How L’Oréal Brands Are Growing Earned Media Value Faster Than Competitors on Social Media

Noor Lobad
·3 min read

L’Oréal is flying high on social media.

The company — which was the biggest beauty manufacturer by sales in 2022, per Beauty Inc’s annual ranking of the top 100 beauty manufacturers — is seeing uncommon, cross-category growth in earned media value across its skin care, hair care and makeup portfolios, reports CreatorIQ.

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While these categories at large are all seeing healthy year-over-year EMV growth of 45 percent, 29 percent and 23 percent, respectively, L’Oréal’s top brands by the metric are growing even faster.

On top of that, L’Oréal-owned Maybelline New York, L’Oréal Paris and La Roche-Posay are harnessing TikTok more effectively than the average beauty company, each garnering more than 30 percent of their respective EMV from the platform — above the industry average of roughly 10 to 11 percent.

Garnier, which is L’Oréal’s fastest-growing hair care brand on social media, generates more than 54 percent of its EMV through TikTok.

L’Oréal’s top skin care brands by year-over-year EMV growth.

  1. Kiehls: $62.1 milion, +104 percent

  2. Skinbetter Science: $9.4 million, +81 percent

  3. CeraVe: $77.8 million, +52 percent

L’Oréal’s top makeup brands by year-over-year EMV growth.

  1. YSL Beauty: $175.3 million, +143 percent

  2. Lancôme: $179.9 million, +84 percent

  3. L’Oréal Paris: $279.1 million, +69 percent

  4. Armani Beauty: $118 million, +59 percent

  5. Urban Decay: $173.4 million, +49 percent

  6. Maybelline New York: $229.3 million, +30 percent

L’Oréal’s top hair care brands by year-over-year EMV growth.

  1. Garnier: $51.2 million, +68 percent

  2. L’Oréal Professionnel: $30.2 million, +53 percent

  3. Kérastase: $38.8 million, +48 percent

  4. Pureology: $8.5 million, +39 percent

CreatorIQ’s director of content marketing Alexander Rawitz said L’Oréal’s “expansion of TikTok and focus on authenticity” are largely fueling its standout social media success, noting the company’s emphasis on creator retention and “giving creators more control over their content” have bolstered this strategy.

For example, top EMV generator for Kiehl’s, Yuri Lamasbella, is best known for her Kardashian parody videos — a theme she’s stuck to even whilst promoting the brand. Similarly, Meg Murphy (@megssfx on TikTok) was the top EMV earner for Garnier, routinely using the brand’s products to touch up her signature red hair and using the Garnier micellar water to remove makeup from her blemishes before heading out, in line with her page’s focus on acne positivity.

L’Oréal Paris, Rawitz said, has demonstrated a particular apt for turning its presence at in-person events like Cannes Film Festival into a significant source of online buzz: this year, posts mentioning “Cannes” generated $3.6 million EMV for the brand.

Fashion week, too, was a big moment for L’Oréal Paris, which hosted its sixth annual “Walk Your Worth” runway show in Paris in October. Participants included Monet McMichael, who generated $639,400 EMV for the brand during the event, and Kendall Jenner, whose mother Kris generated $542,800 EMV whilst promoting Kendall’s performance.

“We’re seeing fewer influencer trips or those kind of ostentatiously splashy engagements than we have in the past, however when we do see them, they do drive EMV,” said Rawitz, noting the resumption of regularly scheduled events post-COVID-19 has been a big win for L’Oréal. “Every year, we know Cannes [Film Festival] is going to be a big hit for L’Oréal, basically every fashion week — certainly Paris Fashion Week — as well…L’Oréal and its family of brands have been particularly effective at capitalizing on the momentum of and enthusiasm for these events.”

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