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Real Techniques new Bold Metals collection: Social Media Monitoring 2

CURRENT METRICS

Comparing to previous metrics:

GoogleTrends

IceRocket

SocialMention

According to Google Trends Bold Metals collecting has rapid decline in interest. On recent IceRocket chart there is a high spike some time around March 8. Lats take a look at what happened then. There was this picture posted on Instagram at that time:

The first thing you see is a pile of Real Techniques original line make-up brushed. But if you look closer or read the description - these brushes have Sam and Nic's signatures on them. These are going to be hidden on the shelves in stores worldwide for fans to find them. By the number of likes we can say that people are excited already.
As we can seen, campaign is starting to slowly die out. There is an evident decline in almost all statistical data.There are less mention, less hash-tags. However there is a more positive sentiment now than it was three weeks ago.

COMPANY’S GEOGRAPHY

Using Alexa.com to analyze company’s website I found some interesting and surprising statistics -website is 3.5 times more popular in U.S. then it is in UK. However Google trends show that Real Techniques search volume index in U.S. is 25, while in UK it’s 87. Do UK people buy Real Techniques products somewhere else? Do U.S. people go straight to the company's website? Unfortunately these questions I can't answer. Yet.

TARGET AUDIENCE, DEMOGRAPHICS AND FEEDBACK

In their new product launch video on YouTube Sam and Nic claim that Bold Metals is a premium brush line at higher price, and that is exactly what they wanted to create. They also make a promise that their original brush line, which is the best at its price range, is not going anywhere and will be added with new brushes.

Real Techniques original brush line is known to be budget friendly. Therefor the main target audience war a mix of teens, students and then professionals or older ladies who have more low to average income. So there have been a gap in the market and Sam and Nic exploited it.

Some people have been complaining about the fact that Bold Metals brushes are too expensive for being drug store brushes, but the fact is that they are not drug store make-up brushes, they are premium/high-end brushes that are being sold in drugstores.

Higher price point is pretty much self-explanatory as this line is specifically targeting a more professional, higher end demographic. The brushes are priced higher for a reason – they are of a better quality, they have weighted handles for better application, feature new sleek design.

The problem is that people are used to the fact that Real Techniques brushes are reasonably priced and suitable for everyone. So with new Bold Metals line people were expecting the same price range.

It may be concluded that Real Techniques make-up brushes – both originals and new Bold Metals – are targeting women (as seen on snap shot) of all age and income level.

Alexa.com

 

BRAND SWOT ANALYSIS 

Strengths	Weaknesses
-          Experienced in beauty industry; -          Good reputation among web community; -          High quality products; -          Vegan/cruelty free make-up brushes made of synthetic material Taklon; -          Wide price range; -          Product presence online including Amazon and in stores; -          Instructional videos on the products; -          Friendly attitude to customers/viewers.	-           Poor marketing campaigns in the rest of the world (besides UK and U.S.); -          Lack of present on big live beauty related events; -          Very few collaborations with other brands/YouTubers.
Opportunities	Threats
-          A lot of marketing ideas and opportunities (as it is a rather new company and has its reliable audience); -          Upcoming events can widen the targeting audience.	-          Rather intense competition in the market of beauty products; -          A great number of new brands appearing as the years go by; -          Possible reduction in sales in Russia effected by sanctions.

HOW CAN REAL TECHNIQUES GET MORE POPULARITY AND CUSTOMERS IN U.S. AND GLOBAL MARKET?

Beauty Conventions

The fact that Real Techniques has already built up their target audience doesn’t mean they can’t widen it. Empowering your customers and fans on social media websites is great, but nothing can be better than real life interactions (or both combined). "Bandwagon" effect plays a huge role here as well! When people see something they are passionate about in real life, whether it’s an object or a person or both, they experience unity with them and a sense of belonging. Imagine seeing one of your favorite actors in real life – you will probably scream with joy and when you will come back home you would more likely want to watch a movie with this actor. In our case – get home and buy some make-up brushes and tools. The same affect happens with our beautiful ladies – San and Nic. People attending beauty conventions and events are probably the most active buyers of beauty products, but at the same time – the more critical ones. Luckily the Real Techniques products can stand fire (not real fire though)!

In fact, Real Techniques holds its own events - #RTRoadshow (Real Techniques Roadshow). 

