MAC Cosmetics and Black Female Consumers - Essay Example

?MAC Cosmetics and Black Female Consumers Inserts His/Her Inserts Grade Inserts (22, November, 2013) Executive summary The paper is an analysis of a marketing problem at MAC Cosmetics. The company needs to expand its market base and might be ignoring an obvious yet potentially profitable group - black women. The research hypothesis to be proved in the paper was “MAC Cosmetics does not adequately cater to the divergent needs of black women.” To test this hypothesis the following research questions were asked: Does MAC cater to the factors that affect buying decisions for black, female makeup consumers?, What attitudes do these buyers hold towards MAC products?, How does in-store experience affect these women’s experiences of the make-up purchase process at MAC stores?, What strategies do these women use to cope with a gap in the cosmetics markets, if any?. The paper involved 105 participants from 15 different MAC stores who were all black and representative of different complexions. They responded to structured questionnaires containing 15 questions, which were documented by the investigator. The research hypothesis was proved. MAC does not cater to black women’s divergent needs. Key recommendations include expanding the product range to meet their needs, training in-store makeup artists and assistants as well as creating marketing plans that target this demographic group. Outline Executive summary 2 Outline 2 Introduction and problem definition 4 Research methods and limitations 7 Conclusion and Recommendations 13 References 15 MAC Cosmetics and Black Female Consumers Introduction and problem definition The company under consideration is MAC cosmetics; it is an offshoot of Estee Lauder (EL), which is a conglomerate of over 23 brands. MAC has about 1,000 stores worldwide and dozens in the UK. The brand contributed to a 13% profit margin at EL in 2012. MAC’s input was equivalent to $274.8 million worth of profit (Castleberry, 2001). It has marketed its products as high-profile, through the use of celebrity endorsements and artists. Most times, the company gets makeup artists to work with famous actors or singers, and thus uses this platform to market their products. Consumers are willing to pay a premium for the personalised service offered by makeup artists in their stores. Regardless of these successes, the company is need of new marketing strategies. It needs to expand its customer base so as to avoid slow growth (Wilson, 2011). The corporation may be making money but its profitability has not been increasing significantly over the past few years. It needs to redefine the way it sells its products. Any marketing process often starts with identification of the target group. Here is where the problem lies for MAC cosmetics. The organisation has relied on the same set of consumers for as long as it was established. Most of them are young and Caucasian. There may be a need to redefine their demographic groups in order to expand their market base. The group that needs to be embraced is black women. In the United Kingdom’s metropolitan areas, black women account for slightly more than 15% of the population, and represent 7% of the entire UK population (Isokariari, 2013). They are quite enthusiastic about beauty products as seen through their purchase of hair extensions, weaves and other hair products. However, a problem exists in the cosmetics industry because regardless of these women’s enthusiasm for beauty products, makeup companies do not respond in kind. MAC Cosmetics may pride itself in the diverse range of its products. Its eye shadows come in a variety of colour pallets. Additionally, it has been marketed as a product for women of colour owing to its wide range of colour selections. However, these options are still not adequate enough to cater to black women’s makeup needs. Black women have some of the most divergent skin tones in the world, yet the colour choices that dark concealers and foundations have are quite limiting (Strehlke, 2013). Many of these shades stop at light brown thus leaving out a good majority of black women. Furthermore, those that do come in darker shades appear to represent only a small portion of the black population. This lack of choices has frustrated several black women in the UK who have to search every corner for the right shade of foundation. Many of them now feel that they do not matter enough to cosmetics companies to warrant their attention. Even the nature of ingredients used in these products may be a difficult match for ethnic women. Primers, concealers and foundations contain a chemical called titanium dioxide which is intended on providing users with SPF protection. However, most black women find that the ingredient gives them an ashy look because it is white in colour (Strehlke, 2013). It is for this reason that a number of them are looking towards brands meant exclusively for black women like IMAN. The only problem is that these brands are not found in conventional magazines, and other platforms meant to advertise developments in the cosmetic industry. When black women live outside London, then they may not have access to these stores. MAC must worry about losing such buyers to exclusive brands like IMAN or leaving them with no alternative at all when they lack access. Usually, cosmetics companies may go out of their