Hey there Sea Changers. Today I am going to let you into the inner sanctums of the Make that Sea Change household and the inspiration for this post. You see, I was sitting here tinkering with my little site when I heard my beautiful wife Nicole muttering under her breath. The reason? She was trying to buy makeup online. Her problem was that she could not find any sites that “just give me easy to find information without the clutter”. Hmmm, I thought – time for a post on how to sell cosmetics online.

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - header1

Now, I don't wear cosmetics, but obviously millions around the world do. So in terms of affiliate marketing I am fairly confident that this could be an attractive niche for those of you looking to make that sea change selling them. I know Nic has some pretty strong opinions on how they should be sold so I will incorporate some of that information here for sure.

So as usual, grab a notebook, a drink, some lipstick (haha) and let's dive right in…

How do we get started?

Let's start with a clarification on what it is that I am talking about when I mention cosmetics. For the purposes if this site I will include all those ‘beauty' substances such as make-up, skin care, hair care, nail care, oral care, perfumery, and deodorant products – but we will discuss niches later… Cosmetics are a $250 billion industry based heavily on emotion.

My first piece of advice when it comes to selling cosmetics online comes from some of Nic's exasperation that “all the sites are the same- I just see product after product listed and don't know what I want or what is best”. The second is that the industry tends to be monopolized by the big companies (Loreal, Clinique, Estée Lauder, Mac etc.) so in order to stand out you will really need to hatch a clever niche.

So with that in mind, before we go any further, I would start to think about the following

  • How is your idea different from what’s on the market – I.e. how can you stand out from the crowd?
  • Have you identified an audience for your products? How will you reach them?
  • Is that audience underrepresented by current brands?
  • Have you identified any emerging trends or is there a new product you can leverage off?
  • Is your differentiation external to your product? As in are you instead trying to create a new experience around a common product? How will your branding help achieve this goal?

The big advantage I see here lies in the fact that whilst there are a lot of sites that sell makeup, Nic tells me there are not a lot that outline how to BUY makeup – I.e. what to look for, what is best, how to determine the best for you etc.

Is there a market?

Normally at this point we would be checking to make sure that there is a market to explore for the product. In this case however, I am fairly confident that this is the case, but let's have a look at what our potential purchasers are looking for anyway. Now we don’t need to go too deep into things here as we will be revisiting and refining things as we start to narrow down to our niche. However, in order to check out the market at this initial stage, there are two things you can look at:

1. Number of monthly searches

To start with, let's see how many people undertake cosmetic related searches online per month. To do this, you will need to find yourself a good keyword tool (I use Jaaxy) and enter in the keywords that best describe your market. In this case, let's look at cosmetics:

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - cosmetics Jaaxy

We can see here that there are roughly 30,000 searches for ‘cosmetics' per month. In my opinion, that is a good amount to prove that there is a market. If I break that down further to ‘cosmetics online', there is still a healthy amount of searches being undertaken.

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - cosmetics online

There is a lot to cut through with the sites of the big brands, but in my opinion, if you can hit the right target audience there is plenty of room to make good sales within this niche. And this is even without doing a search on how to sell makeup online…

2. Growth trends

Another important aspect of online sales and niche selection is to ensure that your site can be evergreen and that there is growth. To gain an insight into this let's check out how the searches for cosmetics are trending online.

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - trends

So we can see here that over the past 15 years, cosmetic searches have remained steady. However, once I compare to searches for ‘make up' the consistency and growth is considerably higher. And then just to test the market a bit more, I added skin care. As you can see there is a much lower demand for sites based on these searches. Regardless, there are no real drops in search numbers making this also a great niche to explore and market.

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Do your research

Now, whilst we are fairly confident that there is a market for the online sales of cosmetics, we have also discussed the fact that there are some big players against which we will need to complete. In an effort to get around this, we will need to do some fairly solid research. As an example, I will run through these based on the comments Nic has been making over this past day or two…

Who do you have in mind to target?

Female 30 to 40 years of age

What sites does she visit?

The main manufacturer sites

Which social media sites does she use?

Instagram – aalllways on the ‘Gram

Who does she listen to?

