1. MARKETING matters by alisa marie beyer
G2G Marketing is Winning Her Over
Girlfriend-to-Girlfriend (G2G) communications have proven to be a strong motivator for women to try a new brand, dump their
old brand and recommend (or not recommend) a brand to a friend. It’s also proven to help move products faster and build up
the bottom line of a beauty brand just as effectively as traditional marketing methods.
I
n the May 2006 “Marketing Matters” column, a beauty brand to others” ranks in the top beauty purchases, you would have been met
I wrote about understanding the power five definitions of what it means to be brand with a great deal of skepticism.
of G2G, focusing on women-to-women loyal. (See Figure 1) A woman’s passion for Today, findings from the 2007 Pink Report:
recommendations and how they’re gaining in sharing her life experiences is emerging as Beauty and the Blog report:
importance for beauty marketers worldwide. a powerful force in shaping beauty product
The Benchmarking Company’s research showed • More than 27% of women have posted a
opinions and buying habits, and the global
that 64% of women recommended beauty comment about a beauty brand on a message
forum of the Internet is one means of
brands to girlfriends on a regular basis, and 17% board, social networking site or blog.
broadcasting their strong voices.
received beauty advice from their girlfriends. • 67% of women who participate in these sites
Thus far, 2007 research indicates that those are more likely to buy a beauty product if
numbers remain stable and reveals more about Sister Helping Sister—The they read a good comment or review about
the reasons why women value G2G beauty Internet as Unbiased and it from their fellow consumers.
brand recommendations and which avenues Trustworthy • When they participate in a blog or join a
they’re using most to get the word out.
social networking site, 34% look to those
Recommendations that women give to A decade ago, if you were to tell a beauty
sites for trusted advice when it comes to
one another are a key component of their brand marketer that blogs, social networks,
beauty buying.
individual definitions of brand loyalty. message boards, and Internet retailing and
According to The Benchmarking Company’s beauty specialty sites were going to become • 50% of women ages 18–29 trust blogs,
2007 Pink Report, Survival of the Prettiest: important channels for women to gather, message boards and social networking sites
Face and Body Skin Care, “recommending discuss and heed advice from one another on as a main source for beauty advice.
Figure 1. **
32 Marketing Matters GCI October 2007

2. • 54% of women feel they’ve made smarter Make it Personal—G2G The G2G experience needn’t be quite so
buying decisions since they started elaborate—it just needs to get women talking
visiting blogs, message boards and social
Events that Work about the brand and feeling a part of the social
networking sites. In addition to using every aspect of the beauty fabric. Many ideas that work are simple,
• 59% of women feel they get unbiased Internet to help women to meet and discuss such as incorporating a beauty “club” for your
information on consumer-oriented blogs beauty issues with others, successful beauty brand where women can continue to talk to
and message boards that they can’t find marketers are also creating and promoting each other about the products and receive
anywhere else. in-person events that turn a regular retail more personalized marketing messages at the
experience into a social event among same time. Olay is one example of a club that
Video sharing Web sites are proving to be girlfriends. works for this purpose online.
an important G2G medium as well. On any
given day, YouTube or Google Video will air
everyday women in roles as “beauty mavens,”
with videos showing their fellow females tips
and tricks for applying makeup for certain
looks or special occasions. While many of
these online divas create these homemade
videos themselves, they are no less effective in
passing on beauty tips (and brands they love)
as a means to help other women.
50% of women (18–29) trust
blogs, message boards and
social networking sites as
main sources for beauty
advice; 34% look to those
sites for advice when it
comes to beauty buying.
Build on Emotion—G2G is
Also About the Company
Women are just as enthusiastic about gathering
to discuss beauty products as the socially
responsible corporations that make them. A
recent YouTube search listed 54 individual
Avon “Walk for the Cure” videos, where
women chronicled their walk adventures for
others to see. Many proud and teary moments
proclaiming “we made it!” at the finish line
make for lasting and positive impressions of
that beauty brand and its cause.
1-800-SURPLUS
Dove has also successfully tapped into the 1-800-787-7587
creative, philanthropic and emotional minds of
women with its Campaign for Real Beauty. The
company’s Web site includes numerous G2G
communications tools—including an open
(and not company-directed) blog, a place for
women to upload and share essays and stories
relative to beauty and the campaign, and a Visit Us On-line: www.mckernan.com
place for women to donate to the Dove Self- North America, South America, Europe, Asia & Middle East - Call 775-356-6111
Esteem Fund as a way to help younger women
with their feelings about beauty issues.
www.GCImagazine.com Marketing Matters 33

3. MARKETING matters
Figure 2. **
What do you call
a fragrance partner
with big-company
resources and
small-company values?
34 Marketing Matters GCI October 2007

4. Similarly, luxury apothecaries and spas often * The Pink Report is compiled from Pink Panel
have clublike status for frequent patrons, who Girlfriend groups are a surveys. The Pink Panel is a nationwide network
are invited to events where they can meet and of women who take beauty research surveys
mingle for exclusive on-site parties, sessions casual, more intimate focus online to reveal what consumers of female beauty
with renowned makeup artists or intimate products want.
settings for group spa services.
group type of research
Beauty brands that effectively use G2G conducted in a woman’s ** The data in this article has been taken directly
communication tools are becoming brand from Beauty and the Blog, an April 2007 Pink
favorites. Brands like Olay, Bath & Body home where questions are Report, and Survival of the Prettiest: Face and
Body Skin Care, a July 2007 Pink Report, consumer
Works and Dove lead the pack as beauty asked and beauty products research reports driven by results from the
brands that both lead in brand conversion
(converting one-time triers to faithful buyers) are sampled among her women-only, permission-based Pink Panel and
and as brands recommended most. Survival other sources.
and her friends.
of the Prettiest: Face and Body Skin Care
indicates Bath & Body Works has the highest Revisit the May 2006 Marketing
recommendation rating at 13% of women as an important part of its clients’ research Matters column, Understanding the Power of
recommending it to a friend, followed by arsenal. Girlfriend groups are a casual, G2G, online. n GCI
Olay with 10%, Avon with 9% and Dove more intimate focus group type of research
with 8%. (See Figure 2) conducted in a woman’s home where questions
are asked and beauty products are sampled AlISA MArIE BEyEr is CEO of
among her and her friends. Mimicking true The Benchmarking Company (TBC), a research
Get a G2G Group Perspective female shopping patterns and the important and branding firm focused exclusively on
role that friends and family play in beauty the beauty industry. TBC’s women-only,
permission-based Pink Panel provides beauty
In addition to traditional online surveying, purchasing decisions, this type of research can
consumer data for the award-winning Pink
focus groups and other market research provide a valuable baseline of understanding Report, the quarterly research report that reveals what consumers
methods, The Benchmarking Company has of women’s beauty buying patterns, brands of female beauty products want, what they’ll buy and why.
increasingly embraced G2G communications they love and recommend, and why. E-mail: alisa@benchmarkingco.com, www.benchmarkingco.com
You call us...
Discover us at www.agilexfandf.com
www.GCImagazine.com Marketing Matters 35