The Changing Landscape of Brand Trips: Tarte vs. Tropicals
In the ever-evolving world of influencer marketing, brands are constantly seeking innovative ways to connect with their audience. Take the lavish brand trips for example. An approach the makeup brand Tarte has long been notorious for. However, as the dynamics of social media change, so do the preferences of the target audiences, particularly Gen Z. So, should these brands even bother with these trips anymore?
Tarte’s Disconnect with its Audience
Tarte, a well-known makeup brand in the beauty industry, has been organizing brand trips to exotic locations since 2015, with their latest excursion flying 30 influencers in a private jet to Bora Bora. We’ve seen the hashtag #trippinwithtarte flooding our social media feeds for years. Many of these trips have experienced an extremely good payoff, allowing products, such as Shape Tape Concealer, to become iconic. However, this time, Tarte may be losing its touch.
Maureen Kelly, the founder of Tarte, has been a vocal proponent of investing in relationships rather than spending millions on ads. However, the recent Bora Bora trip has sparked criticism, with many calling it out as "tone-deaf." As soon as influencers started producing content, people were quick to voice their opinions. Saying things such as, “No one wants to watch somebody eating caviar on their private jet when they’re scraping up money to buy eggs," or expressing their surprise that the brand still sends influencers to these tropical destinations.
The comments and reactions to Tarte's latest trip highlight a growing frustration among consumers, stating that they couldn't relate to influencers parading around with free gifts that they would be able to afford anyway. Tarte’s emphasis on extravagant activities and displays of wealth seems out of touch with the realities of their audience and appears to be in poor taste. The disconnect between the brand's values, the influencers chosen to go on these trips, and those of its audience is becoming more apparent.
Gen Z, having grown up in the era of social media, is not interested in these elaborate brand trips anymore. The affluent nature of these trips showcased during these excursions is no longer an aspiration for many young individuals, who instead value authenticity and ethical consumption over consumerism.
A New Approach to Brand Trips
The changing landscape of brand trips has given rise to new players like Topicals, an inclusive skincare brand that is rewriting the playbook for influencer trips. Recognizing the importance of giving back and engaging in cultural exchanges, Topicals has set a new standard for these brand trips.
Topicals' recent trip to Ghana serves as an example of a brand aligning its influencer trips with its core values and target audience. Unlike Tarte's approach, Topicals focused on authenticity and social awareness, using the target audience's knowledge of the economic state of the world to its advantage. Topicals was mindful when choosing the right destination to send 12 BIPOC influencers by ensuring relevance and cultural sensitivity. The brand recognized that in a world of scrutiny amplified in social media, authenticity must be a priority. While leveraging the audience's interest, the brand was able to generate content that felt genuine and relatable.
Image sourced from Brand Insider
Adapting to Consumer Values
As the preferences of consumers shift, brands must adapt their influencer marketing strategies to align with the values of their target audience. Collaborating with influencers who lack authenticity or have a mismatched audience can result in content that feels forced or ingenuine, failing to resonate with the intended audience.
The era of extravagant brand trips is out, with Gen Z favoring authenticity and ethical consumption over flashy displays of affluence. Brands like Topicals, with their mindful approach to influencer trips, are setting a new standard in the beauty industry. It's time for brands to reevaluate their strategies and ensure that their influencer marketing aligns with the changing values of their audience.
About Lily
Lily Larsen is a senior with a double major in Marketing and General Management. She holds the position of social chair for Women in Business, an organization in the Seidman College of Business, and currently has an internship with TowerPinkster, an architecture and design firm in Grand Rapids. Her goal post-grad is to move forward with working in Business Development in the AE industry. When she has free time, she loves to read, go for walks, or spend time with her friends.