Content from influencers and creators deliver higher returns than brand-owned channels across the beauty industry, according to WeArisma’s “2025 State of Influence” report.
The data shows that beauty brands receive exponential returns when leveraging partnerships with influencers and content creators:
Influencer and creator content generate up to 19 times higher Earned Media Value (EMV) than brand-owned accounts
They reach up to 26 times more consumers through impressions
Content creation is amplified by up to 73 times
Engagement rates surpass brand-owned channels by up to 83 times
This “Ripple Impact” – defined as the total brand impact generated by influential voices compared to brand-owned accounts – varies across beauty categories and individual brands.
Source: WeArisma
Category Leaders Emerge
Dior, Jo Malone, Sephora, and Garnier generate the highest overall Ripple Impact across the beauty industry.
NARS demonstrates exceptional performance with influential sources driving 89% of its EMV and 97% of its mentions. The brand’s strategy includes partnering with Chinese actor Xiao Zhan as a global spokesperson and collaborating with Jools Lebron, creator of the viral “very demure” movement.
Within fragrance, niche luxury perfumeries see greater returns from ambassadors, with influential voices generating on average seven times more EMV for Jo Malone and Kilian than their brand channels accomplish.
Category Performance Analysis
Skincare
Garnier leads the skincare category alongside CeraVe and La Roche-Posay. WeArisma notes these brands leverage an ingredient-focused strategy, differentiating them from aesthetic-driven competitors like Glossier. The report highlights how skinfluencers commend these brands for emphasizing ingredients and long-lasting skin transformations rather than following transient beauty trends.
Skincare experiences a 38% year-over-year surge in EMV, with mentions rising by 7%. However, the category’s resonance declined by 6%, suggesting a slight reduction in overall audience connection despite growing awareness.
L’Oréal’s portfolio dominates skincare, with Garnier securing the top position across EMV, engagement, impressions, and mentions. Vichy shares the highest virality with Garnier and CeraVe, appearing regularly in recommendations from dermatologists with large social media followings.
Makeup
The cosmetics industry struggles to maintain pace with engagement and EMV growth seen in fragrance and skincare. The category experiences a year-over-year decline of 10% in mentions and 7% in virality, with resonance dropping by 11%.
Sephora and L’Oréal Paris generate the largest influential impact in makeup, though NARS and Charlotte Tilbury’s impact carries more proportional weight relative to their size. Sephora’s community of beauty enthusiasts contributes nearly three times more EMV, resulting in $1.9 billion, and eight times more engagement than the brand achieves through owned channels. The retailer’s “Hot on Social” shopping edit continuously refreshes with trending products, creating TikTok buzz.
The top ten most engaging makeup brands include industry giants like Sephora and L’Oréal alongside celebrity-founded brands such as Fenty and Rare Beauty, which leverage their founders’ star power to amplify reach. Many brands tap into events like the Paris Olympics through partnerships with athletes and teams, with standout activations from Fenty Beauty and Sephora.
bareMinerals ranks first in resonance, while Almay leads in virality, with both brands’ makeup ranges highly favored by consumers with skin sensitivities.
Fragrance
Dior and Jo Malone lead the fragrance category, though Kilian generates a more concentrated Ripple Impact. Compared to makeup and skincare, fragrance demonstrates a more subdued Ripple Impact, with influential voices driving almost seven times more mentions but only 1.2 times the EMV, engagement, and impressions—highlighting strong conversation with untapped growth potential.
Luxury brands like Dior, Prada, and Mugler dominate the top three in EMV and engagement, driven by star-powered campaigns. High-profile ambassadors, including Rihanna, the new face of J’Adore Dior, and K-Pop star Jisoo, who champions the Maison’s exhibitions in Tokyo, fuel this success.
Jo Malone secures the second spot behind Dior in engagement, solidifying its position with more accessible pricing and strategic partnerships, including collaborations with model Olivia Culpo. Elizabeth Arden, known for elegant and timeless scents, drives the highest resonance in the fragrance category.
Strategic Partnerships
The report emphasizes that partnerships rooted in strong resonance and credibility empower brands to reach and influence more target consumers than possible through owned social media channels alone.
Sephora and L’Oréal actively participated in the Paris Olympics with on-the-ground activations, highlighting the growing synergy between beauty and sports collaborations. La Roche-Posay maintains its position as the official sunscreen partner of the U.S. Open for the third consecutive year, with a content strategy leaning toward informative messaging rather than trend-driven campaigns.
Changing Market Dynamics
The report notes that shifting consumer preferences are changing conceptions of success in earned media, calling for new ways of thinking about partnership effectiveness.
While metrics like EMV demonstrate which brands spend the most on exclusive partnerships, WeArisma notes that they don’t necessarily highlight those building the most authentic connections with target customers. The report suggests that strong resonance ensures credibility and creates meaningful community intersections while protecting brand DNA from dilution.
WeArism highlights that influential voices, through their close-knit “parasocial” relationships with their communities, play a crucial role in driving preferences and cumulatively reaching far more target customers than brands can through their own channels.
