Instagram Reels dominates beauty purchases in India

Instagram Reels plays a vital role in purchase decisions with 47% consumers revealing that they discovered beauty products through this feature. Notably, one in three surveyed beauty consumers has made purchases through Instagram Reels, according to the Meta GWI Beauty Report 2023, commissioned by Meta. Data for fashion purchases has also been released by Meta.

Over 2,000 consumers aged 6-64 years participated in the survey across 74 cities in June. On Monday, Meta published the two separate reports mapping consumer behaviour for beauty and fashion categories.

Covid, in general, prompted more consumers to buy goods online, but for beauty and personal care categories, specifically, the wide reach of online marketplaces and emergence of newer brands have fuelled demand for such products.

There has been a significant shift in consumer preferences post-pandemic, with 68% of beauty buyers now favouring online purchases – a remarkable 15% increase from the pre-covid levels. Notably, 80% discover beauty brands on social media, with 92% finding them on Meta platforms, including 47% on Instagram Reels, the report revealed. In fact, nearly a third of the survey respondents said they bought beauty products online every week.

“Both beauty and fashion verticals are growing rapidly on Meta, with increasing number of advertisers using Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp to engage with customers. Social media transformed the purchase experience and journey for these industries, creating an urgent need for brands and marketers to engage with consumers differently, especially during the ongoing festive and upcoming wedding season,” Meghna Apparao, director for ecommerce and retail for Meta in India.With Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, Meta is dominating the way consumers buy or share information. In September, around 3.14 billion people used at least one Meta app on a daily basis. 

Social media platforms, with their bite-sized content, have come to influence the retail landscape globally, as they help consumers make decisions before buying a product – be it online or offline. Influencers, who are paid to try on new products and brands, significantly sway purchase decisions for millions of consumers who spend hours browsing Meta’s various social media apps.

“Consumer interest in content created by influencers has grown dramatically. Despite the rise in content and creators worldwide, Indian consumers rely on Indian creators for authentic information and reviews. The data showed that 7 out of 10 beauty content viewers and 2 out of 3 fashion content viewers watch Indian influencers, which has a big impact on their buying decisions,” according to the study’s findings.

The study showed that a lack of reviews is just as bad as negative ones, which underscores the importance of influencers.

Meanwhile, when it comes to fashion consumers, 76% said they discover fashion brands on social media, with a significant 97% discovering them through Meta platforms, of which 52% credit it to Instagram Reels. Notably, 39% proceeded to purchase after finding them on Reels.

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Updated: 19 Nov 2023, 11:48 PM IST