3.10.2023
In the ever-advancing world of beauty, the word ‘success’ means many things. Sales are, and always will be, the ultimate goal for beauty brands, and defining relevant key performance indicators (KPIs) for other metrics is the best way to achieve them. After all, without achievements such as high reach and share of voice (SOV), that boost in sales might not be possible. So, what KPIs should beauty brands be tracking for new product launches? Here are six to make sure you’re measuring…
1. Media SOV
Whether it’s on influencer channels or across digital publications, the impact of media coverage can equal instant success for a new beauty launch. Going viral on TikTok has led to 23.6 million views (and counting) for Bobbi Brown’s Jones Road Beauty, while beauty editor praise for Rose Inc’s Tinted Serum has sent the base to the top of makeup lovers’ must-have lists.
But, while looking at your number of media mentions in isolation can be useful, observing your media SOV is a far more robust indicator of success. This allows you to see how your coverage matches up with the rest of the market, so you can understand just how much buzz your latest product launch has gained. By working with a beauty-specific media monitoring partner, putting your coverage into context and finding your SOV figure becomes a simpler task.
2. Influencer Campaign Reach
When arranging an influencer campaign, using a specialised service is key to identifying top talent for your beauty brand. The right tool will allow you to check their average reach, as well as their audience demographic before you collaborate. This way, you can set realistic goals ahead of the product launch. Then, mid- and post-campaign, you should ensure you’re measuring the resulting reach to see if it matches up with the expected figures. Equally, it’s important to check the demographic aligned with your product as hoped. Simply reaching the right people – and many of them – is a sign of success in itself.
3. Etailer SOV
If you choose to promote your new product with a co-op advertising campaign on a retailer site, you should be aiming for a high share of voice to ensure you stand out amongst your competitors. With an etail tracking tool, you can analyse your share during and after the campaign, so you can see if your launch presence is greater than that of your competitors. Not only is this a strong KPI, but it’s also an actionable insight that you can use to negotiate future high-performance campaigns. Once you know a placement delivers the results you hoped for, you’ll have a clear idea of what to aim for every time.
4. Campaign Timelines
Brands like Drunk Elephant know what it means to gain media buzz before a product comes out. Their Babyfacial treatment was welcomed with a lengthy waiting list after the likes of Vogue and Glamour generated hype around its impending arrival. Make sure you start your media tracking well in advance of the launch and view data by day, week and month to see where the peaks are. Overlaying key media buzz periods with sales figures makes for a compelling report, and allows you to see the impact sneak peeks have on your sales. Then, for the full launch, observe what your competitors are or were promoting around the same time. If they’ve launched a similar product, you’ll want to see how this impacted your sales to give your KPIs greater context.
5. Retailer Availability
In stores and online, it’s crucial you have enough stock for all of your retailers. If products sell out too fast – or simply aren’t on shelves at all – this will have a direct effect on sales. Ensure you’re analysing stock throughout the initial launch period and beyond, so that you can understand if and why sales haven’t performed as expected. You can also use stock data to plan for future beauty launches, as it helps you better predict the volume of SKUs you will need to keep shelves well stocked.
6. Product Sales
It goes without saying that a high volume of sales is an indicator of success. After all, it’s the end goal for many beauty brands, and you’ll likely have a clear idea of your goal revenue. Having this figure in mind is important, but so too is targeting a high-value market share (VMS), as this tells you whether you have competitive advantage in the industry. Layer this data with your media and etail data to gain a clear view of just how successful your product launch is. It’s this level of analysis that helps you refine future strategies for beauty launches that soar.
Up next: Discover how to automate data collection for discounts on your beauty products.
