Five Misconceptions About Cosmetics
Every day I read the most amazing, ridiculous or sensational stories from and about the cosmetics world. It is almost impossible to keep up with news items and trends, plus skincare science never stands still. I found this interesting list of five untiring consumer practises for the cosmetics industry on an American website. It can only be hoped that the manufacturers won’t anticipate too much here.
1. Sniff it first
The first thing consumers do when considering a purchase is to have a good sniff of a product. People simply want nice smelling cosmetics. Each customer will still sniff a product, even though it is common knowledge that your perfume or fragrances, due to the high risk of irritation, are not good for your skin. The smell of a cream, lotion or shampoo appears to be key in the decision to buy. And therefore manufacturers continue to take advantage of this.
2. Lots of foam and bubbles
A readily lathering product which produces lots of foam and bubbles is generally seen as a product which truly delivers. The rich foaming shampoo treatment by the hairdresser, for example, is swiftly embraced as a real luxury. And a bath foam is, of course, not a bath foam unless it produces an enormous layer of white lather on the water. Yet foam is anything but a measure for the effectiveness of a washing or cleansing product. Indeed: for your facial skincare routine you really don’t want overly foaming products. These can make the skin very dry.
3. The thicker, the better
Also the viscosity of a cream – in simple terms: the runniness – is seen by most consumers as a measure for its effectiveness. The thicker and blobbier a cream is, the richer a product will probably be. At least that is what people think. Because after all, the viscosity says very little about the degree of nourishment or hydration. This will ultimately be decided by the ingredients. A milky cream can be more beneficial than a buttery cream. Nevertheless, this is exactly the reason why manufacturers are inclined to make moisturisers, and also conditioners, as thick and blobby as possible.
4. Leave on products can be more expensive
It seems that consumers are prepared to pay more for so-called leave on products than rinse off or wash off cosmetics. And this is actually quite ridiculous. Rinse off products usually come in much larger packaging, contain more functional ingredients and are more expensive to make than the leave on products. The probable feeling in the last category is that they do more and have longer to do it, and therefore may cost more.
5. High expectations
Consumers are fickle and particular. If a products doesn’t immediately do what it promises then we look elsewhere. And, of course, much is being promised. It would be wonderful if manufacturers wouldn’t promise more in order to stimulate consumers, but instead focus on fulfilling the claims that are made.
Kind regards,
Jetske
Research Physician Cosmetic Dermatology
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