way to create a line of eye shadow alternatives for women of all races; however, they may fall short in another area that women still need in order to get a flawless look. For instance, they may have the right eye shadows but no concealers or powders for women of this race. Therefore, some black women choose to forfeit buying makeup altogether unless they get the right match. It is equally daunting for these women to find advice about the appropriate products for their skin needs. Many black women suffer from pigmentation damage due to high levels of pigment. This may be manifested as acne. Additionally, a number of them may have more than one complexion on their faces. For instance, their forehead or tip of the nose may have a different shade from the area around their mouth as well as the one under their eyes. When they try to ask store attendants about potential alternatives, many find that these employees have little knowledge about how to deal with their problem areas. MAC has the potential to increase its revenues exponentially if it caters to this group on a more personal level. The UK ethnic cosmetics market only accounts for 70 million pounds worth of revenue. MAC can become a pioneer for introducing diverse makeup products for black women in the mainstream cosmetic world. The organisation could thus enjoy first mover advantage of the products. As a result, it could cater to the needs of an ignored demographic and reap soaring profits from doing so. It is not sufficient for the company to lump all black women in one or two shades since they exhibit a lot of diversity. These concerns will form the basis of the research hypothesis, which is “MAC Cosmetics does not adequately cater to the divergent needs of black women.” In order to prove this hypothesis, a number of research questions will be employed, and they include 1) Does MAC cater to the factors that affect buying decisions for black, female makeup consumers? 2) What attitudes do these buyers hold towards MAC products? 3) How does in-store experience affect these women’s experiences of the make-up purchase process at MAC stores? 4) What strategies do these women use to cope with a gap in the cosmetic markets, if any? Research methods and limitations Quantitative research will be the method of choice. This approach is quite appropriate because the paper will focus on testing a hypothesis (Hague, 2002). Furthermore, it aims at assisting MAC in making accurate predictions about a certain behaviour and market factors. It is already documented in fashion blogs and newspapers that black women feel ignored by the cosmetics industry. It would be critical to validate whether these claims are true and applicable to MAC buyers. Additionally, the research is descriptive. It focuses on the things that customers purchase. Therefore, a quantitative approach would be the best way of establishing those truths (Malhotra et. al., 2012). The research design may also be classified as conclusive. Measurements will be done concerning the use of MAC cosmetics among black women. It will clearly define whether these individuals have been ignored by the company. The research will be highly structured in order to facilitate the analysis process. It will also be cross sectional. This implies that data will be collected from the population only once (Silverman, 1997). There is no need to focus on a longitudinal design because the study is not detecting change (Zinkhund, 1999). The method of data collection will be through closed-ended structured questionnaires. These questionnaires will be administered face to face, and the investigator will fill in participants’ responses on prepared forms. This approach was selected because it gives the researcher control over the collection process (Procter, 2000). It also minimises ambiguity in the investigation by ensuring that participants respond to the same set of questions and answers. Questionnaires simplify data analysis and this enables the researcher to come up with a conclusion on the subject under analysis. The other advantage of this type of method is its reliability. Reliability is a measure of the replicability of a particular research methodology. In other words, one must ask whether the research will yield similar results if it was repeated as it was. A structured questionnaire is relatively easy to replicate and will yield consistent results (Kumar et. al., 2012). On the flipside, a quantitative analysis in general may be problematic because of a number of reasons. First, its accuracy depends on the skill and ability of the investigator. He or she must determine the right questions to ask, so as to minimise validity issues. Validity in this case refers to the ability of a research method to measure what it actually purports to measure. The investigator may also limit respondents’ choice through the lack of imagination. To deal with this problem, the researcher looked through a lot of literature on the ‘politics of beauty and black women’ as well as other similar titles. This assisted in thinking of the right multiple choice responses to provide in the analysis (Castleberry, 2001). A sample of the black population will be selected in order to carry out the research. MAC cosmetics have approximately 40 retail stores in the UK (MAC Cosmetics, 2013). In quantitative analyses, it is critical to select a sample size that is large enough