In the 21st century, even makeup brands are not safe from becoming the target of online reputation destruction. They are under more scrutiny than ever before, with people’s expectations rising.

Makeup brands are no longer just expected to make good makeup but also to be inclusive and accountable, especially for the people they collaborate with, boost, and support.

Two brands that can be seen as examples of makeup brands that have come under attack in the past are Morphe and Glossier – two of the biggest players in the game.

In this editorial, we will be looking at how well or how badly they managed their online reputation management crises and how you can avoid such situations by learning from their mistakes.

But first, let’s get a brief background of each makeup brand.

About Morphe

Morphe Cosmetics, often known as Morphe Brushes, is a cosmetics and beauty brand in Los Angeles launched in 2008. 

The firm focuses on direct-to-consumer digital retail distribution of beauty and personal care items through collaborations with social media celebrities. 

Morphe severed connections with several collaborators when the influencers were entangled in a dispute.

Morphe collaborated with famous conspiracy YouTuber Shane Dawson and makeup guru Jeffree Star who sold his products through the brand.

They ended their relationship with both of these influencers in 2020 because of the company’s negative feedback when they were entangled in a battle between beauty vloggers and racism allegations.

Morphe collaborated with Charles in 2017, creating two eyeshadow palettes. Again, the partnership ended in 2021 after the internet canceled the influencer when he acknowledged improperly messaging minor boys when he was an adult.

How Did Morphe Manage Its Online Reputation?

Following Charles’ drama, all eyes were on Morphe’s next move. The internet was urging Morphe to break all links with the Youtuber, as they had done with prior prominent celebrities who had faced charges. 

Last year, when severe charges of racism were leveled against Shane Dawson, the beauty firm pulled all of his goods off the stores. 

In just one week, Morphe had decided to announce that they would also be applying the same reputation management method to products sold by Jeffree Star and ending their partnership by offering large savings on items sold in their stores online and in stores. 

Comments swamped Morphe’s article, wondering when they would cut connections with Charles. Everyone highly condemned Morphe’s inaction on social media.

James had been working with Morphe since 2018, so they decided to issue a joint statement declaring their intention to “wind down.” 

Morphe customers threatened to boycott the business due to its relationship with James Charles, prompting the announcement. 

It’s also unclear if Morphe would discontinue offering the infamous eye shadow palette they created with the influencer as it is still available on their website and in stores.

This has led many avid fans of the brand to step back from them due to the clash of morals, lack of accountability, and inaction on Morphe’s part. But they were still able to recover. How?

Morphe brought in influencers who were not problematic, people of color, and created an inclusive range with every launch, which put them back on the map with other makeup giants – a way more effective strategy than mere negative content removal.

About Glossier

It wasn’t that long ago that it was difficult to browse through Instagram without coming across a visually appealing post by cosmetics company Glossier. 

They create products with your true beauty regimen in mind. Here you’ll discover skincare, cosmetics, body care, and scents that have been thoughtfully crafted to be worthy of your bathroom shelf. 

Despite the brand’s seemingly invincible appeal, an anti-Glossier campaign has been brewing on social media. 

In 2020, unidentified Glossier retail employees came out with charges of racism and a terrible work environment, starting the Instagram account Outta The Gloss to express their displeasure.

How Did Glossier Manage Their Online Reputation?

The Instagram account created against Glossier stated that they never took the complaints of people of color seriously.

Several employees expressed their dissatisfaction with the racism they encountered and were advised to ‘feel empowered to go away.’ 

Others claim that employees raised issues about limited shade ranges only to receive “negative feedback” and “low raises.” 

The Instagram profile promoted a resistance against the brand and gathered over eleven thousand followers and a lot of support. 

It was just a matter of time before other creators and influencers on various platforms with huge followings started to make videos spreading the word. Glossier started to lose popularity even with its most loyal supporters.

That isn’t the last you’ve heard about dissatisfied Glossier workers. Former Glossier retail employees were laid off during the height of the outbreak. 

Glossier was quite proud of its firm and even referred to itself as the “Harvard of Jobs.” 

Everyone was astonished to hear about the recent layoffs, especially because they had noticed a lot of new brick-and-mortar businesses opening. 

Those in the beauty industry questioned the decision – especially its timing.

With specialists noting an increase in skin problems since the epidemic began, it’s understandable that many former Glossier fans now feel alienated by the brand’s emphasis on skin.

Many beauty enthusiasts and TikTokers share the same sentiments regarding Glossier’s cosmetics collection, implying that other companies are taking the lead, particularly when it comes to formulas and colors that work for all skin types, tones, and textures.

Glossier’s mistake with all of this negative content being put out was its lack of damage control and inaction – even negative content removal – by employing a reputation management company they could have helped to calm the wildfire of negative content.

They did not address their consumers, and they did not change their ways. They pretended like nothing was happening.

How To Manage A Makeup Brand’s Online Reputation 

Do More

In addition to monitoring your brand name, consider various factors that affect brand reputation.

Brands frequently overlook the impact of some of these characteristics on their brand reputation. 

Tracking these inquiries will provide you with a complete view of how the public perceives your brand. This allows you and your brand to uncover your strengths, weaknesses, dangers, and opportunities.

SEO

What if an article about your brand inaccurately represented your products or services? This might lead to thousands of people leaving the internet with a poor perception of your brand, as happened with Morphe and Glossier.

Search engines play an important role in repairing your brand’s reputation and image. If someone searches your brand or product and finds a negative story or review, this is a terrible indicator. 

The first step for any company should be to boost the ranking of favorable material, whether it comes from you or a third-party website.

If the unknown unfavorable article ranks high on SERPs, contact the author to see if they will change it.

Use Social Listening

Implementing social listening is a terrific approach to gaining deeper insights into your brand’s reputation. This allows you to be proactive and exercise negative content removal before it gains momentum, but again, the reputation management company you hire will be able to guide you better.

If you’re not familiar with the term, social listening is discovering prospective development opportunities and reacting appropriately based on insights gathered from media monitoring.

It is based on monitoring internet talks regarding relevant subjects. However, social listening allows you to uncover the meaning behind the data rather than merely gathering data. 

You’ll be able to be proactive and see trends and patterns this way.

Consider Removals

Removing reviews is a delicate subject that you should handle with caution. 

If you received a negative review, you should endeavor to remedy it by increasing the quality of your products and services or offering better customer service. 

Only if the review is unfairly prejudiced should you choose to delete it. Before taking any action on this issue, a thorough examination is required – never eliminate subjective reviews.

Look To The Professionals

You might be thinking, Why can’t I do this myself? Successful online reputation management should be handled by specialists and only by experts.

Online reputation management is a critical duty that experts with extensive technological knowledge best handle.

Those with years of expertise and technical abilities should be left to the work of displaying the finest image of yourself/company on the internet. 

If you want to have a successful brand, you should avoid overlooking online reputation management’s nitpickiness.

Conclusion

Regularly investing in your business’s reputation will result in more loyal consumers and improved brand support. 

Customer satisfaction draws new customers, encourages repeat purchases, and assures a consistent long-term income stream.

Employing an online reputation company like The Reputation Management Company may be extremely beneficial in managing a brand’s reputation. 

Use them to track and evaluate brand mentions to develop actionable measures for strategy optimization. This will significantly improve your strategy for managing your brand’s reputation online.

Don’t forget to use professional advice, such as making the most of your brand image, being honest, and being ready to reply to any comments as soon as possible.