5 Simple Reasons Why Glossier is a Marketing Genius

Blog Post 11-11/12/2020

5 Simple Reasons Why Glossier is a Marketing Genius

Glossier is one of the most-buzzed about brands in the beauty world. They have set a new standard for building brand loyalty and meaningful customer relationships. Emily Weiss, Founder and CEO of Glossier and blog Into the Gloss, turned her avid readership into a hugely successful e-commerce brand. Glossier is home to a tight edit of beauty and skincare products like Milky Jelly Cleanser, Boy Brow (which had a waitlist when it launched) and Cloud Paint (a blendable, cream blush). But cosmetics aside, Glossier is also the proud owner of die-hard internet fanbase. The brand’s rise to fame lends itself to a few questions: How did Glossier transition from a blog to a billion dollar beauty empire? The answer is five key attributes that make Glossier a marketing genius.

1. The Power of Community

Emily Weiss started Into the Gloss in 2010, a beauty blog where she could write about the real-world beauty routines of fashion insiders and celebrities. Having previously interned at Teen Vogue, Weiss had inside knowledge of the beauty routines of these mega-influencers, like Karlie Kloss. This would go on to become the hugely successful, Top Shelf column. “Top Shelf” or “Top Shelfie” is one of Glossier’s best known contributions to the skin care world. It simply means your go-to skincare products, and a “top shelfie” is a photo of your skincare products (presumably on a shelf). 

This column along with other relatable beauty content created a buzz around Into the Gloss and subsequently a loyal following. Beauty enthusiasts who discussed what they were looking for in products and formulas overwhelmed the blog with comments and engagement. Emily Weiss stored this conversational tone and direct access to potential consumers for what would come next—a brand. Before the term direct-to-consumer became a trend, Glossier found itself at the forefront of one of the most important brand and ecommerce shifts in the last decade. 

Glossier harnessed the community built from Into the Gloss and turned it into a brand made by the people, for the people. This unique origin story is what makes Glossier so different from other beauty and skincare brands. Before Glossier no other beauty brand built up a wildly loyal following before the brand even launched. This genius strategy allowed Glossier to become the Unicorn company, a private company with a valuation over $1 billion, as it’s known today. 

2. Co-Create & Partner with Shoppers

Glossier famously started a Slack channel where it invited some of its most engaged Into the Gloss readers and fans to participate and chat directly with the brand. This is how the product feedback loop was born. 

Glossier SVP of Marketing Ali Weiss told Wired regarding the Slack channel: “You can have people on the Glossier team who are part of that Slack channel actually in there, listening, and saying ‘OK, the most requested product was a cream blush, so that’s what we’re going to do’ or ‘Here was the opinion on what the cleanser landscape is.’” 

The Glossier brand launched with 4 skincare staples called the Phase 1 set consisting of a cleanser, face mist, priming moisturizer and lip balm. Most notably, all aspects of the Milky Jelly Cleanser were created with community input. The brand details the account of how Milky Jelly Cleanser was born in an Into the Gloss article. The cleanser began as a separate article where Emily Weiss asked her loyal Into the Gloss readers for advice and feedback on their ideal cleanser. Lindsey Manas, Physical Product Coordinator shared, “The story was huge. Almost 400 comments—all of which we recorded and consolidated and sent right to our chemist. There were key words like ‘mild,’ ‘glowy,’ ‘moist.’ That became the checklist for everything we wanted in the final product.” And just like that the iconic Milky Jelly Cleanser was born. 

Partnering with your customers is a brilliant way to have a meaningful and impactful two-way conversation. Involving loyalists in the product development conversation changed the paradigm for how a skincare brand could act and behave. Emily Weiss found that Glossier could be a brand that creates products that both work and address consumer feedback. Glossier set the new standard of working with potential customers rather than telling them what skincare products they need. After all, there's nothing better than being “heard” by your favorite brand.

3. Leveraging Influencers and Fans

Glossier established itself as the ultimate cool-girl lifestyle and brand. Even their merch— including cult-favorite Original Pink Hoodie— sells out! So how does Glossier leverage its brand loyalists? They turn them into ambassadors, of course! 

Ahead of specific products launches, Glossier begins to seed the new product to their Glossier Ambassadors. Instead of launching the new product on their owned channels, Glossier lets their loyalists “break the news” by seeding them product and stipulating that they must share a photo related to the product on Instagram. While this approach is risky, it allows the brand to truly live up to the quality of their products, not just the hype. 

