7 Visual Tips for Beauty Brands

How to Create Photos and Videos That Sell Products

The beauty industry is fiercely competitive. In a saturated marketplace, brands are pressured to create standout products and marketing that quickly differentiates them from the crowd. Strong marketing and store visuals are a big part of grabbing people and driving them to purchase products. 

With so many beauty products vying for shoppers’ attention, brands need an approach to images, videos and animations that standout. KittyKat believes in creating beautiful, on-brand visuals that actually drive an outcome. That's why every shoot or AI engagement is directed by a KittyKat Stylist. Here are five tips for beauty brands to create the hardest working visuals for their products.

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Build a Strong Visual Identity

Stunning visuals can leave a lasting impression, yet their impact is limited if they don't align with your brand's identity.

Consistency in portraying your brand across platforms, from your website to social media, builds reliability and authenticity that resonates with audiences. Aligning and complementing visuals enable consumers to grasp your brand's vibe effortlessly, fostering a trusting relationship.

As a beauty brand, there are several factors to consider when building your visual identity.  

• Know your audience. How your brand looks, talks and behaves has to appeal to them on some fundamental level. Visuals tailored for an older audience will differ significantly from those aimed at a teenage audience. 
• Define your brand value proposition. What are you really offering your customers? Is it just a better moisturizer or is confidence that their skin will look and feel healthier as they age? 
• Create a consistent visual identity. Common marketing wisdom is that a brand is not a logo. Truth is, your logo, your colors, your photography all add up to a brand identity and you want yours to be noticeable and memorable.

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Make Your Visuals Engaging

Elevate your visuals by showcasing your products in action, demonstrating their purpose amidst dynamic settings and surroundings. Beauty products are a canvas for creativity, sparking imagination and allowing for boundless expression. Let your visuals mirror this!

Invite customers to delve deeper into your brand, leaving them eager for more. Basic shots against a white background might not leave a lasting impression unless your aesthetic is ultra-clean and pristine. Instead, consider injecting some excitement.

• Explore stop-motion techniques to showcase your products in quirky, engaging animations. Our website offers some inspiring examples.
• Inject emotion into your visuals. Ever hear the expression, “she’s got smiling eyes?”  Think about how you can capture expressions even in the most discrete shots like the eyes when selling mascara. Make them sparkle and pop and smile.
• Experiment with texture, capturing shots that showcase the vibrant colors and luxurious feel of your products, such as crushed or smudged lipsticks.

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Use Videos to Tell a Story

We all crave stories whether it’s a simple demonstration of a product or a lifestyle shot we can all relate to. Makeup tutorials have become a cornerstone of content on platforms like YouTube, Instagram and TikTok, drawing in millions of viewers eager to learn new techniques and explore products. Leveraging this trend, consider crafting personalized tutorials featuring your brand's products. Not only does this serve as a powerful promotional tool, but it also educates your audience on how to maximize the potential of your items.

By showcasing your products in use, you provide valuable insights and guidance to your audience, demonstrating their versatility and usability. This not only builds trust and credibility but also fosters a deeper connection with your brand.

Videos aren’t restricted to tutorials, here are some other ways they can be featured:

• Demonstrate product consistency by pouring foundation to showcase its texture, does it lean more towards a liquid or a mousse?
• Film swatches of eyeshadow being smeared to reveal their opacity and color intensity.
• Show someone enjoying a night out or an intimate dinner to create a story that shoppers can imagine themselves a part of. 

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Collaborate With UGC Creators

Influencers have been all the rage in the beauty industry, but recently, there's a shift towards an even more persuasive group: User generated content (UGC) creators. (see The Difference Between UGC and Influencer Marketing) 

What sets UGC creators apart is their unique approach to content creation. Unlike traditional influencers who often rely on sponsored content and brand partnerships, UGC creators generate content that is raw, unfiltered, and inherently genuine. 

Here are some of the ways UGC creators can positively impact your visual performance.

• Demonstrate their own experience with your product. By offering unbiased reviews and candid insights that resonate with their audiences, they deliver authenticity and trust.
• Leverage the creativity of the creator. Content creators are experts at creating many types of content. Brand marketers are often pleasantly surprised at the engaging visuals creators make and can build on their knowledge of their audiences. Creators engage with their followers everyday and are always getting valuable feedback from the people who watch their videos. Brands benefit from working with creators that are so close to the buying public. 

Here at KittyKat, we love collaborating with UGC creators to promote beauty brands, you can even get to know some of the great creators we work with!

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Be Inclusive of Your Customer

There are plenty of good reasons to broaden the diversity and inclusivity in marketing. For brand marketers, one strong reason is to ensure that your hand, face and body models reflect the diversity of your customers. More and more customers of different ethnicities, backgrounds and skin tones insist that the brands they buy from show them in their marketing. Visuals that reflect diversity can play an integral role in ensuring your brand honors these needs.

“Consumers now seek value-driven products that reflect their personalities and lifestyles. Global Cosmetic Industry data shows sales of multicultural beauty products surging at a pace double the conventional market and companies that are embracing inclusive styles and lines are seeing their efforts rewarded in their annual revenue.” (Yieldify)

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Ways to use visuals to promote diversity and inclusivity:

• Select multicultural models in your visuals to ensure inclusive representation. Everyone desires to see themselves reflected, particularly in beauty advertisements.
• Go easy on post-production editing. Consumers are increasingly bored by overly airbrushed images without wrinkles or blemishes—they crave authentic and honest portrayals of people.
• Embrace diversity beyond ethnicity and heritage. Ensure representation across age and ability spectrums to foster inclusivity throughout your visuals.

Visuals hold tremendous power, particularly within the realm of beauty brands. Mastering the art of using them effectively is key to achieving success. Define your brand identity, purpose, and personality, and identify your target audience. With these foundations in place, success will follow.