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Everything You Need to Know About The Ulta Beauty Influencer Program
Ulta Beauty is a well-known North American chain of beauty stores whose trendy products and influencer marketing efforts have capitalized on some of the biggest spenders – Millenials.
With a crazy 7 million followers on Instagram alone, the company is a powerhouse online with a well-established presence on all platforms.
If you’re a beauty-lover then becoming an Ulta Beauty brand ambassador might be the perfect fit for you.
Here’s how you can get in on the action and become an Ulta Beauty influencer.
What is Ulta Beauty?
Everything that beauty enthusiast love is engrained in the core of Ulta Beauty. Being the go-to place for finding any and all categories and services in the beauty salon industry, they are able to ensure their clients that they will be able to find anything they are looking for.
Back in the year 2000, Ulta opened its first HQ in Bolingbrook, IL. Throughout the years the company would have various names such as Cosmetic & Fragrance Inc. and Ultra Salon, before landing on its current name Ulta Beauty.
The company carries a broad spectrum of low-end and high-end products in cosmetics, fragrances, nailcare, bath/body, beauty accessories, and hair, all while each store had its in-house beauty salon.
Originally founded by Richard E. George, who is a former president of both Terry Hanson & Osco Drug Inc. George had the idea for Ulta Beauty back in 1989 after he had left Osco Drig Inc. and was able to start the venture after securing backing from other executives from Osco. They were able to raise a total of 11.5 Million dollars and in 1990 launched Ultra3 which opened 5 stores initially in Chicago suburbs.
Ulta Beauty strategically offers both high-end and low-end products throughout their stores, so as to not alienate any one side of their target audience. By doing this they are able to be an open door for just about anyone. They also have their own line of cosmetics and fragrances which they sell alongside ColourPop cosmetics, Kylie Cosmetics, and MAC Cosmetics.
Furthermore, the brand has recently become a part of the 15 Percent Pledge, in order to allow equal opportunity for Black-owned businesses, by allocating more shelf space for their products.
Back in July 2022, Ulta announced that they were to collab with Allure, in order to bring their 25,000 products to Allure’s online and physical stores. With a run time from July to September, the collaboration features products by Drybar, Tula, Fenty Beauty, The Ordinary, Beekman1802, NYX, and Olaplex, which were to be hand selected by the Ulta merchandising department.
Ulta’s Succesful Influencer Marketing Strategy
In recent years, it has been interesting to see retailers such as Ulta shifting the market from department stores, which used to be a powerhouse in the cosmetic and beauty market, to online and social media shopping.
With the move to social media and influencer marketing being the driving factor in this change, retailers are now starting to get a bigger chunk of the billion-dollar industry and are able to go head-to-head with some of the bigger players
Collaboration is a partnership between a brand or a company and an influencer. The influencer agrees to create content with the help and guidance of the brand/company about the services of products that they are trying to sell on social media platforms like Youtube or Instagram.
Ultimately, the main objective of influencer marketing is to expand brand awareness through information on various products that potential customers will be buying so that they have a higher probability of purchasing the item.
With an influx in e-commerce and social media marketing alongside it, the tsunami that is the beauty industry seems to be headed toward heights of $38 Million by the end of 2023. And with a recent survey showing that 40% of people admitting that their online purchase was due to influencer marketing, the numbers truly don’t lie.
That being said IG has been a key platform for Ulta’s marketing campaigns, which have been partnering with influencers to post themselves using their products directly from store shelves.
Ulta has also been working on its mobile site that features IG feeds from top brands like Marc Jacobs Beauty and Benefit Cosmetics.
What are the Ulta Beauty influencer requirements?
The Ulta Affiliate Program is a great opportunity if you’re looking for an alternative way to earn money online by creating content and following your passion.
The program is primarily aimed and content creators and influencers who have developed an online presence in the form of blogs, email marketing, social media, or Youtube.
The Ulta Beauty affiliate program offers free shipping promos, and earnings of up to 30% or more from each qualified sale among other added perks.
