Cosmetic Technology

Today, online shopping is growing more popular each day. By 2020, 87% of people are expected to be online shopping. Brick and mortar retailers must adjust their marketing techniques and store experience to entice customers to visit their store. Companies must also have user-friendly websites that facilitate an easy online ordering process.

It is fairly easy to purchase electronics online and even clothing items because many websites have size charts. However, it is difficult for the bath and body, beauty, and fragrance market to create a good experience for online shoppers.

Customers looking for a new perfume or a cosmetic item find it difficult to shop online because it is important for them to test the product in real-life. Two brands recognized this importance and launched partnerships with technology companies to develop an online “trial” process.

YSL partnered with Google to enable makeup artists to show customers how to apply makeup via digital technology. YSL makeup artists will use Google Glass to film makeovers with customers. At the end of the session, the video can be emailed with “before” and “after” shots. Women can re-watch the video at home to recreate and learn the artist’s techniques. Google Glass is especially helpful because it is hands free. This technology permits YSL to provide personalized customer service which no other luxury make-up brand has done.

L’Oreal developed an app to help customers find the right product. The Makeup Genius beauty app uses facial mapping technology that transforms the screen of an Apple product into a virtual mirror. Users are able to try on various L’Oreal products including lipstick and eyeliner. The app uses an algorithm to capture 64 data points on a user’s face that can distinguish your skin tone, lip color, and other features.

Have you used this app? Will other drugstore brands of makeup such as CoverGirl and Revlon begin using the same technology? Would you question whether the app truly represents the color of the product?

Check out the article for more information.

11 thoughts on “Cosmetic Technology

  1. I definitely believe that apps and technologies such as these will add value to a customer’s experience while shopping for cosmetics. I often find myself ordering way too many products from Sephora’s website, but I have a much faster shopping experience when I go into the store than when I browse online. The clerks are very helpful in identifying great products right away, whereas online you have to rely on reviews and not all of them are trustworthy. It would be helpful to see what one product can do before you even order it or purchase it from a store, so these apps and technologies would definitely make shopping for products easier, whether it be online or in-store so you don’t have to waste money on something that looks bad. I like the idea of the make up tutorials via google glass because I have showed my sister how to do her makeup so many times and she still asks me to show her once more. Given that you usually close your eyes when someone else does your makeup, it is a hard skill to master if you aren’t naturally capable of applying makeup. Therefore, tutorial videos of makeup being applied specifically to one’s own face would add value in learning how to do make up. I think that companies should start coming out with their own versions of what L’Oreal and YSL have already created, and believe that this will start to change the way consumers can shop for and use makeup.

  2. Online shopping is definitely becoming more and more popular. I would say about 80% of the things I purchase are online. I agree some things are harder to buy online than at the store. Fragrances are one of these thing. Also, despite clothes being sold online, it seems to be easier to shop for clothes at department stores in case whatever you buy doesn’t fit. My girlfriend has also used a makeup app similar to the app you’re referring to. I have seen how this app works first hand because she wanted to see what I looked like with makeup on (and it wasn’t pretty). It reminds me of the face scanner Snapchat has recently released because of the way everything matches up with your face and follows your head as you turn it. I believe that the app makes shopping for makeup easier and is highly innovative on their part.

  3. I find this idea intriguing. Though I haven’t ever used this app, nor any like it, I expect that it would be a very popular find in many girls’ phones. There is an undoubted appeal in being able to test something out before committing and buying, particularly something that is near impossible to “try on” in it’s entirety. And as someone who absolutely detests trying things on at the store, I personally can see the allure in testing out a slew of products from the comfort of my own home.

    Though I think the idea is extremely interesting, I don’t expect there to be much use beyond the light entertainment of its essentially being an augmented reality dress up game. As some of my classmates that have actually used the app have noted, the app works but not nearly as well as it would need to for it to be a legitimate substitute for testing out the makeup in person. Another classmate noted that the reviews were positive, but I can’t imagine that all of these patrons actually used the map to steer their future cosmetic purchases.

    Online shopping is becoming a (wonderful, wonderful) epidemic. The convenience that is offered by services like Amazon is quickly and surely amassing largely loyal customers that will turn to web-based services instead of heading to their local stores. In class, we’ve looked at videos for the proposed “Amazon Drone” service that would allow for more instant gratification from online shopping. It’s very plausible to think that soon, a heavy majority of the population will rely on online shopping. Though this app may not be a perfect substitute for the real experience of in-store shopping, it proves that we are well on our way to ubiquity in online shopping choices.