for the research but is still small enough to be carried out by one researcher (Kumar, 2000). Therefore, 15 stores will be selected for the interviews. Each store will provide a total of 7 respondents. The total number of persons who will participate in the research is 105. Such a number is necessary in order to neutralise biases that emanate from inter store differences. These individuals will be randomly selected. It is not possible to obtain lists of persons who visit retail stores as most consumers keep changing. Therefore, the only method available to the investigator is random sampling. All respondents must be black women, and care will be taken to select persons with different complexions from each store. The latter factor is critical in the analysis because a point of concern for many ethnic women is that some complexions are over represented by cosmetics companies while others are not. Each retail store manager will learn about the research being conducted so as to minimise possible interruptions in the investigations. It will also be critical to approach the buyers cordially so as to increase the chance of their participation in the research (Chisnall, 2004). Each questionnaire interview will last for a period of approximately 10 minutes. The investigator will ask them questions and read out multiple choices, which will be ticked. Since each retail store focuses exclusively on MAC products, then the only demographic factor that will be considered is a person’s ethnicity. The questionnaire had three questions for each aspect of the four key research objectives (Harrison and Reilly, 2011). In response to the first research question, which was “Does MAC cater to the factors that affect buying decisions for black, female makeup consumers?”, consumers had to answer the following questions: a) What factors do you consider when buying makeup?: price, compatibility with skin tone, how the makeup makes me look, thickness, texture, moisturising effects, staying power b) Does MAC satisfy most of these factors? Yes / no/ to a certain extent c) Do you find these qualities in other competing brands? Yes/ No The second research question was “What attitude do buyers hold towards MAC products?” To tackle this question appropriately, it was imperative to ask them the following questions about their attitudes. a) Are you frustrated by the makeup ranges available at MAC stores? Yes, I am frustrated with the lack of foundation, concealers, powders and other forms of makeup for my skin tone No, I find what I am looking for in MAC stores Sometimes, I may get what I am looking for in MAC stores b) Dark shades have a sufficient colour range to accommodate me: Yes/ No c) MAC focuses on foundation for my skin colour but does not consider other makeup products like concealers or powders: Yes/ No (Guthrie et. al., 2008). “How does in-store experience affect these women’s experiences of the make-up purchase process at MAC stores?” This question was also divided into three statements as follows: a) Makeup artists know how to deal with my uneven skin tone: Yes / No b) Store assistants are familiar with the right products for me: Yes / No c) Many of my favourite products at MAC stores seem to be out of stock whenever I come by: Yes / no (Hickman, 2007) The fourth research question was meant to assist MAC in understanding the lengths that black women go through to meet their cosmetic needs. It was also divided into three sets of questions a) What strategies do you use to cope with the lack of foundation for your skin tone? I do not use any strategies because I find what I am looking for at MAC I blend different shades to get to my colour I choose to do without foundation because of this problem b) How do you ensure that powders do not give you an ashy look? I avoid powders with a white undertone I mix a variety of powders I shop in different makeup outlets until I get the right powder I gave up on powders a long time ago c) Do you feel that sometimes you have to go overboard in order to meet your makeup needs?: Yes/ No (Duff, 2007) Research findings In response to the first question, on the factors that black women consider when buying makeup, an overwhelming number chose “compatibility with skin tone”. Among the 105 women interviewed, only 2% did not select this parameter, 70% chose how the makeup makes me look, price garnered 80%, thickness was selected by 45%, texture got 12%, moisturising effects was selected by 5%, and staying power by 33%. It should be noted that women were allowed to select more than one answer for this part (Varnali and Toker, 2010). Clearly the primary factor that MAC ought to consider when making makeup for this demographic group is compatibility with their skin tone. Products need to match their various shades and tones. When asked whether MAC satisfied most of that criteria, 47% of the women thought they did not, 15% felt that they did while 38% thought that the company met their criteria moderately. Participants also asserted that they did not find these qualities in competing brands, with 15% claiming that they found those qualities in competing brands. These results indicate that the company has a lot to do in terms of meeting the makeup needs of its black consumers. Overall, the findings from the participants indicate that MAC Cosmetics has failed the first research question; it does not cater to the needs