Beauty Brands and the Challenge of Targeting Female Audiences through Influencer Marketing

Beauty brands targeting female audiences through influencer marketing may be inadvertently reaching a predominantly male audience, a recent study by KlugKlug has revealed. Despite the common practice of partnering with female influencers specializing in beauty and lifestyle, only about 12-15% of beauty influencers have a 50% female audience on Instagram.

Arpan Soni, Founding member and VP of Creators Management at Iplix Media, explained that while beauty brands are aware of this challenge, they still prefer collaborating with female influencers due to the perception that it aligns better with their brand image. However, when influencers have a majority male following, brands may opt to use their content for advertising purposes rather than direct collaboration.

Soni also noted a trend among micro-creators to maintain a more balanced gender distribution among their followers, which could help mitigate the issue of targeting the wrong audience. To address this challenge, brands are advised to conduct detailed analysis and set clear expectations when choosing influencers to collaborate with.

This study highlights the importance of understanding the audience composition of influencers and making informed decisions to effectively engage the desired consumer base. Beauty brands must carefully consider the demographics, follower characteristics, and engagement metrics of potential influencers to ensure successful partnerships.