Ch. 18 - Sales Promotion and Personal Selling

The tools that are used by Sephora for consumer sales promotion are often coupons, online sales promotion, point-of-purchase display, sampling and their beauty insider loyalty program Sephora, a leader in the beauty business uses many sales promotion activities to stay ahead of the game. Sephora uses consumer sales promotion which is targeted to the ultimate consumer market. The types of consumers that Sephora targets are loyal consumers, brand switchers and price buyers., a client loyalty program as a way of thanking clients with special products, exclusive information, and an all-access pass to personalized beauty. Sephora offers online promotion codes, which consumers can use on the company’s website to get discounts, free shipping and exclusive gifts. Sephora also sets up point-of-purchase display, which is set up the store to advertise specific products and induce impulse buying. 

free online promo code

point of purchase display

The Sephora Beauty Insider is a rewards program that offers customers coupons, discounts, and points (to redeem for deluxe size samples) for frequent buyers. The program is available to all Sephora customers and is free for sign-up. Each dollar spent is equal to one point, every one hundred points offers a free "deluxe" sample-size product (from a luxury brand). There is also a 500 point redemption level, which usually consists of a boxed set of multiple samples. Beauty Insider members also receive sample-size gifts on their birthday. When a member spends $350 in one calendar year, they are upgraded to a Very Important Beauty Insider membership (V.I.B.) and will retain that status throughout the following year. 

 

 

Ch. 17 - Advertising and Public Relations 

When you're a product company that sells in a highly competitive market like the beauty industry, you focus on impeccable service. Sephora specializes in selling higher-priced cosmetics and fragrances in ways intended to be significantly different from the conventional methods of department stores. For instance, at Sephora's 219 stores in Europe and the United States, products are arranged alphabetically rather than segregated by manufacturer, the popular promotional tool known as ''gift with purchase'' has been eliminated and customers are encouraged to sample items like lipstick, eye shadow etc. Sephora uses massive advertising campaigns to further exceed their impressive sales. Sephora also uses product advertising, which publicize the benefits of specific products.  

In one of their product advertisement Sephora used a rather suggestive image to highlight the benefits of an anti aging product line “Super” by Dr. Nicholas Perricone. Some may argue that the image was inappropriate for young women who initially the advertisement was aimed at for preventing aging; but at it proves time and time again sex sells.

Suggestive ad 

Ch. 15 - Retailing

 

Sephora stores are owned by Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH), the world's leading luxury goods group. Sephora operates approximately 1,300 stores in 27 countries worldwide, with an expanding base of over 300 stores across North America. I recently visited Sephora in Union Square Manhattan and it was a delightful experience the staff was very friendly and helpful. The sales associate/ makeup artist, all wore black this is the color of their uniform because Sephora wants the make up vibrant colors to stand out on the staff. I did not feel hovered over at all, I was given my space to browse the store and if I had a question the sales associate/ makeup artist was always willing to help.The store had a lot of shoppers, a lot of enthusiastic women eyeing the products they wanted to purchase.  The store was quite spacious and well organized; it had a very light airy feel to it not clustered at all. The store was well lit, and the color theme was basically the classic black and white, no bright and abrasive colors. 

There were a huge variety of high end brands of makeup and skin care to choose from. Some of the brands that are available for purchase are Makeup- Forever, Urban Decay, Too Faced, Bobbi Brown and Stilla just to name a few . There were testers for all the products in the store complete with sanitary stations at every display. The main focus of the store was their “Beauty Station” where I could see women getting makeovers, I could see makeup artists explaining how to use the products and giving the customer their individual attention. The store had approximately 20+ employees, I would say a bit understaffed, based on the amount of women waiting in line to get their makeup done at the beauty station.

Overall it was a wonderful shopping experience, I frequent Sephora stores a lot especially the stores located in Queens and I can say that it is always a pleasure shopping there. The staffs are always very helpful and kind, never fussy or arrogant. Sephora never disappoints, they anticipate their customers every needs and I am truly a satisfied customer.

Ch. 6 - Consumer Decision Making

Sephora thrives as the leading cosmetic retailer in North America because Sephora has always adopted the policy of putting consumer satisfaction first, and allowing consumers to make an informed decision when purchasing a product. Consumers are free to browse the company’s website and learn about products through consumer reviews. Consumers are given the freedom to post their review of a product they had purchased, whether good or bad. Thousands of reviews are posted daily onto the website, giving other consumers insight as to how a product performs and enabling them to make an informed decision on whether to purchase the product or not. On Sephora’s website sephora.com, professionally produced videos called "Sephora TV" are posted to inform consumers how products work; all demonstrations are done by a professional makeup artist of the respective brand. 

Also “Beauty Talk” a tab on the website offers expert advice to consumers through a beauty forum where women can ask any beauty related questions and get expert answers from professionals in the beauty industry. On the forum consumers can get expert skincare and makeup advice in order to help them make the best decision as to which product is right for them. Sephora goes above and beyond to keep their customers happy and informed, because they know that a happy customer is a loyal costumer. Sephora’s website also have a tab “Hot Now”, which tells consumers what product is trendy right now which give consumers suggestions, rich visual content, and explanations of products from the consumer’s perspective. Having these features on the website provides value to consumers through access to information and visuals.

What sets apart sephora from its competitors is their ability to track customers buying habits. The company collects data from the company’s website and consumer’s beauty insider loyalty card to determine which brand of products that each consumer buys. The company then uses this information to target specific campaigns and promotions to certain consumers, thus better serving its customers and also increasing the effectiveness of their marketing strategy.