It is quite a challenge for a foreign cosmetics brand to enter the Polish market and make local customers fall in love with its products. Polish customers are increasingly cautious when it comes to making purchase decisions related to cosmetics, especially skincare products. To speed up and facilitate the process of getting to know a brand, a tailored social media strategy is essential. Here are the 7 most effective social media tactics for the cosmetics industry in Poland from the point of view of an experienced marketing agency.
Table of contents:
- Visual consistency and creative content
- Video marketing
- Influencer marketing
- Cosmetics tutorials
- Competitions & giveaways
- Hashtags
- Facebook groups
1. Visual consistency and creative content
There are two industries in Poland where the appearance of the profile and the visual consistency of social media materials are extremely important. The first of these is the clothing industry; the second is the cosmetics industry. Here, Instagram is leading the way. According to the Digital Poland 2021 report conducted by Hootsuide, 60% of Polish internet users use Instagram every day (over 9 million people in total). Almost 60% of them are women – the most important audience for almost every cosmetics brand.
On Instagram, we buy with our eyes. Here, pretty pictures and colours are more important than statistics, tables and figures, as well as evoking the emotions of viewers. Posting even the most valuable content-related posts won’t work if we don’t take care of the visual coherence of the feed beforehand (uniform colour scheme, image climate, fonts, etc.). But how to stand out, when every cosmetic brand present on Instagram already knows this? Here it is worth investing in creative content, i.e. creative posts that attract the audience. The master of unconventional content on Instagram in Poland is the AA brand. It is good to learn from them:
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CYt1RVIo9BT/
2. Video marketing
Films have an unimaginably rich image potential in Poland. They can be used by literally every company in the beauty industry: from local beauty salons to international cosmetics producers. Is a tutorial on how to use cosmetics or uploading a previously prepared advertising spot to social media enough? Yes and no – it all depends on the channel, the brand profile and the audience.
If a cosmetics brand targets a young audience, it’s worth playing with the form and keeping up with the trends. We recommend using new features, platforms or video tools, such as IGTV (where the first 15 seconds are visible on the brand’s channel) or TikTok. A good practice on Polish TikTok is to show the behind-the-scenes of the brand, tutorials or answers to the most popular trends. Currently in Poland as many as 7.5 million people use TikTok, of which up to 80% are women and 40% are aged 18-24.
Source: https://www.tiktok.com/@ziajapolska
3. Influencer marketing
Nobody creates trends in the cosmetics market as strongly as influencers. Specialists call this phenomenon the “Kylie Jenner effect” – from the name of the American celebrity who, with the launch of her brand Kylie Cosmetics, started a real wave of growing influencer power in the beauty industry. In Poland, the situation is the same as overseas. Here too, it is hard to imagine a sales and image success without the help of Polish beauty influencers.
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CX0qmgtpSjO/
There are many popular types of influencer collaborations in the beauty industry – from short mentions on channels, in posts or Insta Stories, to fully brand-sponsored videos, to giveaways and competitions. Our favourite type of collaboration with beauty brands is creative tutorials on Instagram. We can safely say from experience that this is one of the most effective (and also cheaper than sponsoring a long video on YouTube) ways to promote a brand with the participation of Polish influencers.
4. Cosmetic guides
The vast majority of content published in Polish social media by brands from the beauty industry focuses on products. However, this does not mean that it is not worth giving the recipients any values or knowledge. A popular practice in Poland is to educate recipients on the basics of proper skin care, make-up or simply how to choose cosmetics for their skin type or beauty type. Such actions build an expert image, make the brand trustworthy and keep the customers coming back for more tips.
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CYwvUP7o8xo/
What types of guides are worth testing? Here are some tried and tested ideas:
- Video: tutorial on how to create make-up for an occasion with the brand’s cosmetics.
- Facebook: a tutorial series on how to put together a basic skincare routine for different skin types.
- Instagram: a series of posts on the most effective active ingredients in cosmetics.
- Insta Stories: Q&A with viewers about skincare.
5. Competitions and giveaways
Free gifts for recipients are an effective and relatively cheap way to create marketing buzz around a brand in Polish social media. Contests and giveaways (whether self-organised on brand channels or in cooperation with influencers) not only increase brand awareness and the number of followers on the profile, but also encourage potential customers to get acquainted with the offer. What’s more, they increase engagement on the profile – something that Facebook, Instagram and YouTube algorithms love.
The types of competitions we recommend for the beauty industry:
- Contests for branding on your own photos or using dedicated hashtags.
- Competitions for the most creative comment.
- Shooting of amateur competition videos.
- Giveaways and draws organised on the channels of Polish influencers.
Source: https://www.instagram.com/p/CX_2SsMKql8/
Our advice: in the case of contests, it would be better to use the experience of a Polish social media agency. Not all practices related to contests are legal in Poland. Instead of trying to save yourself from crying over spilled milk, it is safer to make sure that everything is organised according to the Polish law.
6. Hashtags
Using hashtags is a fantastic way to “tag” posts on a given topic. It makes it easier to filter content and allows you to reach a wider audience (and for free). In Polish social media, hashtags are worth using mainly on Instagram, TikTok and Twitter. Using them on YouTube or Facebook does not make much sense.
An interesting use of the power of hashtags in Polish social media marketing is also the creation of dedicated hashtags for a given brand. This makes it easier to measure the effects of a particular campaign or competition by analysing the number of posts with the hashtag used, the reach generated, and the overtone (positive, negative or neutral). Some cosmetic brands on the Polish market use the power of hashtags very well, and it is worth following their example. Just take a look at the hashtag #sprawdziłamnawłasnejskórze created by the brand Lirene.
7. Facebook groups
Although there has long been talk in Polish marketing of a gradual move away from Facebook, this platform has one key advantage: groups. A brand running its own Facebook group can prove far more beneficial than an entire company profile. It is on groups that Polish Facebook users gather today. They look there for up-to-date information on cosmetics or ingredients. A well-organised community that shares its knowledge is worth its weight in gold.
How to create a thematic Facebook group that will attract people interested in cosmetics (i.e. your potential customers)?
Remember a few rules:
- Do not spam with information related to brand products.
- Do not delete comments about competing brands or products.
- Let the group develop independently – let users respond to each other. Don’t position the brand as the all-knowing expert.
- Focus the community around a brand ambassador. It can be the brand owner or another recognisable person associated with the brand.
- Systematically share valuable knowledge and ask group members for their opinions on specific topics.
- Create themed series, e.g. Monday for care, Tuesday for Q&A, etc.
- Share beauty news and other industry inspiration.
An example of a well-run group in Poland is the hair care group “Włosing”, set up by Agnieszka Niedziałek, a Polish influencer and owner of the Hairy Tale Cosmetics brand. Currently, the group has over 450 thousand members.
Source: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wlosing
Effective running of social media for a cosmetics brand in Poland requires a great deal of knowledge – of social media, the beauty industry, as well as the specifics of the Polish market. Not all tactics which work in Great Britain or the USA will be equally effective in Polish social media. If you want to maximise the potential of social media and promote your beauty brand on the Polish market, contact us. We have hundreds of successful campaigns and long-term co-operations with cosmetic companies from all over the world!