To join the Ulta Beauty affiliate program you’ll need to complete their online registration form.
Ulta also provides its affiliates with marketing tools such as email autoresponder sequences to help you promote your affiliate links online and to your email list.
You’ll need to meet the following requirements to join the exclusive Ulta affiliate program:
- You must have a dedicated website or blog. The brand only accepts affiliates who have an active site.
- Your website or blog must have editorial content that is focused on the beauty and skincare niche.
How to promote Ulta Beauty products as an influencer and make money
A great way to promote Ulta Beauty products online is to leverage your online blog and/or social media to your advantage.
For instance, established beauty and lifestyle blogs are Ulta Beauty’s preferred method for affiliate marketers to spread awareness. The growing online beauty niche paired with strategic Pinterest link promotion can make blogs and websites a great place for you to promote the brand’s products.
Let’s take a look at some content examples from influencers.
How Influencers Promote Ulta Beauty on Tik Tok
First up we’ve got Allie, a content creator who uses her TikTok to share hauls and other lifestyle-related content.
One of her recent hauls was an Ulta Beauty-focused video where she shares some of her latest finds with her audience.
Next, we have Rachel Wiseman a micro-influencer with 84 thousand followers on TikTok. Her content is mainly focused on makeup, and she shares everything from tutorials to product hauls.
In one of her recent videos, she can be seen taking her audience shopping with her at Ulta. She picks up and discusses certain products as she walks through the store.
Lastly, we’ve got Kelsey Venkov a lifestyle influencer with over 3 million followers on TikTok.
How Influencers Promote Ulta Beauty on Instagram
For our IG content examples, we’ve decided to showcase some of the influencers whose content has recently been shared by Ulta.
First up we’ve got Alyssa RayeLee, a micro-influencer who uses her Instagram to share her fave outfits and products.
In her reel, she can be seen giving a hair tutorial. Showing her audience three quick and easy hairstyles to elevate your everyday look using products from Ulta.
Here we have lulukehlani a UGC creator with a primary focus on beauty-related content.
In her video, she can be seen using the Conceal + Perfect Liquid Contour which can be purchased at Ulta. Lulu decided to promote the product by doing a makeup tutorial.
Lastly, we’ve got lexusmperezz a New York-based makeup artist with a following of 46 thousand on Instagram alone.
In her reel, she can be seen showing her audience how to use the BYO Blush Oil which can also be purchased at Ulta. The product changes colors to the perfect shade for your skin.
How Influencers Promote Ulta Beauty on Youtube
There’s no better place for beauty hauls than Youtube, and we’re not at all surprised to find tons of content creators sharing their Ulta Beauty hauls on the platform. Creating a makeup tutorial, skincare routine video or product haul is something you can do to promote Ulta products once you’re signed up for their program.
Here are some of our faves:
First up is Morgan Turner, a full-time luxury makeup YouTuber who enthusiastically shares videos about the hottest new releases, launches, and popular makeup. She has an impressive 161 thousand subscribers!
In her mega Ulta beauty haul, she can be seen highlighting not 10 or 20 products purchased via the retailer, but in fact, a whopping 46!
Next up we’ve got juicyjas. Jasmine is a 26-year-old influencer located outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. On her channel, you can find a variety of beauty and lifestyle videos which include lots of haul-type content, reviews, and first impressions with a sprinkle of high-end videos along the way as well.
Jasmine has over 1 million subscribers on Youtube with tons of viral videos that show up first in searches like the one featured below.
Lastly, we’ve got Meline Quiroga Makeup whose an influencer with over 700 thousand loyal subscribers on Youtube. On her channel, she shares a lot of beauty-related content, in the form of hauls and tutorials.
In her Black Friday 2022 beauty haul video, she can be seen showcasing her latest finds from both Ulta and Sephora to her audience.
Conclusion
Becoming an Ulta Beauty affiliate is perfect if you’re a beauty creator with a love for all things related to makeup, and skincare. All you need to do is follow the steps we provided in this guide and register for their affiliate program to get started.
