Drew Barrymore was originally a CoverGirl spokeswoman. Then she decided to launch her own line, called Flower Beauty. This line is sold excusively at Walmart and Walmart.com. This line of cosmetics will conclude my brand analysis of their respective social media accounts...for now.
So, one thing I initially noticed about Flower Beauty when researching their website is that they have their "philosophy" plain and simple before they even show you the products. Talk about wanting to set a tone right from the start. Drew's line claims that you can now have "quality cosmetics" without the hefty pricetag...and then explains how she does it. Here's the kicker...she does not pay for advertising. Wait....what?! Not paying for advertising would usually be seen as a killer, but in the day and age of social media, is it entirely necessary? And Drew, if you don't pay for advertisements, then how do you make sure that your content is seen? This cosmetics line might be the company that needs to be most dependent upon social media than any of the others we have looked at so far. So does Flower Beauty really hold up on social media, a more "free" way of advertising?
At a first glance, I noticed that only Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram were listed in the top right corner of their website. Videos are integrated into the Tutoritals tab of the website, but they are not integrated from YouTube, even though there is a channel for the brand. There have been no videos posted to the YouTube channel in at least a year, so as far as using it to socially engage customers, that is no longer an ongoing thing. It's a shame, because I really think "Drew's Tip Tuesday" could have been a wonderful series.
The Facebook is mostly a repost of their Instagram photos, but I do enjoy when there are posts other than those seen on their Instagram. Like other cosmetic companies, their Instagram is a strong presence. Another strong outlet for Flower is their Twitter. I really like that their Twitter account is not a copy/paste of their Instagram or Facebook feeds. Almost nothing is directly duplicated, but still let's Flower be cohesive with their other accounts. Since Drew relies on her stardom to carry her promotions, I really like that for the Twitter account, many, many other beauty gurus and bloggers, and regular customers are RT and mentioned in order to show that other people are talking about their brand.
Flower Beauty boasts relatively high numbers for Facebook and Twitter,
at 137,000+ and 19,000+ respectively, but their Pinterest account has
only just over 4,000 followers.Despite these large followings on Facebook and Twitter, it seems as if they are not carrying on much of a conversation with customers. Facebook and Twitter have made it incredibly difficult for companies or other organizations with "Like" pages to reach all, or even half, of their followers organically. And since Flower does not pay, their followers are not seeing their content. Many of their posts on Facebook don under 100 likes, almost no comments or shares...all because they do not spend money to promote their items.
So I think that this should be a lesson learned for other makeup brands, and even other brands in general. Money spent on advertisements, whether via social media or more traditional avenues, is usually worth the price. Flower Beauty seems to be doing okay so far because the products are sold exclusively at Walmart, one of the largest retailers in the United States, but once the shiny newness wears off from the brand, what will keep it going if they cannot reach their audience via the "free" social media outlets.
The Facebook is mostly a repost of their Instagram photos, but I do enjoy when there are posts other than those seen on their Instagram. Like other cosmetic companies, their Instagram is a strong presence. Another strong outlet for Flower is their Twitter. I really like that their Twitter account is not a copy/paste of their Instagram or Facebook feeds. Almost nothing is directly duplicated, but still let's Flower be cohesive with their other accounts. Since Drew relies on her stardom to carry her promotions, I really like that for the Twitter account, many, many other beauty gurus and bloggers, and regular customers are RT and mentioned in order to show that other people are talking about their brand. Products I own by Flower Beauty
(prices based on Walmart.com):
Kiss Me Twice Lip & Cheek Chubby, $9.98
Lip Service Lip Butter, $6.98
Win Some, Rouge Some Creme Blush, $7.98
Shadow Play Eyeshadow Quad, $9.98
Eyes on the Prize Eyeshadow Chubby, $7.98
Website: http://flowerbeauty.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RealFlowerBeauty?_rdr
Instagram: https://instagram.com/flowerbeauty/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/flowerbeauty
YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/FLOWERBeautyVideo
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/flowerbydrew/
I think celebs can do creative business ventures or lines such as Flower relatively easy just because of their stardom. Although, as you were mentioning it probably won't do the trick in the long run. If she really wants her line to be successful free advertising from social might not carry through to long-term. If you want ladies to trust your brand you have to give them more of a reason than a celeb name on the bottle! I love Drew Barrymore so I'd be interested to see if her makeup is quality and a cheaper price-tag isn't a bad thing either!
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