Company invites to attend the events where people can meet Sam & Nic, shop Real Techniques brushes, and win great prizes. The roadshow started in April 2014 and will end in April/May 2015. 17 events total - 8 in U.S. and 9 in Europe. 4 events left – all of them in U.S. Next upcoming event – contest, meet&great and high tea + consultation for the winner in Chicago, IL. 

the map shows pictures uploaded with  #RTRoadshow

Recommendations:

Although it’s good that Real Techniques is holding its own events, but as of U.S. market it’s probably not very helpful. Instead the following could be a smart thing to do:
-   Collaborate with other brands that are popular in the U.S.
-   Attend big beauty events like BeautyCon

BeautyCon was opened to the public for the first time in 2013. Unlike other trade show events it is catering to online personality market, mostly teen-girls. Attendance has increased from a few thousand attendees at BeautyCon LA 2013, to over 7,000 in 2014, with over 22 countries represented.

Should I mention that these kinds of real live events have a huge impact on social media – vblogs, blog posts, Instagram pictures, new hashtags, tweets etc. Speaking of YouTube, the number of vlogs and hauls from BeautyCon grow correlatively with the growing number of attendees –7.7 million views on YouTube in 2013 nearly doubled in 2014 with 15.5 million views.

There are eight upcoming cosmetic and beauty productsindustry trade fairs in U.S. this year, besides BeatyCon. This year BeautyCon has already made it in Dallas, TX. Three upcoming events will take place in LA, NY and London (!).

YouTube promotion through collaborations and sponsored videos

Even though Real Techniques has a good presence on YouTube platform it doesn’t mean that’s enough. There are some great marketing steps that can be done via YouTube.

Recommendations:
-   Collaborate with other YouTubers (tutorials etc.)
-   Give out free products to beauty gurus to make reviews on
-   Spread some discount coupons to the viewers

YouTubers are really good at spreading word of mouth as they have got some influence on people watching their videos. Some of the most popular beauty gurus have millions of subscribers. Both big and small companies give away discount coupon codes on their products though YouTubers. This is also a good idea for Real Techniques to try.

Search Engines Promotion

Real Techniques appear in “natural” search results for “make-up brushes”:

Google – 1 page

Bing–5 page

According to statistics, Google is the most used search engine in UK, U.S. and the world in general. However statistics show that Bing is quite popular in U.S. and it has more sponsored links appeared in search results than Google.

Recommendations:

Considering doing promotions on Google or/and Bing might be a good idea for the company.

Highlight vegan factor

The fact that Real Techniques brushes are cruelty free and therefor vegan may be appealing to a big part of world population. The bristles of Real Techniques brushes are made of Taklon - synthetic material. Taklon has many benefits: 
- cruelty free, 
- more sanitary, 
- provides better application of products.

Recommendations:

Emphasize the fact that their brushes are made out of synthetic material and yet are as soft as if made out of real animal fur. Use it in campaigns.

It's time for a Digital Detox!

“Groundswell technologies are exploding. They're cheap and easy to create and improve, they tap easily into the Internet advertising economy, and they connect people who naturally want to connect.” (274 Groundswell)

All of it sounds good and when you first think about the pros of the groundswell you don't seam to find any cons. But sadly, it might be rather devastating. The groundswell has already embedded within every activity in the real world.(275)

There is no doubt that social media with all its entertainment and communication opportunities can cause an addiction. And just like with any other types of addiction, sooner or later there comes a concern and then a detox.

Social media addiction can cause FoMO which stands for Fear of Missing Out which I've already talked about in one of my reсent posts. And just like with anything else in the Universe there is an opposite phenomenon called JoMO - Joy of Missing Out. While term FoMO has been out there for quite a long time, JoMO appeared rather recently in 2012. The term was first mentioned by a blogger Anil Dash.

Joy of Missing Out: enjoying what you’re doing in the here and now and not on social media broadcasting or seeing what everybody else is doing.(urbandictionary.com)

JoMO touched the right chord. The Huffington Post has named 2014 “The Year of JOMO”. JoMO became so popular and has been extensively discussed, that in 2013 term 'digital detox' was registered in Oxford dictionary.

Lets take a look at how people in different countries give up on the Internet and cell phones in order to come back to “normal” lifestyle.

Wisdom 2.0

Large IT-companies were first who experienced information overload. Google for example is practicing silent lunches and has meditation rooms for its employees; Facebook and Twitter made meditative practices essential part of weekly work routine. Digital corporations exchange their practices resisting digital-slavery on annual Wisdom 2.0 conference held in winter in California. Conference headliners are top managers of LinkedIn, Twitter, Cisco, Ford, spiritual instructors and philosophers. First Wisdom 2.0 conference counted 200 attendants, by 2013 the number reached 1700 attendants.

Hamburgers vs. Facebook friends

Burger King held anti-digital Whopper® Sacrifice campaign under the slogan “Friendship is strong but the whopper is stronger”. Burger King promised to grant a free whooper to everyone who would delete 10 friends via Whopper® Sacrifice app and announce it on Facebook. After 233 906 friends sacrificed Facebook closed the app as it contradicted its policy.

