Can Facebook Help Beauty Brands?

When Facebook revealed its advertising platform not too long ago, marketers of brands big and small jumped for joy. At last! A way to tap into this giant network of consumers who openly (or not so openly) share their personal information online.

Can you imagine the conversation they thought they'd have? "Hi, Beacon representative. Yes, I'd like to advertise to 30-35 year old Prius drivers who have a penchant for French fragrance, potato latkes, and Jude Law. Oh, you can target that group? Great, thanks. Lates."

Well, I hate to bust anyone's bubble, but that conversation never happened. Or rather, the result never happened. Facebook is and was a flop for advertisers. And now, with cosmetics companies attempting to leap onto the Facebook platform and create buzz for their brands, we're finding that "groups" are a limited resource for gaining exposure.

CosmeticsDesign writes that "searching through the groups created on Facebook for leading cosmetic brands throws up only a handful with more than 100 members," and that those that are popular, like Estee-Lauder's MAC Addicts (7,942 members) are large, well-known companies, which "suggests that the brand's success on Facebook is merely indicative of its success elsewhere."

So, what's a cosmetics marketer to do? Ignore the Facebook phenomenon? Or hop on board, just to prevent an accusation of being "behind the times"?