How L'Oréal uses augmented reality for an excellent customer experience

industry cases
Verfasst von Jürgen Rösger

Autor: Jürgen Rösger

 

Jump Points

  1. Virtual try-on on the website 

  2. Virtual try-on on Amazon and Instagram

  3. Virtual try-on in L'Oréal stores via apps

  4. Virtual try-on in L'Oréal stores via Magic Mirror

  5. In-store gamification with augmented reality 

  6. Hair inspiration & salon search via app 

  7. Product integration in YouCam Makeup app

  8. Conclusion & Sources


51% of consumers say that the biggest disadvantage of online shopping is that you can't touch, feel and try out products (BrizFeel). 35% say they would shop more online if they could virtually try a product before buying it (BigCommerce).

One technology that can serve the need to try products virtually is augmented reality. Here, additional information or features are added to the real world. Consumers already have the necessary devices at home and in their pockets: smartphones, tablets, PCs, etc.

L'Oréal is the world's largest cosmetics manufacturer and has already been using augmented reality for several years to enrich its customer journey with excellent experiences at various touchpoints.

In 2018, the company acquired the international leader in augmented reality and artificial intelligence for the beauty industry - Toronto-based ModiFace. Since then, L'Oréal and ModiFace have been creating more and more product fitting (try-on) opportunities that offer customers real value in the purchase decision-making phase: They can virtually try on cosmetics (such as makeup and hair colors) in very different scenarios before buying.

Virtual try-on on the website 

Today there are several AR-supported try-ons for men and women available on loreal-paris.de. The "Virtuell testen" tab has even made it to the main navigation. Behind it are more than 7 tools for helpful tests that invite customers to interact with products and the brand via webcam. For example:

  • Testing hair color, makeup, foundation color fitting

  • AI-based skin analysis "Skin Genius" for personalized product recommendations

  • Proper hair care, hair coloring for men, finding the right hair color

L'Oréal's first AR makeup experiences, launched in 2019, doubled website dwell time and tripled conversion. (Deloitte)

Image: Screenshot loreal-paris.de, virtual try-on hair color

Virtual try-on on Amazon and Instagram

To support customers in their purchasing decisions, L'Oréal also invites users to virtual try-ons on sales-relevant platforms. Since 2019, consumers in the U.S. and Japan have been able to try on cosmetics e.g. on Amazon (L'Oréal).

Customers can use their smartphone's front camera to experiment with different lipsticks in a live video or selfie. The digital makeup trial delivers extremely realistic results. It makes it possible to check out thousands of lipsticks and facilitates online shopping for cosmetics.

Since 2021, Instagram stores of various L'Oréal brands have also made it possible to virtually test lipsticks from, for example, NYX Professional Makeup, Urban Decay, Maybelline New York and Lancome before purchase. The integration of this experience on Instagram was only achieved through a combination of AR technology from ModiFace and Facebook's AR platform Spark AR (WuV).

Virtual try-on in L'Oréal stores with apps

Image: L’Oréal Make-up Genius

L'Oréal runs its own stores with services such as beauty consultations by professionals and digital offerings - including the apps Nail Genius and Makeup Genius. These make it possible to test L'Oréal products virtually (especially hygienically) before making a purchase decision. This also includes products that are out of stock at the time.

Customers can take a picture of themselves in the store with their smartphone camera and, for example, apply virtual lipsticks and nail polishes to the picture. 

A press release from L'Oréal says: "Have you ever imagined that you could try hundreds of looks in just a few minutes? The latest revolution from L'Oréal Paris: virtual reality makeup that allows you to apply any look and any product to your image. Smile, change your facial expression, move your head - the makeup follows you! The result is stunning, as if you were wearing it yourself." (Future Stores)

Virtual try-on in L'Oréal stores via Magic Mirror

In China, L'Oréal is going one step further: Here, the boundaries between online and offline in-store shopping are blurring into a seamless, interactive experience.

As part of its "New Retail" approach, L'Oréal is working with Alibaba (China's largest IT group) and Tmall (B2C online store) to create forward-looking in-store experiences. Magic Mirrors (Alibaba technology) have been installed in L'Oréal stores in Shanghai, Wuhan and Changsha. These mirrors include features from the Genius apps mentioned above. 

Image: L'Oréal, Magic Mirror]

Customers can try out the make-up live and virtually, directly in their reflection. They can test a large number of products very quickly and have access to L'Oréal's entire product range, regardless of the store's inventory. All products can be ordered directly from the mirror (Future Stores).

In-store gamification with augmented reality 

Surprising experience beyond the try-on experience before purchase:  Via the augmented reality game Catch the Cat, Taobao or Tmall app users in China can play for special promotional prices and vouchers for the L'Oréal online store. The goal is to find a black kitten hiding in the L'Oréal store (Future Stores, Alizila).

Hair inspiration & salon search via app 

With its own app Style My Hair, available in the Appstore, users can find new inspiration every day: Countless haircuts, professional hair colors and effects are available to sample and provide new impulses. Soon, the first AI-based 3D hair color test will also be available at Style My Hair for users to examine.

With the embedded salon search, the nearest salon with L'Oréal Professional Hairdressera can be found quickly (L'Oréal Finance).

Product integration with YouCam Makeup app

Even before the ModiFace acquisition, L'Oréal was working with augmented reality. In 2017, the group announced its global collaboration with Perfectcorp. Perfectcorp includes the popular paid app YouCam Makeup - the No. 1 app for virtual makeup & photo editing. Young, mostly female users can edit photos via smartphone to post them on Instagram or use them as profile pictures. 

Beauty fans were given the opportunity to virtually discover and try on various product ranges and make-up collections from L'Oréal using YouCam Makeup (Businesswire).

Conclusion

L'Oréal successfully creates innovative digital customer experiences with advanced customer centricity and innovative technology. The cosmetics giant and omnichannel champion picks up its customers along the customer journey at various touchpoints with one of the most relevant services: 

Product Try-ons. Through these tools the customers desire to test cosmetics before the purchase is met plus it builds trust before the purchase - an important factor, especially for online purchases. This meets the need to test cosmetics before buying and builds trust before purchase - an important factor, especially for online purchases. In addition, it also improves the in-store shopping experience.

What is exciting is that the trend towards AR-supported customer experiences can be used in a variety of ways to increase sales. It represents a great opportunity for companies: Consumers' appetite for AR-enabled experiences is growing. Since 2018, the number of mobile AR users has almost doubled (Deloitte).

Jürgen Rösger https://www.linkedin.com/in/juergen-roesger-696868a/
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