Brooke Castillo, Podcasts

This is a very broad overview and generally you would undertake a much deeper dive into your research. These details however are critical to the art of selling cosmetics online from here on out as it will affect every aspect of the website, its branding, how we write, what problems we solve, what social media platforms we use and how we differentiate ourselves from the competition.

What is our niche?

Once we have a basic understanding of who we are targeting, we can then start to try and work out the best way to sell cosmetics online in order to narrow our niche. In the world of cosmetics and beauty products, this is important as we attempt to narrow into an area that allows us to not only hit our target audience, but to also stand out from the crowd.

Note: I have to add here that the order that I have written these requirements in is not always the order in which all of this is decided. For example, If I was building this site, I would be targeting a niche around helping females decide which product is right for them amongst the absolute plethora of options that are out there. Alternatively, you might have a passion for natural makeups (6800 monthly searches by the way) so you are going to choose that and adapt it to a broader audience instead with the benefits of these products. Anyway, let's continue with our niche discussion.

The sky really is the limit, but when choosing you niche, consider the following:

  • Is it evergreen– this means that it can never go out-of-date or style.
  • Are you able to solve a problem– Most people undertake searches on the internet to solve a problem – see next section.
  • Is there any competition? – Another way see if there is a market is to see if you have any competition. If not, then maybe it is because no-one is buying.
  • Is it a subject that you have an interest, or knowledge in– I am guessing that you are in this post as you know about, or have an interest in cosmetics. If you don’t have either of these, maybe consider another market as to be honest, you might struggle to continuously write solid content if you don’t know much about them – or worse, have no interest in them.

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What problem are we solving?

Another aspect of niche selection, and a critical influence in attracting people to your site is to determine just what problem/s you are trying to solve for your readers. This may be one problem that spans your site or differ for each post that you write. For example, if you have chosen professional makeup for your niche, then some commonly searched problems are:

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - professional makeup

As you can see, each of these searches are actual problems that people are looking to solve within this niche and some great ideas for posts about professional makeup.

In my research, I also found some other niche/problems that were evident:

  • Older readers looking for assistance specific to mature skin.
  • Sites listing exclusive or hard to get stock (I know of a beer site that does that – it has exploded onto the market)
  • Cosmetics centred around animal welfare and/or chemical-free formulations – there are even Vegan makeups now
  • Teen market with bright colours and flavours
  • Costume and professional makeup
  • Workout/waterproof makeup

Oh, and men WILL purchase beauty products online – in fact they like it as it lets them purchase anonymously – so if you can highlight what benefits they will get from the products and how it will help them, then you are on a winner!

And that was just in a 10-minute search by someone who knows little to nothing about this subject. But you get the picture – each of those points above is not only a niche unto itself, but introduces you to problems that you can be solving as well.

And to revisit my wife's highlighted suggestion once again – build a site that tells me how to buy the best types for my skin so I don't have to “trawl through 50 sponges and 60 lipsticks every time”.

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - brushes

How do we sell cosmetics online?

Now that we have an idea that we want to sell cosmetics, we need to consider what products we are going to promote. Let’s have a look at some of the best avenues for online cosmetic sales:

Multi-level marketing programs

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - cosmetics

Multi-level marketing (MLM) programs are the mainstay of the ‘party plan’ world of products such as Tupperware and Amway etc. and are also popular within the big cosmetic companies. If you use them in their basic capacity, MLM programs mirror affiliate marketing programs in that you make a commission on every sale that you refer to them.

It is however the secondary aspect of these programs – and where the multi-level influences come from – that can really boost your revenue earning capabilities. The process works as follows:

  1. You attract a visitor to your site and convert them to the sales page
  2. They are offered an incentive to sign up as a member of the program (there are different names for this but they all mean the same thing).
  3. That new member is then placed ‘underneath’ you in a hierarchical arrangement
  4. You then gain extra commissions for everything they sell as well.

And yes, the less-than-glamorous name for this method of commission based selling is a pyramid scheme. The advantage of the online world however is that if you do it correctly by providing solutions to the problems of visitors to your site, you don’t have to hassle (and alienate) all of your friends that family.

