MEDIA RELEASE
Distribution Monday 09 May 2011
The Hazards of Health and Beauty Marketing
The average Australian woman today is health conscious, well-informed and doesn’t buy into the pressure society puts on her in the never-ending quest for an unachievable image…or does she? Welcome to the contradictory world of health and beauty marketing.
Insights released today from “The Woman in the Mirror”; the latest research report from SheSpot, a division of the Kidspot group of companies, reveals that:
- Living a healthy life is important to 4 out of 5 Australian women
- Conversely, less than 1 in 3 will admit to placing importance on looking beautiful
- The majority of Australian women are not satisfied with the current state of their health – a significant opportunity for marketers
- She turns to the Internet most often for advice related to health and wellness but hasn’t yet been won over by a health related website
- She has inner (and outer) conflicts when it comes to her attitudes towards beauty
Based on a quantitative analysis of 3,670 women conducted in February and March this year, the study set out to help marketers navigate the paradoxical nature of Australian women’s health and beauty beliefs and understand how this might influence their buying behaviour.
Her health is good but apparently not good enough.
It is quite clear that being healthy is a high-order priority for Australian women, with 4 out of 5 placing more than passing importance on it. It’s not surprising then that Australian women have one of the longest life expectancy rates in the world, third only to women in Japan and Switzerland1 . Today’s woman is positive about the current state of her health (with nearly 90% rating it “good” or better) and recognises that this covers both her physical and emotional well-being. Living a healthy life is far more important to her than being well groomed, dressing well or looking beautiful. Or so she says.
The significant importance that she places on her health means there is always room for improvement. Thus, less than half are satisfied with their current state. A lack of time is her enemy and the greatest obstacle to achieving her desired health – across all age groups. Products and services that speak to this have a greater chance of resonating with her.
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Chart 1 – Importance of being healthy
Chart 2 – Own health rating
Chart 3 – Satisfaction with own health
Dr Google is making more house calls than ever
For today’s woman, the Internet is the first port of call, with Google surpassing her GP for health and wellness related information (72% v 52% respectively). Online research is not only convenient but also provides answers in the form of articles and real-life advice in forums which she values highly. She favours specialist content sites over online portals or Facebook by a margin of 2 to 1.
The trend of turning to online resources continues to grow as she attempts to become ever-more aware in her quest to improve her health. Interestingly however, more than 70% of women have not pledged their loyalty to a particular destination health site. According to Katie May, CEO of the Kidspot group of companies:
“This offers brands with strong health related content or offerings an opportunity to secure an important position in one of her key interests and priorities – especially if they partner with a website that she already visits frequently and places trust in.”
Chart 4 – Key sources of health and wellness information
She believes that beauty is attitudinal but still spends heavily on her appearance
Beauty marketers are operating amid a minefield of varying beliefs, feelings, motivations and behaviour. Women have inner (and outer) conflicts when it comes to their attitudes towards beauty:
* They believe that society expects women to enhance their physical appearance (83%) and that only the most physically attractive women are portrayed in popular culture (71%) .
- However, this pressure contravenes Australian women’s definition of beauty which the majority (nearly 90%) says can be achieved through attributes having nothing to do with physical appearance.
* A mere 29% admit that “looking beautiful” is important YET:
- Australian women are guilty of the highest daily mirror time globally 2
- 29% would invest in plastic surgery if they could, and
- the majority are not satisfied with their looks, shape, weight or physical attractiveness
- a paradox indeed.
Importantly for marketers, her dissatisfaction fuels her desire for more beauty products and services. If money was no object:
- 46% of women would spend more on makeup and cosmetics in the belief these products would give them the results they seek,
- 42% would spend more on skin care products,
- 50% would stock up on teeth-whitening products and
- 75% would have more facials and massages.
This is incremental to what they already invest in beauty, which equates to an entire week’s salary for the average full time employee 3.
Despite her best efforts to assign more value to inner beauty than outer, her beauty routine is nothing short of comprehensive. She invests across all major product categories: nearly 7 in 10 colour their hair and 3 out of 4 regularly invest in make-up. However, there is some evidence of the emphasis she places on caring for herself, as her holiday must-haves favour care over beauty (face moisturiser, facial cleanser and body moisturiser eclipse perfume, make up and even lipstick). She is strong in her preference for SPF in her products and is clear on what that is. For Australian women, prevention trumps treating ageing across all age groups. The majority seek out “anti-ageing” features when buying beauty products.
Her shopping preferences vary by category and age. Though supermarkets are her primary source for hair and skin care products, this same purchase destination tumbles to #4 for cosmetics (except for women < 24 years). For women over 40, the chemist is the leading destination for cosmetic purchases, but younger women are more diversified in their approach and are just as likely to head to department stores.
There is no doubt that online beauty destinations are growing in popularity and gaining market share. Focus groups further testified that price, convenience and the ease of online reviews are the biggest drivers of online purchasing when it comes to health & beauty. Today's woman plans to spend more time at online destinations at the expense of traditional retailers. An important insight for marketers is that her loyalty lies with the brands and products in most cases, not with the retailer distributing them.
In summing up the report’s findings, Katie May explained:
“What a challenge marketers face! Women’s actions defy their stated attitudes and beliefs when it comes to beauty. The good news for marketers is that there is a country of believers out there. There is no doubt they are interested in products and services that can assist in increasing their personal satisfaction with their looks, body shape and weight. The challenge is getting the messaging right to avoid making her feel inadequate or joining the narrow minded society she feels she lives in.”
Footnotes:
1 - OECD Health Data 2009 and WHO world health statistics 2008
2 - The Woman in the Mirror data; 47% of Australian women spend more than 10 minutes in front of the mirror each day. This trumps Bulgaria as the leading country (31% of Bulgarian women spend over 10 minutes in front of the mirror daily) in a Synovate Global Beauty Study; 2008 (n=7,000).
3 - McCrindle Research in June 2010 reported that Australian women spend an average of $839 per year on beauty.
ENDS
For a copy of “The Woman in the Mirror” research report or to arrange an interview with Katie May Kidspot CEO, please contact:
Natalie Mactier
Kidspot.com.au Pty Ltd
D. +61 3 9697 0855
About the Survey:
The Woman in the Mirror research report explores Australian women’s health and beauty beliefs, feelings and motivations in relation to their buying behaviour. The analysis is based on a quantitative study of 4,190 women conducted between February and March 2011 using online survey software across Kidspot, Birth, Best Recipes and Easy Weddings. In addition, the survey invitation was posted on Facebook pages accessing an additional sample of women and a viral email campaign ensuring broad representation of women across Australia. The online study was augmented with a series of moderated focus groups and interviews in March 2011. All charts are representative of the 3,670 that completed the survey in full and open ended questions include all 4K+ respondents.
About Kidspot.com.au
Kidspot is the leading parenting website in Australia and New Zealand. Over 1million Australian mums rely on the comprehensive directory, parenting information & advice, family friendly recipes and kid’s activities each month.
About SheSpot
SheSpot offers a straightforward way to reach over 2M Australian women on premium online properties – with a trusted partner (Kidspot)
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SheSpot is 100% owned by Kidspot, the #1 website for parents in Australia and NZ
SheSpot is 100% owned by Kidspot, the #1 website for parents in Australia and NZ •SheSpot focuses exclusively on reaching women in Australia
SheSpot focuses exclusively on reaching women in Australia •For more information visit www.shespot.com.au
For more information visit www.shespot.com.au
