year.

In March, Skincare by Hyram had 100,000 followers on TikTok. There were more than six million during the lockdown. “I am grateful for the connection I have with my followers on TikTok. I can’t replicate this on any other platform. Personally, however, the growth felt surprisingly normal, ”he says.

Yarbro’s knowledge of skin care ingredients and fun, honest reviews have impressed beauty brands and followers alike. In January 2019, he made $ 50 from affiliate sales. By July 2020, he had made $ 265,000 from online ads, brand partnerships, and affiliate links.

What many of these biggest new names in skin care lack in formal qualifications they make up for in enthusiasm and humor – and a wide audience on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.

Many skincare enthusiasts are all about skincare fun, like Young-Seok Yuh, whose @yayayayoung TikTok account has garnered 1.2 million followers since launching in March, and Vi Lai, who frequently talks about the use of skincare as a coping mechanism depression speaks for anxiety. There are also qualified dermatologists like Dr. Dustin Portela, whose @ 208skindoc has close to 1 million followers, and aesthetic therapists like Nayamka Roberts-Smith.

TikTok’s popularity appears to be affecting sales. CeraVe is a high street skin care brand for dry and problem skin that was launched in the UK in 2018. However, according to influencer marketing firm Traackr, an increase in influencer posts on CeraVe will fall 67% in 2020. British chemist Superdrug reported a 65% increase in sales this summer from the previous week, and CeraVe was sold out in the US.

The Ordinary was a successful skincare brand long before TikTok, but skin influencers have impacted sales, says Nicola Kilne, co-founder and CEO of Deciem, the parent company of The Ordinary. “The TikTok audience is truly global in a way we’ve never seen it before,” she says. The brand is a Skinfluencer favorite and only opened its own TikTok account in February. “Our first video had almost a million views – #TheOrdinary alone has 229.1 million views.”

At the beginning of the blocking, the professor sold a bottle of niacinamide 10% + zinc 1% – a serum against acne, every three seconds. Kilne believes that spending time at home gave people more time to experiment.

“I think honesty built our fan base,” says Kilne. “Word of mouth is important to us, but it wouldn’t work if we didn’t produce quality products.”

Buckle agrees that quality is the key to TikTok’s successful products. “CeraVe is mentioned by a lot of influencers, but it’s successful because it’s affordable and the formulas are gentle. It’s exactly the kind of mark I reach for when my skin reacts. “

TikTok’s skinfluencers are also a hit because of their honesty. “Traditional marketing doesn’t build trust,” says Yarbro, who now lives in Honolulu. “People tend to go to online developers who have real, honest opinions. When a developer builds trust with their audience, their reach exceeds any marketing budget or exposure strategy. People are drawn to people. “