In the cosmetics world, there are a few good sites in the MLM space including:

One final consideration to be aware of here however is that most MLM arrangements require a minimum spend per month in order to qualify for commissions for other sales that you, or your down line refer. This can make things a little tight if your site is new and not making any money as yet.

Affiliate programs

Affiliate programs are setup directly by companies or marketplace platforms (Amazon, Ebay etc.) that allow you to join and then refer traffic to them via customised affiliate links.

To find affiliate programs in the cosmetics space, simply type “affiliate: cosmetics” into your search engine:

ow to Sell Cosmetics Online - affiliate

From here you can search through and find programs that:

  • Relate to your niche/problems that you are solving.
  • Have quality products – your brand can be severely damaged and social media will not be your friend if you promote poor quality or fake product.
  • Have solid payment and customer service arrangements.
  • Pay decent commissions.
  • Have good testimonials covering commission payouts and quality of product.

In most cases, you will need to apply for the program before you are allowed to promote their products – don’t take this step lightly or you will be rejected. Affiliate programs will generally want to know:

  • Your website name.
  • Traffic levels.
  • Why you want to join – (so I can make money by selling your make up is unfortunately not generally a good enough answer).
  • How you plan to promote their products.

In the cosmetics space you may find that some programs place extra stipulations on your membership such as:

  • You cannot promote any other type of specialized products that their brand is known for.
  • You must gain approval for any banners etc. that you use.
  • You may not make any negative comments about the product at all and reviews must state how wonderful they are – I.e. all pros and no cons
  • You must promote on a certain social media platform at least daily with a hashtag or tag back to them.

These programs can be very good for newer sites rather than the MLM examples above as there are no sales triggers. Also, some marketplace programs such as Amazon and EBay can give you access to the bigger brands listed above without the need to join their membership programs – worth a look for sure. 

Tip – Why not have both? Many cosmetic sites will run under the MLM setups of the major vendors but also include affiliate links to other products such as sponges, brushes and any other supporting paraphernalia.

White labeling

If affiliate marketing or MLM programs are not your cup of tea, maybe you could try white labeling. This is a process where you actually purchase ‘brandless’ cosmetics from a vendor, add your own label and then on-sell them via your website or platforms such as Amazon etc.

This process requires a much higher setup costs as you will need to purchase your products, create and affix your labels and manage orders and shipment. Some however will affix the labels that you send them and then manage the packaging and shipment for you. This will cost you less to set up but obviously you will make less on the sale once they take their processing fee.

To find these, a simple search for “white label cosmetics” found the following:

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - whitelabel

From here you will need to follow the same process as with affiliate programs in determining whether they:

  • Relate to your niche/problems that you are solving.
  • Have quality products.
  • Have solid delivery and customer service arrangements.
  • Have good testimonials covering commission payouts and quality of product.

Tip: This method can be very effective in driving online traffic and sales via the implementation of more traditional methods such as kiosks and market stalls etc. As people see, smell and feel your products, they can purchase from you there and then be directed to your website for future sales.

Social media influences

As we discussed at the very beginning of this post, most makeup brands work on emotion and promote the feeling of luxury, pampering and treating one's self. If this is a path you plan to take, then regardless if the method chosen above, if you plan to sell makeup or other cosmetics online then you will need make sure that you are able to convey these behaviours and feelings within your website and promotions. This is not as hard to do as it sounds but is something that you must be conscious of at all times.

How to Sell Cosmetics Online - cosmetics beach

Some methods you can undertake to achieve this is:

  • Video – YouTube is the second largest search engine on the internet behind Google and attracts more viewers in prime time than all of the major network stations in the U.S. combined. It is also a fantastic way for you to demonstrate and explain everything you need to about your products, their uses and their feel. It can also assist with brand building and is great for website SEO.
  • Social media – we touched on this earlier but make sure that these feelings are portrayed in every post that you do. Depending on your niche, work hard to personalize posts with comments such as “me sitting at the beach and my xxx foundation has not cracked at all”.
  • Website pictures – make sure they all portray the image and feeling that you are trying to promote.
  • Influencers – Social media is full of people who make money simply by being seen in, on, around or wearing particular products. If you have the funds, a good influencer can set your business on fire – especially if you are white labeling.

