I never thought I would be a regular at Sephora. OK. Let me rephrase that. I never really thought I would be the type to spend upwards of $30 on one item inside my make-up bag.
Since I started wearing makeup, it was all drugstore brands. I have my favorites, but no super duper brand loyalty. I flip flop between eyeliner brands and mascaras and the powdery assortments. As I got a little older (late 20s), though, I realized that I needed a foundation that provided better coverage and lasted longer. I started getting that very important first step of makeup at department store counters, usually Lancome or Estee Lauder. So, by the time I was introduced to Sephora last year I did already have a certain level of comfort with paying more for beauty products, but it was still only for one or two things I’d treat myself to once or twice a year.
One of my childhood best friends, Jasmine is a Sephora aficionado. I visited Sephora the first time with her. Actually, it seemed the first trip was when I used her bathroom, which could very well have been a satellite location. But, my first real trip was to the store in a New Jersey mall. I bought eyeliner that ended up not really working for me. I never stepped foot in another Sephora until I went to Seattle with Jasmine this past September. (But, this is mostly because there were no Sephora locations remotely close to where I was living at the time.)
Jasmine needed a very important item to help her look and feel pretty while on the trip, so we ventured into a downtown Seattle Sephora. My pal is aware of my biggest issue: dark circles under my eyes. She mentioned a product to me and then asked someone to get it. Since she is just as—if not more so—outgoing than I am, told the beautiful man (Ryan, I think) of my wish for no dark circles and a flawless face. He returned with Time Balm concealer and applied some. Holy freaking moly. Dark circles vanished like all the money had since I’d been in the Pacific Northwest (Pike Place Market IS that good). Now that I had concealer on, he had to apply some foundation to finish my face. He used Hourglass in Shell. Again, lovely! I bought that $38 concealer and a $17 concealer brush. I opted to take a sample of the foundation. At the checkout, the black clad, colorfully made up clerk asked if I wanted to join the email beauty club. Before I could say my email address, Jasmine raved about all the free stuff she gets. See, you earn one beauty point for every dollar you spend. And, once you get to 100, you can get some cool trial size things. But, if you save up to $250, you’ll get other cool, exclusive items.
“She’s right,” said the clerk, blinking her boldly shadowed eyes at me. “And, you will already have $55 with this purchase.
I was going to sign up anyway, but they gave such a great sales pitch.
I’ve spent a few paragraphs explaining my history with Sephora to illustrate the impact its promotions had on me, not to bore you (I hope I didn’t!). But, you can now see how this mobile app promotion—and the company’s email marketing—have transformed someone who never wanted to splurge on beauty supplies into a bigger spender. So much so that I wave around their logo all day, every day.
The Sephora Love Affair Loyalty Begins
On Jan. 2 I received this email from Sephora. Within a day or two, I was at the mall.
Now that I am a beauty insider, I get the email promotions. The other day, I received one about Sephora’s new mobile app. If you were to download that mobile app and show it at the counter, you will also get a new case for your iPhone. I missed an important part of the story—I’ve since relocated to Lancaster, Pa. where there is a Sephora in the Park City Center mall. And, I’ve been shopping there—I found a new facial cleanser and lotion (Purity and Hope in a Jar, both from Philosophy). So, I downloaded the mobile app and went to claim my iPhone cover.
Isn't it pretty? Not me (sans Sephora make up at the moment), but the case?
Sheer Brilliance
This is a brilliant idea. Not only did this email get me into the store again—where I finally bought the foundation from the Seattle sample, by the way!—but the case is so cute that I couldn’t help but replace my present one. The black and white stripes—they match the store’s famed bags–are cute and the little Sephora logo so subtle that I don’t even feel like I am showing off the brand. But I have become a brand ambassador. Every time I whip out my phone to call, text, Tweet, Facebook or Foursquare, I hold up my phone and inadvertently, people see a Sephora advertisement.
Sephora jumped on the mobile bandwagon with a Sephora mobile app, which allows people to make lists, shop, etc. But, the retailer took it a step further by throwing in a phone case, one that also got stores foot traffic– a great example of merging channels. No one can see my apps I’ve downloaded from afar, but they can see my branded case on my prized, always present iPhone? Beautiful!
I was slowly introduced to this store, but after getting emails consistently and finally acting on one, Sephora has quickly become top of mind. I am buying make-up, accessories and skin care from a store at which I never thought I’d give so much money.
P.S. I still love you, drug store brands!