  4. I think it’s a quite interesting topic to discuss. As the mobile end users became the major force of lot industries, the cosmetics industry is trying to gain some points too. Which company started early in the app area probably going to get the largest number of users which is very valuable to every company and also big challenging for other company. That’s why I think the other cosmetics stores are going to do something like that too. Some people might still more likely to go to the retailer store to try on some cosmetics, but there’s a lot of people would be inconvenient or lazy to actually go there. They would become people who want this function most and contribute profit to the company. Though the effect maybe not be 100% true as reality due to color, brightness or other displaying problems, it is still no doubt very helpful tool for users. It definitely can increase company’s market share and revenue. Now there are a lot of people are spoiled by highly-developed mobile technology.They even lazy to open the laptop to do shopping but rather do with their cellphone which they carry around everywhere and everyday. They can use many marginal time to view new stuff and do shopping. Nowadays, some app user interface design are even better than website. The security is also another side effect. Users pay with their cellphone are even more secure than computer ends. Also, another benefit for company might be they can reduce the number of dresser in field store. The video can be watched over and over again, people can learn better and easier this way.

  5. I think this a very interesting concept. I have never used the app, but I wonder how realistic the make up looks compared to you actually applying it in person. Even with that being unknown before buying, i think the idea will attract new customers. Therefore, I also think other cosmetic companies will follow in using the app. As soon as they see L’Oreal being successful or think that it will successful because of the app, these competitors will follow or think of a similar better concept. This makes me wonder if it’ll expand to the clothing industry. It would be neat to somehow be able to see the clothes on you and know whether or not each item would fit you. Sizing charts are hard to be sure and there is no visual, just a chart of numbers. Someone implemented a more visual way of a sizing chart or allowing customers to virtually try on the clothes would be an interesting concept. Along, with the make up industry, you mentioned new perfumes. I wonder if devices will eventually create something that will give us the sense of smell through our devices. This could have some gross side effect, but could be very beneficial to the online cosmetics industry.

  6. I think that this is a great technology for the purposes outlined in the article above but also because of how expandable it is to other marketplaces. I can see this technology being extremely useful in the “do it yourself” woodworking environment or something similar. It would be very useful for people who have never built a birdhouse, for example, to be able to watch, from a first person point of view, a birdhouse being made.

    We already see something like this technology being used with teaching, particularly online. This technology would also be great in computer repair industry be demonstrating for the potential customers how different tools can be used on a motherboard.

    I see this technology as having almost limitless application, in the teaching realm, product realm, and even tour giving realm. I am really excited to see how technologies and ones like this will develop with time.

  7. I like this cosmetic technology concept. I think it is very useful especially to the people who are the first time to try make-up. Since there are various cosmetic products in the market, most people don’t have ideas which product is fit on their face. I like purchase cosmetic product online but I often do not have idea which color or which brand is good for my skin. Then, I have to go to local cosmetic store to try it. Sometimes, I tries a product which does not fit my skin that cause my skin became worse. Therefore, I think this technology can help people test and try the products at home instead to go to cosmetic store, such as Sephora. Also, this technology can prevent people to hurt their face from test different makeup product on their face. However, I think there is only one problem with this technology is people do not know whether the quality fit on their face because everyone’s skin type is different. So, I think this technology should get further research and I hope it could help more people who like make-up in the future.

  8. I find it useful showing up on our phones. Normally girls are main costumers of cosmetics products. In recent decades, more men products show up in some brands such as Christian Dior, Chanel, and Giorgio Armani. Cosmetic app can show makeup video and give visual look of makeup to expand its market. This can attract male costumers as well. Men can see new-in men product via this app instead of going on beauty websites. Beauty products not only have increased female costumers’ support, but also can gain more male costumer’s. As the author mentioned, ” The Makeup Genius beauty app uses facial mapping technology that transforms the screen of an Apple product into a virtual mirror. ” This is a smart idea that makes people have shopping desire on the products and help increase the sells.

  9. I like this article. I actually have tried the app and it worked okay for me. When I initially tried it, I didn’t like it because I felt like some of the make up did not show up on my skin, which I guess told me that the color wasn’t for my skin tone. Overall, I think the app is a good concept and it can help you test out products instead of spending the money on products that aren’t that good. The only thing that the app doesn’t account for, which would be almost impossible to do, is quality of the product. Certain products, especially eyeliner, can smudge or rub off and not last as long as needed.

    I looked online to see what the overall reviews were for the app on Apple users and all of the comments and reviews were positive

    Here are the reviews I found: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/makeup-genius/id871897775?mt=8

  10. This could be a very useful way of going about shopping for makeup, I know at stores it sometimes is very scary to try the “sample” products for sanitary reasons. This could be a way to change the whole online marketing scheme, for many different products at once. I also wonder if there is a way to connect this idea with 3-D printing.
    If you could connect the way organic products can be produced people altogether would be able to “print” their make up and take going out to the store out of the equation all together.
    This could also be filled out by the drone technology that amazon has launched also.
    Either way both of these technologies could be useful in the long run of the google glass, and could help invigorate the economy further.

  11. I think that this is a very cool concept and I agree that the online market will definitely increase in the future. It’s important for brands to make their online sites more user friendly and accessible. I’ve never used this application before, but I think that I would definitely look into it because I love online shopping. I also think that more makeup brands will start to use the same technology because that’s where our generation is heading. More and more people are deciding to shop online just because it’s easier. If companies started presenting more ways for the customers to see their products online and “test them out”, they would be more inclined to make online purchases.

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