What do we need to do?

Ok, with all of that in mind, the last thing we need to do is choose and setup the media that we intend to use to sell our oils. This can include:

Build a Website

Websites allow you to solve problems via blog posts, videos and/or how to demonstrations that people can view in order to solve the problems that they have. The process here is simple, once you have built your website, you write a post for example on the benefits of a particular chemical free eyelash mascara to assist your readers with sensitive skin, then provide links so that they can purchase the products you have discussed or recommended.

You Are Reading This Because of Wealthy Affiliate

That's right! Wealthy Affiliate provided me with all of the tools and training I needed to get this post in front of my audience - a.k.a YOU!

You too can start your very own online business here that can make you money from anywhere in the world!!  

Promote on Social Media

Social media is a powerful platform that can allow you to get your message out there into the big wide online world. It has the power to reach thousands and allows you to target specific segments if you choose the correct platform. In many cases, social media is used to drive traffic to your website rather than work in isolation. However, special media platforms such as YouTube can be used without the need for a website. It all depends I guess on where your target audience likes to hang out.

Tip: One of the problems that you may face in trying to sell cosmetics online is that people may want to know what they smell and feel like before they purchase. Visual and interactive sites such as YouTube, Pinterest and Instagram have proven quite effective within this niche.

Join like-minded groups

Regardless of the niche, there is usually some sort of social media group, online forum or membership page that you can join to gain you exposure to potential visitors and sales. Female interaction groups of every type are popular on FaceBook and can not only allow you to interact with customers but also gain more information and education in terms of content ideas for your posts.

Conclusion

And there it is – How to sell cosmetics online. I hope it has been helpful and as usual, please do not hesitate to comment below if you have any questions, need some advice or have any experiences to share.

Do you want further assistance with any of the above or need help to build your own cosmetics based website?

Are you looking for a comprehensive training platform that can give you step by step training, 24/7 support, tools to develop and host your very own cosmetics selling website, ongoing assistance with SEO and social media and access to some of the best affiliate marketing minds on the planet, then click on the following link to read more about Wealthy Affiliate.

Until next time

Have fun

Paul

Note: If you make a purchase from this page, there is a very good chance that I make a commission from it – these commissions do not increase your sale price. This may include sales via Wealthy Affiliate.

Introducing Wealthy Affiliate, My #1 Recommendation for Setting Up Your Own Online Business

wealthy affiliate new home page

When I started, I knew I wanted to work online, but had absolutely no idea where to begin! You see I had watched friends of mine run a sales party to sell essential oils and someone asked if they could just sell them online?

Then, as I sat on the bus heading into my office job, I started to wonder if I could do just that, sell essential oils online.

Anything to stop having to catch this bus to and from work every day right!

The trouble was, as I mentioned above, I had no idea how to even start.

So of course I started to look around online and found all these courses! They all promised me riches then took my money but left me with no riches!

Then I stumbled across the program that didn’t promise me riches, but told me it could help me get started even with no experience!

So I did that, joined Wealthy Affiliate that was it, and the rest as they say, is history!

But it doesn’t come without work!

That is the key here! I began on their starter membership and did the training! I then joined as a member and did some more training!

Each night after work, I would do a little more, then a little more.

And to cut a long story short, after 10 months I realized I didn’t really like writing about essential oils, so I sold the site for about $2000. But I had learned so much that I started another – about fishing and camping!

Then, after 18 months (by which time it had earned me close to $10k), I was offered $17k for the site, so I sold it too.

Now, through my travel blog, I’ve been able to fund my passion for travel and explore different places around the world.

In the past few months, I’ve been fortunate enough to travel to some amazing destinations, including Bali, Los Angeles, Dallas, Vancouver and Las Vegas.

The success of my travel blog has allowed me to fully fund my travels and explore new destinations with my family.

Steps to Creating a Successful Travel Blog - Me at Whistler

Try the Wealthy Affiliate as a Starter Member and Build your First Hub!

