It’s been nearly a year since Hue, the tech company that combines AI technology and an online community by matching users with similar skin tones and types, received a Project Connect grant for its innovative approach to closing the gap between technology and the human touch.
The purpose-driven company addresses underrepresentation in beauty and works to bring inclusivity to market through its community of “Hue Twins,” which are real people who share the same skin tone, skin type, background of purchases or preferences of beauty that the buyers of beauty products with which they are connected. Hue is the first company to use a predictive algorithm to match a beauty shopper with real people like them through its Hue Twins concept. Consumers are matched with the Hue Twins by answering a detailed online questionnaire that covers a wide range of beauty-relevant attributes, including makeup and skincare preferences, hair color, eye color, and specific skin characteristics.
“On one hand, there could be Hue Twins of different ethnicities and genders, like a Latina woman and an Asian man, which drives a powerful narrative around skin tone and inclusivity,” said Nicole Clay, co-founder and chief marketing officer. of Hue and former CMO of L’Oreal. “We believe inclusiveness in beauty means 50+ foundation shades – seeing people of different ethnicities, genders and ages matters, seeing people with acne or rosacea matters.”
Founders of Hue.
Courtesy image.
Currently, the Hue Twins community includes more than 1,300 micro-influencers of all ages, skin tones, skin types, gender identities, and more. According to the company, the community continues to grow rapidly, sometimes doubling month after month. Hue is tapping into the millions of beauty micro-influencers, citing data that micro-influencers are capable of generating 22 times higher conversion rates than other types of influencers, given that consumers trust “real people with smaller audiences than the creator interacts more authentically.
It’s a kind of “Netflix for beauty,” Hue’s three founders said, referring to the way users get recommendations through a match rate based on “people like you.” For example, a user might see that “86 percent of their Hue Twins recommend this product.”
“Hue’s mission is to empower all beauty shoppers to find the perfect products for their unique skin tone, skin characteristics and preferences. Since winning the Project Connect grant, the company’s vision has gone beyond makeup,” said Janvi Shah, co-founder and CEO of Hue and former product lead at Google Photos. “We see a great opportunity to bring the concept of shopping with real people like you in all categories, such as skin care, hair care and more. Using our predictive matching algorithm and Hue Twins, Hue is bringing the best of technology and social shopping to beauty brands and retailers.”
Sylvan Guo, co-founder and COO of Hue and former leader of the performance marketing teams at Tubi, told WWD that she would split the profits from the Hue Twins content three ways. First, provide consumer education and reviews on the brand’s website as a conversion engine. Second, UGC content as a driver of awareness at the top of the funnel. And third, UGC content for performance marketing as a sales driver.
“From my days in performance marketing, we used to say that content is king, and getting authentic, well-performing content is really hard for brands,” Guo said.
This month, Hue launched its boosting solution with Credo Beauty and Lawless Beauty.
With both Credo Beauty and Lawless Beauty, Nicole Clay, Hue’s co-founder and chief marketing officer, told WWD there was an incredible partnership due to a shared commitment to inclusivity and a willingness to innovate. In consumer feedback, taken from hundreds of customer tests, more than 90 percent of buyers said they feel more confident that they’ve found the right shade by using Hue.
“Skin is deeply personal and Lawless is proud to partner with Hue,” said Michael McNeil, director of marketing for Lawless Beauty. “The team shares an unwavering commitment to excellence, diversity and inclusion while delivering a consumer experience like no other. I look forward to continuing our partnership and am proud to be a part of its beta launch. [Hue’s founders] they are visionaries, and I can’t wait to see how they continue to influence the industry.”
“Working with like-minded entrepreneurs has been one of the most rewarding parts of building Credo,” said Annie Jackson, co-founder and COO of Credo Beauty. “In this case, we are partnering with a women-founded company that is bringing both complexion inclusion and real, authentic engagement to life in the beauty community, one that is fully aligned with who Credo is. The technology that Hue has created is fun and easy to relate to, and we are incredibly excited to introduce this partnership to the Credo consumer.”
“Before Hue, we were looking for new ways to help consumers do the seemingly impossible: match shades online,” said McNeil. “In a sea of complexion quizzes, AR makeup filters, and shadow charts, Hue has been nothing short of a breath of fresh air.”
Hue is the first company to use a predictive algorithm to match you with real people like you through the Hue Twins concept.
Courtesy image.
And for Lawless Beauty, McNeil said, the magic behind Hue is multifaceted.
“Hue has finally generated a way to easily determine if a skincare product is right for you based on multiple real-life users who share your skin tone and type,” said McNeil. “[And] Hue is the only shade-matching solution I’ve seen where consumers of multiple ethnicities and skin types are represented within the same shade. It is the only truly diverse and inclusive shade matching solution on the market.”
According to Guo, associations are already seeing strong engagement on both e-commerce sites.
“The Hue app is one of the most clicked parts of the product page, and we’re seeing a significant increase in sales, driven by increased conversions from customers who find their Hue Twin combination,” Guo said. “What’s more compelling is that Hue Twin’s social media assets are performing better than other pieces of content on social channels, and we’ve had overwhelmingly emotional reactions from the beauty community because the content comes across as so authentic.” .
Sheena McIntyre, private label director at Credo Beauty and brand director at Exa Beauty, applauded Hue’s unique approach to matching shades. “The idea of a Hue twin is smart because when customers can see what a real person like them looks like in the product they are buying, it gives them the confidence to pay online. With 43 shades of Foundation in Exa, we knew we needed to offer the customer a more representative tool to find their shade match. We know that Hue will help drive conversion, increase customer loyalty, and most importantly, innovate the beauty space.”
Since launching with the new partners, Clay said it has become clear that “the biggest secret in the beauty industry is that no one has solved shade matching – every brand has this problem. Conversion rates in complexion are low, less than 1 to 2 percent on average, while return rates often exceed 15 percent, with most returns due to poor shade combinations. There is a huge opportunity to get it right for both customers and brands.”
Bringing the partnership between Credo Beauty and Hue directly to the consumer, the companies will soon host in-person events in six cities (Dallas, Chicago, Boston, New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles), inviting buyers and influencers. to try out the Hue tone matching experience. These participants will be invited to join the Hue Twin community.
Looking ahead, Guo, Shah and Clay said they are excited to partner with more makeup and skincare brands of color.
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Source: wwd.com