Packages and closures for packaging

From Scrolling to Buying. How Is Social Commerce Changing Beauty Sales and Packaging Design?

Just a few years ago, social media in the beauty industry primarily served as a source of inspiration. Consumers would watch a tutorial, save the name of a product, and then look for it in a drugstore or online shop. Today, this journey increasingly takes place within a single environment: users see a cosmetic product in a video, watch how it performs, read comments, and can proceed directly to purchase without leaving the platform. This is the essence of social commerce – a model in which content, recommendations, social proof and transactions become part of one seamless experience.

The scale of this shift is already visible in sales data. According to a 2026 McKinsey report, social commerce is the fastest-growing sales channel for beauty products. In the US market, beauty sales through TikTok have grown at a rate of around 260% annually since 2023 and may reach USD 4 billion in 2026. The largest share of US beauty sales on the platform, around 66%, is generated by pre-recorded shoppable videos, while a further 22% comes from live shopping streams.

This is not exclusively a US phenomenon. NIQ reports that in 2025, online beauty sales globally grew nine times faster than in-store sales. TikTok Shop was already operating in 14 countries and was also expanding beyond the youngest consumer groups – in the UK, a significant share of sales value was generated by Millennials and Generation X consumers.

However, this does not mean that every popular video automatically translates into sales. The beauty market is currently at an interesting point: on the one hand, social platforms are shortening the path from interest to purchase, while on the other, consumers are becoming increasingly sceptical of product claims and are looking more closely at whether a product truly justifies its price. In McKinsey’s 2025 research, product quality was the most important factor influencing beauty purchases, although the importance of individual criteria varied by category. The recognisability of the person behind the brand was far less important – publicly known founders ranked among the least significant purchase factors.


Before social commerce can sell a product, it has to build trust

The way social media influences purchasing decisions is well illustrated by a study by Ngo and co-authors published in 2025 in Acta Psychologica. The authors analysed responses from 342 consumers in Vietnam who used social media and had previous experience purchasing organic cosmetics. The study examined six elements of social media marketing activities: informativeness, interactivity, personalisation, trendiness, entertainment and electronic word of mouth, meaning opinions and recommendations published by users.

The findings showed that simply being present on social media is not enough. What matters is whether the content helps consumers better understand the product, enables interaction with the brand, responds to their needs and presents the experiences of other users. This type of communication primarily increased trust in the brand and strengthened the perception that the cosmetic product was of high quality. To a lesser but still noticeable extent, it also helped reinforce the belief that the product was worth its price and offered genuine value to the consumer.

This is an important conclusion for beauty brands. Social media should not be treated solely as a place for publishing attractive images and short promotional content. Its fundamental role in the sales process is to reduce uncertainty. Consumers cannot touch the product, check its consistency or test the packaging themselves. They therefore have to form their judgement based on content, demonstrations, brand responses, comments from other users and the consistency of the information being communicated.

The study also shows that simply believing a product to be high quality is not enough to persuade consumers to buy it. What mattered more was whether the consumer trusted the brand, believed the product was worth its price and evaluated the overall experience positively. This means that brands should not limit their communication to claims about quality. They must also justify the product’s value, build credibility and ensure a positive customer experience, because it is the combination of these factors that ultimately increases purchase intention.

In social commerce, effective communication is therefore not about repeatedly claiming that a cosmetic product is “premium”, “natural” or “innovative”. Brands need to demonstrate what that quality is based on: how the product is applied, what its texture looks like, how much product the packaging dispenses, what ingredients it contains, how it should be used and what experiences people who have actually tested it have had.

The authors of the study emphasise the importance of transparent information, behind-the-scenes content showing how the product is made, credible customer reviews, efficient communication and quick responses to questions and concerns.

The findings should, of course, be interpreted with the study’s limitations in mind. The research focused on organic cosmetics and was conducted in Vietnam. It cannot therefore be automatically assumed that exactly the same relationships will occur in every European market or across every beauty category. The underlying mechanism, however, remains clear: social media activities can increase purchase intention by strengthening trust and improving consumers’ perceptions of product quality and value.


In social commerce, packaging becomes part of the content

In social commerce, packaging is no longer something consumers see only on a physical shelf or after receiving their order. It appears much earlier – in videos, live streams, tutorials, unboxings and reviews. It is often the packaging that first attracts attention, helps consumers recognise the product and influences how they perceive its quality, functionality and overall appeal. In practice, packaging therefore becomes not only a means of protecting the product, but also an important part of brand communication on social media.

In a traditional store, packaging has only a few seconds to capture the consumer’s attention. On social media, it must also perform well in close-ups, in motion, within the vertical format of a smartphone screen and during real-life use. The dispensing mechanism, the way the packaging opens or its leak resistance can become equally important elements of the content.

This is not merely a matter of aesthetics. Since research shows that social media strongly influences trust and perceived quality, every product demonstration should provide evidence that supports the brand promise. A smoothly operating closure, an appropriately measured dose and hygienic application can reinforce the message. The same elements, if they fail during filming or later use, can quickly become the subject of negative comments and user-generated content.

McKinsey data also confirms the importance of showing the product “in action”. Among consumers watching beauty live shopping streams, 60% said they used them to discover new brands and products, 53% were looking for offers and promotions, while 49% wanted to see how the product worked and learn about other people’s reviews. Around one in five viewers of such streams reported making a purchase during every or almost every session.

Packaging designed for a brand active in social commerce should therefore be evaluated not only in a 2D visualisation or on a physical shelf, but also in the dynamic environment of a smartphone screen. It is worth testing it under conditions typical of social media: in vertical format, under both studio and home lighting, during unboxing, in close-ups of the closure and while the product is being applied.


Are you ready for this trend?

Social commerce is undoubtedly changing the way beauty products are sold. It shortens the path to purchase, enables brands to respond to trends almost instantly and allows even smaller companies to reach large audiences.

In social commerce, every product detail is quickly put to the test. Packaging should therefore not only attract attention, but also perform flawlessly and confirm the quality promised by the brand in its communication.

That is why it is worth having a partner who understands the specific requirements of the industry and can propose solutions aligned with the objectives of your project. At Polpak Packaging, we support brands in the area of packaging and closures, combining experience with practical market knowledge.


Contact us and let’s discuss the possibilities for your product.
biuro@polpak.pl
+48 22 752 34 23