Meet the HIBAGs

Men are also at the forefront of a group of consumers we’re calling HIBAGs (Highly Invested in Beauty and Grooming). These are people who shop in the overall beauty and grooming category (not just makeup) on a high frequency basis, spend more than the average consumer, use more products and spend longer on their daily routine. 

This group, which represents around 12% of the overall sample, is 55% male and 45% female, and spends at least $100 per month on beauty and grooming products. When we look at the age profile of HIBAGs, we see that it’s Millennials who make up the biggest percentage (specifically those aged 31-35).

HIBAGs are looking for brands with strong purpose and values.

HIBAGs over-index for shopping weekly across every category, including makeup, haircare, skincare, fragrance and shaving. They also over-index for taking 45 minutes or longer to do their beauty and grooming regime, and this applies to both genders. In comparison, the typical American woman spends 30 minutes on her regime, while a man spends less than 15 minutes. 

We see a similar story when we look at the amount of products HIBAGs use each day. The majority of American men use no more than three products as part of their daily routine, while women use four to six. HIBAGs, on the other hand, over-index for using more than six products daily.

What’s interesting about this group is that they’re much more open to trying new brands than other consumers, over-indexing for saying they frequently buy brands they’ve not used before. They’re also more likely to be engaging with beauty and grooming brands on social media and looking for brands with strong purpose and values. 

Average American spends $26-50 per month on beauty products

Looking at the bigger picture, American consumers are most likely to say they spend between $26-50 per month on beauty/grooming products (27%), while the next largest percentage (23.5%) spend just $10-25 monthly. 

People are most likely to shop for beauty and grooming products on a monthly basis, excluding fragrance, which is more likely to be bought every two months. The most frequently shopped-in categories are haircare and shaving, 24% of people buy these products weekly or fortnightly.

D2C beauty shoppers over-index for spending more money.

We see that different channels are preferred for different categories, with people preferring to shop in a department store for makeup, skincare and fragrance, and the supermarket for haircare and shaving. 

Ecommerce lags way behind buying in-store, but when Americans do shop for beauty and grooming products online, it’s most likely to be on a marketplace such as Amazon. This channel is at least twice as popular as buying from a brand’s own website across all categories. 

One interesting fact is that those who do prefer to shop directly with brands online, over-index for spending more money, showing that D2C is still a channel worth pursuing.

Social is still central

One thing brands don’t need to worry about is a lack of engagement online. More than half of Americans (54%) say they interact with or follow beauty/grooming brands on social media – and this figure rises to 67% for people aged 40 or below. 

In terms of the platforms that consumers favor for interacting with beauty and grooming brands, it depends on their age. Instagram is the platform of choice for Gen Z (aged 18-25), but for everyone else, it’s Facebook. 

We see pretty low engagement on Facebook for the youngest demographic, with only 24% using it to follow beauty and grooming brands. You’re more likely to find them consuming this content on YouTube and TikTok. And where YouTube used to reign supreme for tutorials, it’s interesting to note that the two video platforms are now on an almost equal footing among this age group.

67% of people aged 18-40 interact with beauty & grooming brands on social media.

So what do Americans want to see in their feeds? Ranked first is ‘discounts and special offers’ showing that consumers are seeking out value for money above all else. Second to this is ‘info about new products’, which goes against conventional wisdom and flips the funnel on its head.  

In fact, much of the trust-building top of the funnel type content ranks lower, with ‘details of environmental initiatives’ ranked 6/7 and ‘partnerships with charities and nonprofits’ ranked 5/7. Beauty and grooming advice and tutorials do remain popular, coming in at number three, but the wisdom here is that they should be product focused and don’t need celebrity names attached. 

These preferences are broadly consistent across the demographics, meaning brands can’t rely on the assumption that younger people will be either more engaged on social issues or more enamored with influencers.

Invest in sampling

If you’ve saved yourself thousands of dollars on influencer marketing, where should you spend the money instead? According to our respondents, product samples are the most persuasive way to get them to buy a new product. 

Sampling ranks even higher than receiving a recommendation from a friend (ranked 2nd), which is usually the most powerful form of marketing. As a result, brands should invest heavily here, making samples available in stores and via beauty sample subscription boxes like Birchbox, Beauty Box (by Macy’s), and Hello! (by Sephora). 

TV advertising is only the 4th most-persuasive form of marketing.

In a similar vein, special offers and promotions also play a big role in convincing people to try a product they’ve not used before (ranked 3rd). Combining offers with free samples could be a big double whammy.  