As you start your journey, Wealthy Affiliate is there for you with the most comprehensive training package I have ever seen – And as I have mentioned, I have used a few in my professional career trust me.

To get you started, Wealthy Affiliate has recently introduced the Hub.

The Hub

The hub is an AI based niche and website creation tool that will get you up and running with the foundation of your OWN business in just a few minutes. This includes:

  • Your website – hosted and inclusive of a WordPress editor
  • Your brand
  • Your ‘done-for-you’ research
  • Your blueprint
  • A task list that is going to help you drive the creation and growth of your business moving forward.
Wealthy Affiliate Review 24 - Hub screen

The hub makes the website creation process simple which allows you to get started on the training with a solid base and understanding of the processes.

All you need to do is choose your subject – which is known as your ‘niche’ – and follow the steps on the screen.

Oh, and as you run through the training below you may realize that what you created above is not exactly what you want. That’s ok, you can just create a new hub!

Wealthy Affiliate Training

Then as you continue your journey, the Wealthy Affiliate Hub is there for you with the most comprehensive training package I have ever seen – And I have used a few in my professional career trust me.

Above we discussed the use of the Hub to set up a website. Once you have done this, you will be able to access the “Step-by-Step Core Training”.

This is available to all members including starter members and will give you everything you need to know to continue to create your online business.

Wealthy Affiliate Review 24 - step by step core training

Member Training

There are also Live weekly classes taught by REAL industry experts on a range of topics like artificial intelligence (AI), SEO, YouTube, WordPress, PPC marketing and more.

wealthy affiliate master training

Great, What Else Does Wealthy Affiliate Have To Help You?

So, let’s keep this short, Wealthy Affiliate is a one-stop-shop platform that provides:

  • The Hub – this is the starting point and uses AI processes to assist you in determining your niche and creating your brand.
  • Complete training programs to assist with the development of your own affiliate marketing website in your own niche.
  • Website creation and publishing tools including access to WordPress editors and themes.
  • AI Content article design and content creation
  • Domain name purchasing (you get a free domain when you upgrade to the Premium membership).
  • Website hosting, security and backup.
  • Online help and chat forums.
  • Weekly live training events.
  • 24/7 support.
  • Keyword access tools.
  • SEO assistance.

The platform has been active for over 15 years with the original developers and owners, Kyle and Carson, still extremely active in its day to day operations – especially as they rollout their AI capabilities.

wa first two steps

You Can Try it Yourself For Free

Now of course I can tell you all about how Wealthy Affiliate works (because it does) until I am blue in the face. But every other program out there – including the shams and scams – will tell you the same thing!

So how about you just try it for free yourself. The Wealthy Affiliate Starter membership is free to join and gives you access to everything you need to get started – all without the need to spend a cent!

With the starter membership, you get:

  • 1 Limited Business Hub
  • 1,500 AI Word Credits
  • Try the AI Author Platform (BETA)
  • 1 Practice Website
  • Jaaxy Starter
  • Limited Help & Support
  • Core Niche Training (8 Classes)

And of course I will be there to help you every step of the way as well!

Look, in the interest of transparency, whilst Wealthy Affiliate does offer a free starter membership, this is designed to give you a look around, have a practice and see if it is worthwhile for you – which is a really great option.

However, as with all new businesses, you will need to make some investment so if you are serious about making money online , you will need to upgrade to a premium membership as this will give you access to all the tools you need in the one spot to succeed!

Afterall, every business needs tools to grow!

So How Much Does This Really Cost?

Wealthy Affiliate does not use upsells once you join – but as I mentioned in the video, to succeed here you will need to invest in a membership. There are a couple of options that provide access to all the tools, training and assistance that you could need – and a free domain as well.

Wealthy Affiliate offers a trio of membership tiers, as detailed on their pricing page.

You can opt for the Starter membership at no cost, the Premium membership for $49 per month or the Premium Plus+ membership for $99 per month. That’s the full extent of it – and you can absolutely build your website without having to spend another cent.

You won’t encounter any unexpected additional charges or covert fees and as a Premium member, you’re equipped with all the essentials to initiate, develop and expand a thriving online enterprise.

