Instagram Reels emerges as prime influencer of beauty products: survey

Instagram is emerging as the key driver of demand for beauty products in India as online beauty influencers build a steady user base on the social media platform, a new study found.

Nine out of 10 consumers surveyed by research agency GWI for Meta Platforms Inc.  indicate that Facebook and Instagram, both owned by Meta, are their go-to platforms for searching beauty products.

The report said Instagram Reels wields significant influence over purchase decisions, with 47% consumers discovering beauty products on it.

The study said one-third of the surveyed consumers reported making beauty product purchases directly through Instagram Reels.

In the fashion space, three-fourths of consumers uncover brands via social media and more than 80% of them prefer buying beauty products online, a trend that aligns with the growing influence of online beauty influencers and bloggers, the survey said.

The survey, which was conducted in June, saw participation from over 2,000 consumers spanning the ages of 6 to 64 years across 74 cities.

The study highlighted the critical role of influencers, noting that the absence of reviews can be as detrimental as negative ones.

Back in August of 2020, Meta launched Instagram Reels, a feature that allowed users to record, edit, and post videos of up to 15 seconds, while trying to turn the tide on the rise of the all-encompassing social media app TikTok.

TikTok CEO Kevin Mayer, back then, called it a “copycat product”. But since then, Reels have seen a growth that could certainly rival that of TikTok.

The feature reached a wider audience as TikTok got banned in India, and helped Instagram creators grow their audience and diversify Instagram’s user base by democratizing the creation of content.

The platform’s algorithm also, for a long time, lent all its support to Reels creators to drive more traffic to their content.

Ever since the pandemic, the online marketplace has seen an upward trend, with digitally literate consumers increasingly finding themselves purchasing goods online, almost exclusively.