VR Fever Grips The Cosmetic Industry

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VR Fever Grips The Cosmetic Industry
Recently we spoke about how fashion is taking a
dip into the ever immersive Virtual Reality
technology. For us, the achievement was marked
with designer Manish Malhotra bringing Indias
first ever virtual reality fashion show, but
abroad they have taken a step higher. While likes
of Elle magazine have already done a VR cover
shoot for readers to watch on Google Cardboard,
now it is the time for cosmetics brand Smashbox
to take the Virtual Reality plunge.
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Every day we get to hear about a new brand
getting on board with this emerging tech, to
immerse their customers in their unique story.
When done badly, it can look amateurish, but when
done so well as in the case of Smashbox can
really boost the brands standing. Smashbox, a
brand acquired by one of the industry leaders,
Estée Lauder takes its next big step to elevate
its digital marketing. It is one of those rare
beauty brands which does not do print
advertising. In 2013, they started their Love
Me campaign that invited fans to express what
Love Me meant to them on Facebook, which was
then projected live on a digital billboard over
Hollywood Boulevard during the week of the
Oscars.   So, a brand with the history of
successful digital campaigns is here with a new
Virtual Reality one and we are super excited to
unleash it for you.
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In a new 360-degree Virtual Reality video
Smashbox invites users inside their Studios, the
place, where the brand was born. Numerous iconic
photo shoots have taken place in this
25,000-square-foot space in Culver City, Los
Angeles since 1990 and then published in leading
glossy magazines from Vanity Fair to Rolling
Stones. We are already accustomed to the behind
the scenes (BTS) approach of showing a hidden
life of a brand, however, when the same BTS
approach is adopted in VR, it becomes way more
exciting. With such a VR video, viewers feel that
they are physically present at the venue and it
takes the engagement with the brand to a whole
new level. As Ginny Chien, executive director of
global digital and consumer marketing at
Smashbox, says, its their way to show the
audience that their history is authentic as this
studio brand
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This VR video tour begins with brands global
lead makeup artist, together with models showing
what their ultra-fashionable life is like on a
daily basis. They transfer viewers from one room
of Smashbox Studios to another to take a glimpse
at behind-the-scenes photo sessions with models.
Smashbox products are gently fit in the video. So
instead of outright advertising, they sort of use
a teaching approach to raise brand awareness. As
Ricardo Diaz, the creator of the video admits,
They want to get the history story out in a
non-cheesy way. Its more than makeup its a
photography studio.
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The video is published on YouTube and also
cross-promoted on other social media channels
like Twitter and Instagram. What is more
interesting is their plan to send across Google
Cardboard viewers to 400 influencers.   Seems
like Smashbox has taken the research, which says
that 53 more likely buy from brands using VR
than from those who doesnt, pretty seriously.
And in this case, there are high chances that
their effort will pay off with newer and younger
buyers.