Off-line camps

Two summers in a row hundreds of people come to Camp Grounded located in California to do a digital detox. Any kind of digital devices including photo and video cameras are prohibited here. Instead there are lake swimming, talent contests, songs near fire and other scout activities. There are no real names and work talks. No fast food, alcohol and drugs. No kids. Instead of Facebook there is a face art, instead of email – normal mail box.

No Wi-Fi hotels

Some hotels now ask their guests to leave all electronic devises on the reception desk or offer special digital-detox programs. For example some hotels in Caribbean Sea offer a seven-day detox program developed by Department of Tourism and psychologist Louise Gillespie Smith. The program provides couches helping people to overcome the demolition.

No cell phones party

For those who suffer from FoMO and get a good hold of their cell phones even on a party Singapore geeks invented Social Rehab. It's a kit including color lens glasses (replacing Instagram), “Like” stickers, note cards to write down tweets and sketch pads. The kit can be used in everyday life and on special Social Rehab parties.

Anti-tech clothes and accessory

The Way We See The World - NY product design consultancy came up with the idea of creating a tech accessory called Phonekerchief. It's a cover for your cell phone blocking incoming calls and texts. This invention aims to help people not to get distracted by the technology during person to person communications.

Japanees designer Kunihiko Morinaga created a line of clothing that blocks cell phone signals allowing people wearing it to focus on physical life.

Apps vs. apps

There are quite a few digital detox apps:

Headspace – aims to better your life quality and teach how to fight stress and tiredness with simple yet effective meditation lessons;

Keepmeout – temporarily blocks access to social media websites;

Digital Detox App – shuts down your electronic device for a set period of time;

Accountkiller – provides links to instructions on how to delete accounts from all popular networks;

DeleteMe – deletes all personal information from some biggest social networks including contact information and photos.

As said in the book “when the groundswell surrounds you like a cocoon, when you breath it like air and depend on it always, the world will feel very different.” (275) And it already does feel different! It's time to make a right decision whether to dive into the world of technology with our heads or learn how to know when enough is enough. What are your thoughts?

Real Techniques new Bold Metals collection: Social Media Monitoring 1

INTRODUCTION

The majority of present companies and brands start with their business or production first and then join social media. But now it is possible to do visa versa. This was a road map for Real Techniques. Real Techniques is a company which main product is brushes. As the company claims their brushes combine high-tech materials with innovative design. Its creators started with social network and only then came up with the idea of creating their own product. Above all things sisters wanted to help those women who are not quite sure where to start to easily choose right tools for doing their makeup.

HISTORY

Two persons who stand behind Real Techniques brand are sisters Samantha and Nicola Chapman. They grew up surrounded by makeup as their aunt was a top makeup artist in London, working with clients like David Bowie and Princess Diana. Their mum was makeup-involved too and promoted girls love for makeup. Sam and Nic chose makeup artistry was as their career path.The older sister Sam attended school for professional makeup artistry and worked on counters in London and started her career as a freelance artist. She worked with brands like MAC, Estee Lauder, and Chanel. Nic was following a similar path. Over time they both had built a reputation in the industry as respected makeup artists.By chance a YouTube channel Pixiwoo was created and latter in 2010 when it had reached around 30,000 subscribers, the idea behind Real Techniques began to formulate. The Real Techniques brush collection was launched in 2011. Brush quality was paired with professional, interesting and fun education from Sam and Nic. The launch was a success.Today the brand is presented in the US, UK and around the world. 

MARKETING CAMPAIGN 

This January about 8 weeks ago Real Techniques launched a new product - Bold Metals collection which is a new permanent Spring 2015 Collection of brushes featuring fiber bristles and a new gorgeous precious metal colors. The new line of luxury metal brushes was at first available on the company's website and exclusively at Ulta.

SOCIAL MEDIA OVERVIEW

Website

The company's website was launched in 2011 is very easy to use.There is a link to the blog page right next to the new product campaign page and videos collection. It almost calls customers to take part in discussions and leave their feedback, and also provides easy excess to the new product which is being actively mentioned in social media now.

The website is mainly devoted to products and, first of all, it is an on-line shop. 

There are almost no comments on the blog page of the site. I think because that the same posts are on their Facebook page and it is more convenient to use for commenting.

Videos collection has a very convenient feature - all videos have direct links to products used in them.

YouTube

Pixiwoo channel:

Subscribers: 1,784,146
Views: 222,442,991

Realtechniques channel:

Subscribers: 165,853 
Views: 7,477,496
In 2008 Sam started a YouTube channel called Pixiwoo. At the time she was pregnant and had moved to her hometown of Norwich to raise her daughters. When a friend asked how to get a smoky eye, the first Pixiwoo video was created. The channel had been becoming popular and people began request specific medias. Sam and Nic began to collaborate. They were pioneers of a new platform of makeup artistry.

