As the world endures another unprecedented month of social distancing and business restrictions, brands continue to be challenged by evolving consumer behaviors and demands. This is especially apparent in the beauty space. As an industry rooted in the concept of trial and experimentation, the limited face-to-face shopping experiences over the last three months have challenged brands to find new ways to connect and deliver on try-before-you-buy experiences. As a result, beauty brands have turned to advanced digital and beauty technology solutions as a way to re-imagine the traditional in-store and online beauty shopping experience through an innovative, interactive approach.
Perfect Corp. has long recognized the impact of virtual try-on for beauty brands, and the effects have only peaked during the recent global pandemic. By having the opportunity to experience more products in a fraction of the time, consumers are buying more when engaging with virtual try-on, and have greater confidence in their purchase decisions leading to an 8% decrease in returns and an overall more satisfied consumer shopping experience. AI and AR-powered beauty tech solutions were once reserved for brands with lofty innovation budgets, but the demand for fast, affordable beauty tech solutions from small and medium beauty brands is currently on the rise.
Indie beauty brands are met by unique challenges, such as:
- Limited distribution channels and sparse storefronts, resulting in heavy reliance on e-commerce and online marketing to drive business
- Limited product sampling capabilities due to costly and logistically difficult distribution of physical free samples
- Lack of designated IT staff to develop advanced beauty tech solutions in-house, leading to complicated and perplexing software integration
These trials and tribulations challenged Perfect Corp. to develop a cost effective solution that speaks specifically to indie beauty brands and fits within their tight innovation budgets. YouCam for Web is the self-service web plug-in for seamless integration of virtual try-on across a brand website, which has been proven to boost conversion by upwards of 2.5 times. This creative and innovative digital solution has given indie brands and retailers a chance to reimagine their e-commerce consumer journey through an interactive experience that also helps to bypass the need to physically distribute product samples.
Furthermore, in recognizing that over 70% of our indie beauty brand partners use Shopify eCommerce to power their online stores, Perfect Corp. has also been working on a Shopify-compatible solution that would make for a completely seamless integration. The updated YouCam for Web solution will help small and medium businesses to quickly enable virtual try-on throughout their Shopify online store experience. YouCam for Web integration does not require any advanced programming skills and the solution is compatible with all devices and browsers.
The hyper-realistic AI and AR virtual beauty try-ons have resulted in increased brand engagement, basket size, and sales for brands and retailers alike. For instance, Japanese brand FAVES BEAUTY, one of Perfect Corp.’s indie beauty partners, reported over one million virtual try-ons in the first 100 days since implementing YouCam for Web, which now also contributes to 40% of the incoming website traffic. The service has also proven to increase the amount of time spent onsite up to 101%, along with 20% increases in add- to-cart for the products tried on virtually, and 113% increase in conversion rate from visitors to the brands website.
In looking ahead as we return to the world outside our homes, YouCam for Web will continue to benefit both brands and consumers, by delivering a turnkey solution to help indie brands deliver on a touchless, convenient, personalized consumer shopping journey.