These tactics are deemed to be more effective by consumers than other expensive forms of marketing like TV advertising (ranked 4th). Meanwhile, you might think that getting your product trending on social media would be amazing for sales, but Americans seem to disagree; ‘social media hype is ranked’ 5/7 for persuasiveness.

Overall, beauty and grooming brands should focus on getting their products into people’s hands so they can see the results for themselves, rather than just read about them. 

Sustainable beauty more important to younger Americans

It’s worth pointing out that there is somewhat of a demographic split when it comes to the role a brand’s green credentials play in the purchase decision process. People aged 40 and below are more likely to say they take sustainability into account than their older counterparts (31% versus 21%). 

They’re also more likely to be attracted to the term ‘environmentally friendly’ than people over 40, but not by a huge degree (29% versus 25%). Despite this increased interest in sustainable beauty, younger shoppers are still considerably more motivated by a brand’s ‘cleaness’; 55% of people in this age group consider a brand’s use of clean/natural ingredients when they buy, and 48% find the term ‘clean’ appealing.

31% of people aged 18-40 take a brand’s commitment to the environment into consideration.

Younger people also prioritize a brand’s stance on animal testing over the environment, although not massively so; 34.5% say they consider it. On the other hand, there’s quite a large disparity between concern for animals and concern for the environment among older people. For example, 32% of Boomers consider animal welfare, while only 18% worry about sustainability. 

Commitment to the environment also varies somewhat according to where you live. The most conscious consumers are found in the west of the country, where 31% take a brand’s eco credentials into consideration. By contrast, only 21% of those in the Midwest say the same. 

Cruelty-free is in, vegan is out

Animal welfare remains a big deal to Americans shopping in the beauty and grooming category – they want assurances that products haven’t been tested on animals, but interestingly, what they don’t insist upon is a product being vegan. 

‘Vegan’ is actually the least attractive marketing term out of 13 (only 7% are attracted to it). We’d need to investigate further to find out why. It could be because people simply assume beauty products have no animal products in them. Or maybe consumers are ok with animal-derived ingredients, as long as no animal suffers as part of the manufacturing process.  

Also interesting is the low level of attraction towards the term ‘plant-based’. Despite the drive for natural ingredients, it’s only a magnet for 13% of shoppers. This underlines how important it is for brands to choose exactly the right wording when communicating what’s in their products, as well as what they stand for. 

36% of Black consumers are attracted to the term ‘Black-owned brand’.

The impact of buzzwords varies from demographic to demographic. For example, while the term ‘Black-owned brand’ strongly appeals to just 9.5% of shoppers in general, among Black consumers, it has pulling power for 36% of people. This means it’s really worth beauty and grooming brands drilling down into the different segments of their target audience to see what matters to them most. 

DIY beauty is here to stay

Thanks to coronavirus restrictions, many of us had to take beauty and grooming into our own hands, leading to a surge in at-home treatments. And it would seem people were empowered when they realized they could color their own hair or do their own nails – and save a lot of cash in the process – because our data shows that 85% of people carry out beauty and grooming treatments at home. 

The most popular DIY treatment is a face mask or facial, undertaken by 39% of people. Meanwhile, around a third of Americans are cutting and/or coloring their hair at home, 31% are giving themselves a manicure or pedicure, and 25% shape their own eyebrows.

85% of Americans do DIY beauty and grooming treatments.

In terms of male grooming, beard shaping is a big pastime, with 45% of men doing it themselves (although those engaging in facial pruning are more likely to be aged under 40). A further 45% of men say they get their hair cut at home.

Millennials (aged 26-40) are most likely to say they use a beauty gadget at home, with facial rollers being most popular. Overall, this age group shows the most inclination towards DIY beauty, with only 9% saying they don’t do treatments at home. 

Opportunities for innovation

While the main theme for 2022 is simplification, it doesn’t mean there isn’t room for innovation. According to our respondents, there are still a number of gaps in the market for beauty and grooming brands to fill. 

Areas with potential for NPD include makeup for women aged 50+, products for people with sensitive skin, dry skin and allergies, as well as a bigger range for Black and Asian skin and hair. Americans are also looking for new solutions to perennial problems including blackheads, under eye circles and thinning hair.

Consumers are calling for more affordable beauty & grooming products.

A specific idea shared by a respondent, which could be implemented reasonably easily, was offering a money back guarantee so that if a product does not agree with someone’s skin they can return it. It’s an initiative that has the potential to increase trust in a brand, and boost willingness to try a new product – especially for online sales.

Something else that came through in the open text responses was a call for more affordable products and better value. This suggests that simplifying product ranges, and providing high quality staples without unnecessary frills, should help beauty and grooming brands to prosper.