The Power of the Hashtag: E.l.f. Cosmetics' Social Media Revival
E.l.f., a cosmetics company founded in 2004 by then NYU student Joseph Shamah, his father Alan, and beauty professional Scott Vincent Borba, found its niche in the market by creating and selling high-quality cosmetics at incredibly affordable prices against their competitors. At its inception, the brand was exclusively an online business, making it one of the first of its kind. The same year, Glamour magazine featured the brand's products, and with that publication came brand recognition that allowed it to grow and expand in its industry. E.l.f.’s inclusive approach to makeup allowed it to resonate with a diverse consumer base, and establishing itself as a vegan and cruelty-free brand allowed it to create a loyal following.
E.l.f. continued to grow in size, the number of products it offered, and revenue up until 2017, when the company saw a plateau in sales. During this time, the brand faced much competition from other prestige beauty brands. Despite e.l.f.’s high-quality products, it competed with high-end names like Kim Kardashian West Beauty, Anastasia Beverly Hills, and Fenty Beauty, among the most popular that year.
To combat this, e.l.f. decided to invest more money into their advertising efforts. In 2017, the company spent a total of 3% of its total fiscal sales on marketing and advertising; by the following year, it had increased this to 17%, along with its social media presence and Instagram following to 37 million with the help of 50 micro-influencers.
In 2019, however, everything changed. With the rise in popularity of the then-new to the mainstream social media app TikTok e.l.f. saw an opportunity to target a new segment in the market, Gen Z. And so the #EYESLIPSFACE challenge campaign was launched.
Based on the fact that a lot of Gen Z consumers were not familiar with the brand, the #EYESLIPSFACE challenge set out to change that and generate brand awareness and recognition among this new target segment. E.l.f. was once more a leader in its industry by becoming one of the first beauty brands to launch a TikTok campaign during that time, resulting in one of the most viral campaigns ever to hit the app. Today, the hashtag “eyeslipsface” is directly attributed to the brand and has over 10.2 Billion views, eliciting unpaid participation in the trend from celebrities like Lizzo, Terry Crews, and Reese Witherspoon.
What really set this campaign apart from those that came before it and those that tried to follow up is the use of original music. On a platform where major brands were trying to make content using already trending sounds, e.l.f.’s campaign became the first one to create a branded original song instead of using licensed music. The song itself went viral, trending on Apple Music and Spotify, entering Spotify’s Viral 50 playlist at the global level, as well as in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Netherlands, Belgium, UK, and Poland, earning it 30 million streams outside of social media. The song became so popular online that in a partnership with Vevo and Republic Records, the brand produced and released a music video that now has 2.6 Million views on YouTube. The campaign resulted in a 57% increase in followers on TikTok at the time, with a new total of 288K followers.
In the aftermath of the campaign, there are a few things that have led to the retention of this new following, as well as the renewed rapid increase in popularity and sales. One is the brand’s reputation toward social responsibility. E.l.f.’s track record regarding animal testing has always been consistent, and Gen Z resonates with this, with 50% of Gen Z consumers saying that they would not purchase a product from a brand that is not certified to be cruelty-free. Another thing that e.l.f. can provide them with is affordability.
In a study, Business Insider found that price is the primary motivator among Gen Z when it comes to purchasing. As a brand, e.l.f. has always kept prices low while still delivering a high-quality product. Finally, one of the most essential advantages that the brand has communicated to Gen Z is that e.l.f. is willing to invest in research and development of budget-friendly alternatives to high-end beauty products.
The “dupe” trend is another TikTok hit. While not exclusive to the e.l.f. brand, users wasted no time in including their products when making their dupe comparisons. E.l.f. products like the Brow Lift gel priced at $6, Whoa Glow tinted sunscreen priced at $14, the Power Grip Primer priced at $10, and the Halo Glow Liquid Filter priced at $14 were all considered great dupes for the high-end counterparts like the Brow Freeze product by Anastasia Beverly Hills priced at $23, the Supergoop Glow Screen priced at $38, the Hydro Grip Primer by Milk priced at $38, and Charlotte Tillbury’s Flawless Filter priced at $49.
The hashtag “elfdupe” on TikTok has over 404.4 Million views and is overwhelmed with positive videos from ordinary, non-paid users encouraging other makeup lovers on the platform to buy e.l.f. Products. And as the brand gets ready to roll out its new line of lip oils, it doesn’t look like the hype will die down soon.