In 2011 they started a channel specially for their product line, unlike Pixiwoo this channel features only videos with Real Techniques products.

Both channels have very positive feedback from the viewers.

YouTube is also the place where people tend to leave their complaints and Real Techniques answers them:

Facebook

Likes: 280,763
The page was started in 2011 with the launching of the product and is still one of the most popular places among many social media users. Facebook page is actively using groundswell engagement inviting people to discussions and asking for their opinion.

Twitter

Tweets: 16.8K
Following: 549
Followers: 58.3K
Favorites: 3,178
Real Techniques Twitter page is not very popular comparing to Instagram. Because clearly there is more to show then to tell about something like makeup brushes. The company use to announce about upcoming events, engage people in conversations asking them basic questions and tell them when a new video is uploaded on their YouTube channel. 

Instagram

Posts: 343
Followers: 208K
Following: 252
Instagram is one of the most popular company's social media page along with Facebook. It is very visual and gives a good perception on the products and campaigns.I like the fact that it contains both professional and day-to-day photosю But it is still very professional creating a main focus on their products.

Pinterest

Boards: 20
Pins: 443
Followers: 3,975
Following: 83
Real Techniques pinterest page has boards devoted to different topics, such as: our brushes, storage solutions, how to: contouring, runway to real etc.

Google+

Followers: 1,534
Views: 580,085
Probably the least popular company's social media page. It has mainly reposts from YouTube and links to their website. You can notice that some of the pictures look like they've been taken from the magazine (the ones with products and numbers next to them), that is probably because right now sisters are working on their digital magazine.

CURRENT METRICS

GoogleTrends

IceRocket

SocialMention

The new campaign also influenced the company's website popularity and increased the number visitors.

Compete

CONCLUSION

As you can see from above charts Bold Metals collection is quite popular. It is being very actively discussed on social media websites. This of no surprise, this is the second brush line by Real Techniques. People wanted something new and exciting since the first brush entered the market in 2011. The main and most important product feature - quality is still the same and even better, and of course company still uses high-tech materials. The new design is more slick and luxurious and very different from the old one.

Can't stop checking your social media accounts? Fill anxious about missing out? - You have FoMO.

Do you ever find yourself worried that everybody else is doing something fun without you? 

You may have FoMO.

 FoMO stands for Fear of Missing Out, it is a psychological phenomenon that may have devastating effect on your life. Andrew Przybylski defines FoMO as "a pervasive apprehension that others might behaving rewarding experiences from which one is absent, FoMO is characterized by the desire to stay continually connected with what others are doing".
 However Andrew Przybylski was not the first one who define FoMO, Dan Herman was. He observed this phenomenon back in 90's and was the first to come up with the term. He's been listening to consumers who "...expressed a clearly fearful attitude towards the possibility of failing to exhaust their opportunities". It appeared to be a new phenomenon  in customer psychology. Later on he began researching FoMO more as a socio-cultural phenomenon and as a personality factor. And it is no wonder that Dan Herman inspired other scientists to study this new phenomenon.

 Surely enough social media and social networks in particular are a good thing as "they connect people who've moved apart even as they enable people who live close together to keep up with one another...help to create new relationships" (23 Groundswell). But sometimes there is a dark side. And it is FoMO. It has been out there for probably forever, but now with all these social media websites at our fingertips we may suffer from it more then ever before. If you are an active social media user there are chances you may experience FoMO. And when you miss out on some important peace of information your level of stress and anxiety jumps up.

 It may sound naive or even impossible, but people should probably learn how to use social networks and on-line technologies moderately. It is important to know the limit as an overuse of social media is an addiction which is just like any other kind of addiction. It also a good thing to identify your priorities. What is more important to you, what party your BFF crashed without you or the fact that your project deadline is tomorrow.

 If you are curious what your FoMO rate is, you can take an online questionnaire that was used by Andrew Przybylski and other scientists in their study featured in the article "Motivational, emotional, and behavioral correlates of fear of missing out".

 And you may end up with this result, just like I did:

According to latest studies around 70% of all adults in developed countries suffer from FoMO.

 Stop FOMO! Fight it! Figuring out your own priorities will help you stop feeling overwhelmed by what other people do without you. To fight FoMO Andrew Przybylski recommends “knowing not just what your plans are for Saturday night, but what are your reasons for wanting to do that thing on Saturday night [...] why the heck you’re going out in the first place.” Ones you understand what you want you will be less bothered by what other people do.