of black female consumers. The second research question had a set of three specific questions. It was supposed to determine the attitude that black buyers had towards MAC products. When asked whether members were frustrated by the lack of makeup ranges available at MAC stores, 63% answered in the affirmative, 6% were ambivalent while 31% said that they were not frustrated. This is a point of concern because majority of the interviewees felt frustrated. MAC would definitely not want to have consumers who are disturbed by their offerings. Only 37% of the buyers stated that dark shades had sufficient ranges to accommodate them. This means that the company is focusing on Caucasian’s needs while this may not be true for black women. Additionally, 83% believed that MAC cosmetics were too centred on foundations and did not work on other products like concealers. This indicates that the company is still half-hearted with regard to needs of black women. MAC has started providing a few of the products but has not taken this to completion. It makes no senses for the organisation to provide foundations for coloured women but fail to give them other complementary products that create that flawless look. Overall, the attitude that black women have towards MAC Cosmetics is negative. Participants also responded to three sets of questions concerning the third research question on black women’s in-store experiences. The findings in this part were just as expected, 22% selected yes as their response of choice. They asserted that makeup artists did not understand how to even out their skin tone. Store assistants were not familiar with the right products for them. 44% of the ladies felt that these employees were familiar with the products they needed. Finally, individuals stated that their products were not out of stock when they needed them. 26% chose yes and 74% said that their favourite products were not out of stock. This last result was quite surprising and went contrary to the hypothesis (McDaniel, 1998). Overall, in-store experiences do not add value to black consumers as assistants do not understand their particular make up needs. The fourth research question centred on determining the coping strategies that women used in order to meet their makeup needs. 20% said they did not use coping strategies because they found what they were looking for at MAC, 55% asserted that they mix different sets of colours while the remaining 25% forewent the purchase of foundations. MAC is missing out on a critical demographic simply because it has no offer for them. With regard to powder and how black women avoid getting an ashy look, respondents had the freedom to choose more than one answer. Therefore, 78% said that they avoid powders with a white undertone while a close 73% stated that they mix a variety of powders. 62% stated that they shop in different makeup outlets while 13% gave up on powders. Among all the 105 participants, it was found that 66% felt that they had to go overboard to meet their makeup needs. Overall, the question indicated that black female consumers cannot find everything they need in a MAC store, so they have to resort to different coping mechanisms. Conclusion and Recommendations The research hypothesis was “MAC Cosmetics does not cater to the divergent needs of black women”. All four research questions proved that MAC has indeed sidelined the group. Therefore, the hypothesis was proved. The first research question showed that the company does no cater to black women’s needs, the second showed that these buyers had a negative attitude towards the company, the third indicated that in store assistance did not add value to their makeup needs and finally, many black women felt that they had to go out of their way to meet their cosmetics needs. These findings indicate that the company has ignored quite a significant market demographic. MAC cannot continue in this path if it hopes to stay successful. Black women are just as significant as mainstream consumers since they have a need for makeup but lack the resources to meet these needs. The organisation ought to consider expanding their foundations, concealers and powder lines in order to accommodate the divergent needs of black women. It should train its artists and store assistants concerning black women’s unique needs, such as uneven skin tone and hyper pigmentation. The organisation must reach out to these women through new marketing strategies centred directly at them. MAC can pave the way for a new dimension in the sale of cosmetics to ethnic women. References Castleberry, S., 2001. Using secondary data in marketing research: A project that melds web and off-web sources. Journal of Marketing Education, 23(3), pp. 195-203. Chisnall, P.M., 2004. Marketing research. London: McGraw-Hill. Duff, M., 2007. Niche Marketing of Cosmetics. DSN Retailing Today, 38, pp. 29-35. Guthrie, M., Kim, H.-S. and Jung, J., 2008. The effects of facial image and cosmetic usage on perceptions of brand personality. Journal of Fashion Marketing and Management, 12(2), pp. 164-181. Hague, P. N., 2002. Market research: A guide to planning, methodology and evaluation. TX: Kogan Harrison, R. L. and Reilly, T. M., 2011. Mixed methods designs in marketing research. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 14(1), pp. 7-26. Hickman, M., 2007. 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