Those who opt for the Premium membership are provided with

  • Hosting for their websites
  • A complimentary domain name
  • Access to hundreds of hours of current expert tutorials
  • Various marketing and research tools
  • Personal guidance from seasoned professionals in the field
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And for those of you who want to make a serious investment into your future, there are some yearly options as well below to give you peace of mind that you have a whole year ahead of you to get stuff done!

And Don’t Forget the Personal Coaching

Once you join, not only do you get plenty of assistance from me, but you also have access to expert coaching, support and mentorship from real industry experts.

I mean, you can have access to all of the top-tier affiliate marketing training in the world, but inevitably, questions arise, particularly during the initial stages.

With an exceptionally dynamic and engaged community that boasts over 2.7 million members, Wealthy Affiliate offers an environment where you, as a member, can fully immerse and leverage this network.

You’re never alone; you have the collective wisdom of an entire community at your fingertips, ready to assist at any moment.

Plus, there’s always-on, rapid-response website support to handle any technical queries you may encounter.

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Wealthy Affiliate Works: Real Results From Real People

As I have mentioned a number of times, Wealthy Affiliate has helped me make real money online though its training and tools.

I have made money each month as well as a sale for $17,000.

But again, those promoting other programs will tell you the same thing!

So let’s get away from me and see what others are saying:

To start with, Wealthy Affiliate has a 4.9 out of 5 Star TrustPilot rating, which is a remarkable accomplishment in any industry, let alone the online business industry.

WA trust pilot image

And here are some of those reviews:

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And this is what people are saying within Wealthy Affiliate as well:

home page - success at WA

So, Let’s Make a Decision!

Let’s be frank, you have read this far so why not go all in, click on the button below to get started on the way to your very online business.

And once you are in and have had a play around with the hub, look for the little envelope on the top right and there will be a message from me. It is of course automated so respond to let me know you are there and we can start this journey together.

(oh, and the profile is mine so you can find me that way as well)

wealthy affiliate envelope

See you there

Paul

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6 Comments

  1. This is such a valuable article! I love seeing the screenshots with explanations on how to get your site visible. How would you advise someone in an MLM that has restrictions around branding and advertising? Would you suggest someone start with inventory they own or is MLM a preferred platform to scale? We are doing something similar in the keto industry and love the fact that we don’t need to hold inventory or fulfill the orders directly- it’s all processed through Amazon or our MLM site. Just curious to get another opinion on the matter. 

    1. Hi Rachel,

      I have generally found that most MLM programs run via similar rules to Affiliate programs around how you can use their images, their brand and so on.  That said, some even provide you with a website to get around that issue.  I always suggest having a good look through the terms and conditions of any MLM that you are looking into to ensure that you are not breaching their rules via your placement of links, banners etc.

      Should their restrictions place to many limitations upon you then, to be honest, I would be questioning whether that is the right one to choose.  MLM is hard enough to gain a footing in as it is without having strong limitations placed on what you can and can’t do online.  In my experience, it is the programs that still rely on tradition party plan sales techniques that have these restrictions in place.

      hope this helps

      Paul

  2. Hey Paul!

    Of course there are very good chances to sell cosmetics online, there are lots of lots of potentially interested customers :). Your Jaaxy results (that show a large traffic for keywords) speak for themselves!

    You are also offering us a lot of good advice about how to promote products and get more visibility from other people. While my niche is related to Computers instead of Cosmetics, your instructions are useful to me too. And if I am not wrong, Cosmetic products also bring higher commissions for affiliates than PC components do, so your choice for Cosmetics is indeed a lucky one – either as an Affiliate marketer or as an effective seller.

    Lots of success to you and Nicole!

    Peter

  3. Hello,

    Wonderful post! In this modern period affiliate marketing is a big platform to build up your own business & making money in online market become easier than before. I’m new comer in this field & looking for a good niche. Got your post & gather a huge knowledge how can I search niches, do my product research and many more things. Now, my concept is clear and I’ve to admit that cosmetics are good choice for affiliate. Thanks a lot!

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