The launch of Cloud Paint (a cream blush) is another way Glossier leveraged influencers in a brilliant way. Glossier partnered with well-known makeup artists and seeded them this new product to use on their celebrity clients for the 2017 Oscars. In a genius campaign, Glossier used the excitement and buzz around the Oscars red carpet to debut their newest product. As the celebrities were appearing on the red, Glossier would repost a photo of the celebrity saying they wore Cloud Paint. Celebrities like Chrissy Teigen, Reese Witherspoon and Taraji P. Henson graced the red carpet adorned with a flush of Cloud Paint. Fans also saw a glimpse of the Cloud Paint packaging which is beautifully designed and Instagram-worthy. 

Glossier’s entire aesthetic is designed to be Instagram-friendly. From the product packaging to the in-store experience, the brand thinks about every little detail. Glossier even ships your products in pink bubble wrap pouches which have gained their own cult-following over the years. The travel-friendly packaging is so popular they even sell it on its own. Glossier tapped into Millennial pink, the hottest color of the decade combined with minimalist aesthetics to create Instagram-worthy products. Before other beauty and skincare brands cared about being “Instagrammable,” Glossier created packaging that inspired fans to share on social media.

4. Authenticity is Key

In the highly filtered digital world, being real is a breath of fresh air. But that’s easier said than done. Glossier always champions real beauty and embraced flaws and imperfections as normal. Glossier’s mantra remains the same since the beginning: Skin first. Makeup second. Riding the early wave of the skincare boom, Glossier prioritized skincare in a way that is friendly and accessible. And that includes using real people, not models, in their ad campaigns.    

Models featured in Glossier’s brand campaigns are typically sourced from Instagram. Glossier isn’t looking for models who wear Instagram makeup or use heavy filters. They’re looking for real people who are relatable and authentic. Model Coco Baudelle tells Ellehow Emily Weiss approached her to model for Glossier through Instagram DM’s, "I thought I was the opposite of what the modeling world is looking for. I'm short, petite in every way, I have a weird tooth." This is another attribute that makes Glossier different from other brands, they aren’t looking for the industry’s idea of a beauty model. The brand bypassed using traditional modelling agencies in favor of scouting real girls on Instagram.

5. Experiences Above All

When it comes to the in-store experience Glossier kind of worked backwards. The brand established it’s online presence well before creating a brick and mortar. Glossier began the journey to brick and mortar by dabbling in pop-up shops and showrooms. Trialling the Glossier experience by experimenting and figuring out what works and what doesn’t work when it comes to a retail presence.  

Building off a digital-first mindset the Glossier retail experience integrated and translated elements from the online shop into real life. Store associates who are called Editors are dressed in pink jumpsuits and carry an ipad which is how you purchase products in-store. Instead of a traditional check out, Glossier avoids long lines by enabling shoppers to quickly check out via any store associate. Once you place your order and pay, your order is quickly processed in the in-house stock room and your name is called when your items are ready to be picked up. 

Of course we can’t forget to mention that every aspect of a Glossier showroom is designed to be Instagrammable. From the way the product is laid out, to the Millennial Pink walls and the scent of a Byredo Burning Rose candle, every last detail is accounted for. 

According to a Bouncepad case study, Emily Weiss revealed that the “New York showrooms generate more sales revenue per square foot than the average Apple store.” The proof of Glossier’s brick and mortar success is seen here and in the fact that they have opened 2 other permanent locations (London and Los Angeles) in addition to New York and have launched countless pop up shops in cities like Boston, Atlanta and Toronto. 

The Glossier Difference

Community and social sharing is at the heart of Glossier’s DNA and their meteoric rise from blog into a billion dollar brand is something to be recognized. Glossier’s ability to leverage its fanbase is unprecedented but in return, they give their fans shoppers something worthy of attention: quality products. 

Additionally, going directly to customers for feedback and product insight is the most effective way to be successful. Through the approach of talking with customers instead of talking at customers, Glossier built a brand that is universally admired. This unique approach doesn’t seem groundbreaking but prior to Glossier’s launch no other beauty brand operated in this manner.  

Glossier is a best-in-class example of how to tap into the power of community to build a strong and loyal fan base. Every milestone in Glossier’s journey offers a learning moment for companies looking to emulate a similar community-powered brand.