FUTURE OF SHOPPING
Today, beauty brands and companies are looking for new ways to keep people connected and engaged with their products. Social media is extremely influential and is supporting various brands to reach consumers through AI-powered products. Computers and phones are becoming an inviting digital hub.
Virtual retail spaces have become quite popular, very quickly. This also helps people who are busy with their work or have certain limitations that prevent them from shopping in-store. AI and virtual try-on add a novel, fun, and smart way to engage a consumer in purchasing beauty products. There is strong visibility of social simulation programs such as video product demos, virtual try-on, and client feedback that offer consumers an authentic sense of products and services.
APPLICATIONS OF AI IN THE COSMETIC AND BEAUTY INDUSTRY
Let’s talk about how exactly is technologies and artificial intelligence connected to the cosmetic and beauty industries. Some important applications are as follows:
VIRTUAL PRODUCT TRIALS
Even while using it, many people do not know much about augmented reality. The filters you use on Instagram and Snapchat and other social media platforms are all powered by artificial intelligence. Virtual images can easily be laid over actual images in no time.
AR-powered ‘virtual mirrors’ allow you to try on various beauty products in nick of time. These solutions have been in place for a while now. Perfect Corp was one of the first to put this technology to use that provides beauty solutions since 2014. Modiface is another important player which is owned by L’Oreal.
Their solution recently is powering a venture by L’Oreal and Facebook to bring forward AR-powered makeup trials to Insta shopping.
Virtual trials have gained a lot of popularity in recent times. AI algorithms and strategies detect the face via camera by mapping the face and focal pointers. Then by using AR, the makeup images are modified according to the obtained specifications and then are overlaid on the features of the face.
The AR experience is made available at retail stores via smart mirrors apart from also helping with the online shopping experience.
Coty in 2019 collaborated with Wella professionals to launch an AR-enabled smart mirror, allowing customers to envision their desired color before application.
In India, Lip Hue is a custom lipstick studio coordinated with Morph Digital Solutions to form a smart mirror that lets customers see their reflection, try several shades, and customize those shades as per their requirements.
CUSTOMIZATION AND PERSONALIZATION
Cosmetics and beauty is one field where every customer’s needs and preferences are different. Every individual has their own unique mixture of needs.
Without the luxury of trying out products and store assistance, consumers end up spending a huge amount of time on research and scrolling. Artificial intelligence can shorten that time, recommends authentic and to-the-point products based on the current trends and information of the customer. Organizing, utilizing, and capturing customer data is not very convenient and will be impossible without the support of AI.
For example, if you are looking for a specific item on a website, a popup puts a few questions forward about things such as preferences and skin type. According to what other customers have liked that you like and your answers, the data recommend an item that is most suited to your particular requirements.
In 2018, Coty collaborated with Amazon Echo Show to launch ‘Let’s Get Ready’ merging the NLP capacities of Alexa voice support with providing customized looks to users. The looks were picked from around two thousand distinctive combinations of makeovers in the database of Coty and were suggested to users according to their preferences.
Applications that recommend personalized hair and skincare regimes are very famous these days. Proven Skincare uses the Skin Genome Project which is an AI-powered database to examine various factors and provide customers with personalized recommendations.
Artificial intelligence algorithms support automating the growth of personalized items, which are becoming more and more famous. Consumers can easily create their own kind of toner, lip balm, shampoo, perfumes, and much more. Bare Anatomy, Forest Essentials, Closer to Home, and Emcee Beauty are some popular brands that offer personalized cosmetic and beauty products in India.
PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH
There are numerous customer feedback, opinions, and reviews that the development team listens to when trying to understand and develop a product that will be a hit in the market.
It becomes easier to sift through big amounts of data on websites and social media and analyze the preferences of customers and current trends with the help and support of the current applications of Natural Language Processing. This allows brands to create products according to the demands and needs of the consumer.
Avon's True 5-in-1 Lash Genius Mascara was created by studying the most important needs that customers showed via social media platforms. Their AI and ML-powered intelligent algorithms were used to process, filter, rank, and read various online consumer comments and reviews, to find out the top characteristics they want in mascaras.
ML algorithms are also utilized for understanding supply and demand forecasting and current trends. These algorithms play a vital role in analyzing and helping businesses to get used to changing market conditions, by studying various factors such as economic conditions, holidays, sales, and even the weather forecast.
AI FOR A BETTER SHOPPING EXPERIENCE
Even now, AI and machine learning have a strong future not only as instruments to make online shopping more efficient and smooth in the beauty industry but also as potentially utilizing resources.
The convenience of this technology is reliably prescribing, diagnosing, and tracking various hair and skin conditions can prove very useful for patients. As consumers get more and more comfortable with online shopping and at-home beauty regimes, it’s very likely that the cosmetic and beauty industry will only continue to grow and develop. An industry that is more convenient, hygienic, inclusive, and accessible than ever before.