Of all the strategies that businesses are able to implement, one of the fastest growing is sustainability.
We have witnessed in the last decade more and more businesses have begun to adopt more sustainable practices in their day-to-day operations.
And the sustainable aspect of business has increasingly become one of the most – if not the most – important part of choosing a business for the younger generations.
According to one survey, 75% of generation Z said that they want to see brands ensuring the safety of consumers as well as employees. As the survey analyzed, “If brands are not authentic, Gen Z will be the first to raise a red flag.”
And in terms of the environment, 73% Generation Zers are willing to pay more for sustainable products, more than any other generation. And in another study, more than half of Gen Zers (54%) have said that they would pay more in price for a sustainably made product.
And among all industries, few have emphasised their sustainability credentials more so than the beauty industry. After all, it is an industry that uses a lot of plastic. In fact, the industry produces 120 billion units of packaging each year, little of which is recycled.
More generally, only 9% of plastic is recycled, so there is much more work to do.
Reducing waste is an important milestone in businesses meeting the new expectations of their customers – and particularly their young customers.
At the forefront of modern retail approaches to tackle the sustainability issue is the power of personalization. And that’s because personalization is capable of guiding customers to the right products. And when carried out effectively, can cut down on waste while increasing brand loyalty.
In the category of tech investment and development, personalization is at the top of the list for brands and retailers. Not only is it able to help towards sustainability goals but it also enhances the communication between brand and consumer.
Around 80% of consumers said that they are more likely to buy from a brand if it offers personal digital journeys.
Personalization solutions could be divided into three types of tech: augmented reality where users can try-on products; advanced fitting rooms with augmented reality and/or virtual reality capabilities for fashion; and smart packaging.
Augmented reality
There has been a relative boom in brands adopting augmented reality. Yet using it for particular purposes remains a challenge. Particular purposes such as beauty brands recommending skin-tone-matching makeup, for example.
“I’ve been searching for an intuitive foundation-shade-finder tool since launching Cult Beauty in 2008,” said Alexia Inge, the founder of Cult Beauty, “and nothing has lived up to the experience of having a professional match you in daylight until I discovered MIME.”
“There are so many variables like light, skin tones, prevalent undertones, device, screen, OS, formula density, formula oxidation, as well as preferences for coverage levels, finish, brand and skin type.”
The CEO of MIME, a service that helps beauty brands boost their ecommerce sales, Christopher Merkle, remarked on the surge in AR tech. “Virtual try-on has exploded in the past few years, but for color cosmetics, the technology doesn’t help solve the primary customer pain point: shade matching.
“From day one, I decided to focus our company’s R&D efforts exclusively on color accuracy. I want to make sure that when the consumer receives their foundation or concealer in the mail, it’s the perfect shade once applied to their skin.”
On the website of MIME there is a functionality called Shade Finder that lets users take a photo of themselves, after which they need to answer a couple of questions, and then they can match with a makeup color that blends with their individual skin tone.
PS: ArganoStudios is one of the world’s leading digital products & experiences development & strategy teams. Contact us to see how we can work together.