David Adler is an entrepreneur and freelance blog post writer who enjoys writing about business, entrepreneurship, travel and the influencer marketing space.
Content from influencers and creators deliver higher returns than brand-owned channels across the beauty industry, according to WeArisma’s “2025 State of Influence” report.
The data shows that beauty brands receive exponential returns when leveraging partnerships with influencers and content creators:
This “Ripple Impact” – defined as the total brand impact generated by influential voices compared to brand-owned accounts – varies across beauty categories and individual brands.
Source: WeArisma
Category Leaders Emerge
Dior, Jo Malone, Sephora, and Garnier generate the highest overall Ripple Impact across the beauty industry.
NARS demonstrates exceptional performance with influential sources driving 89% of its EMV and 97% of its mentions. The brand’s strategy includes partnering with Chinese actor Xiao Zhan as a global spokesperson and collaborating with Jools Lebron, creator of the viral “very demure” movement.
Within fragrance, niche luxury perfumeries see greater returns from ambassadors, with influential voices generating on average seven times more EMV for Jo Malone and Kilian than their brand channels accomplish.
Category Performance Analysis
Skincare
Garnier leads the skincare category alongside CeraVe and La Roche-Posay. WeArisma notes these brands leverage an ingredient-focused strategy, differentiating them from aesthetic-driven competitors like Glossier. The report highlights how skinfluencers commend these brands for emphasizing ingredients and long-lasting skin transformations rather than following transient beauty trends.
Skincare experiences a 38% year-over-year surge in EMV, with mentions rising by 7%. However, the category’s resonance declined by 6%, suggesting a slight reduction in overall audience connection despite growing awareness.
L’Oréal’s portfolio dominates skincare, with Garnier securing the top position across EMV, engagement, impressions, and mentions. Vichy shares the highest virality with Garnier and CeraVe, appearing regularly in recommendations from dermatologists with large social media followings.
Makeup
The cosmetics industry struggles to maintain pace with engagement and EMV growth seen in fragrance and skincare. The category experiences a year-over-year decline of 10% in mentions and 7% in virality, with resonance dropping by 11%.
Sephora and L’Oréal Paris generate the largest influential impact in makeup, though NARS and Charlotte Tilbury’s impact carries more proportional weight relative to their size. Sephora’s community of beauty enthusiasts contributes nearly three times more EMV, resulting in $1.9 billion, and eight times more engagement than the brand achieves through owned channels. The retailer’s “Hot on Social” shopping edit continuously refreshes with trending products, creating TikTok buzz.
The top ten most engaging makeup brands include industry giants like Sephora and L’Oréal alongside celebrity-founded brands such as Fenty and Rare Beauty, which leverage their founders’ star power to amplify reach. Many brands tap into events like the Paris Olympics through partnerships with athletes and teams, with standout activations from Fenty Beauty and Sephora.
bareMinerals ranks first in resonance, while Almay leads in virality, with both brands’ makeup ranges highly favored by consumers with skin sensitivities.
Fragrance
Dior and Jo Malone lead the fragrance category, though Kilian generates a more concentrated Ripple Impact. Compared to makeup and skincare, fragrance demonstrates a more subdued Ripple Impact, with influential voices driving almost seven times more mentions but only 1.2 times the EMV, engagement, and impressions—highlighting strong conversation with untapped growth potential.
Luxury brands like Dior, Prada, and Mugler dominate the top three in EMV and engagement, driven by star-powered campaigns. High-profile ambassadors, including Rihanna, the new face of J’Adore Dior, and K-Pop star Jisoo, who champions the Maison’s exhibitions in Tokyo, fuel this success.
Jo Malone secures the second spot behind Dior in engagement, solidifying its position with more accessible pricing and strategic partnerships, including collaborations with model Olivia Culpo. Elizabeth Arden, known for elegant and timeless scents, drives the highest resonance in the fragrance category.
Strategic Partnerships
The report emphasizes that partnerships rooted in strong resonance and credibility empower brands to reach and influence more target consumers than possible through owned social media channels alone.
Sephora and L’Oréal actively participated in the Paris Olympics with on-the-ground activations, highlighting the growing synergy between beauty and sports collaborations. La Roche-Posay maintains its position as the official sunscreen partner of the U.S. Open for the third consecutive year, with a content strategy leaning toward informative messaging rather than trend-driven campaigns.
Changing Market Dynamics
The report notes that shifting consumer preferences are changing conceptions of success in earned media, calling for new ways of thinking about partnership effectiveness.
While metrics like EMV demonstrate which brands spend the most on exclusive partnerships, WeArisma notes that they don’t necessarily highlight those building the most authentic connections with target customers. The report suggests that strong resonance ensures credibility and creates meaningful community intersections while protecting brand DNA from dilution.
WeArism highlights that influential voices, through their close-knit “parasocial” relationships with their communities, play a crucial role in driving preferences and cumulatively reaching far more target customers than brands can through their own channels.
Get the full report here.