Neither consumers, nor brands—virality rules the beauty landscape. But how far can it go?

As social media applications govern the virality of a beauty product, even the buzziest marketing moment will have a fleeting shelf-life. Is it, then, an effective long-term strategy?

In today’s beauty market, virality isn’t a matter of luck—it’s a business model. Ninety-two per cent of Indian beauty shoppers discover products through Meta platforms—almost half via Instagram Reels. That means a lip balm doesn’t just need good formulation; it needs algorithmic appeal.

So when a product blows up online—think Laneige’s Lip Sleeping Masks or Rhode’s Peptide Lip Treatment—it’s rarely an accident. It’s a result of social-first strategy, creator seeding, and a scroll-stopping hook. Rhode’s recent acquisition by e.l.f. Cosmetics within just three years of its inception is proof. Hailey Bieber built the brand on the premise of social media hype and traction, leaving her with a whopping $1-billion deal. While the algorithm can send sales soaring overnight, the question remains: Can a viral hit translate into long-term brand strategy? 

How virality became central to beauty marketing

There was a time when beauty marketing meant jingles, TV advertisements, billboard campaigns, and word-of-mouth. Today, it is social media that sets the tone. With beauty retail shifting from local stores to e-commerce retailers like Nykaa, Tira, and Myntra, digital discovery is now the first touchpoint for consumers.

According to a joint report by Meta and consumer insights company GWI, 80 per cent of Indian consumers shop for beauty products online.  Moreover, 47 per cent of those consumers discover beauty brands and products via  Instagram Reels. 

“No one would talk about virality 20 years ago,” says Julien Michelet, brand ambassador and education manager, Dr. Jart+. “You could have word-of-mouth, celebrity endorsement, some buzz on beauty blogs, and that was it. Then YouTube came into the game with educational content where it wasn’t just about the what but also the how. And then, Instagram and the hashtag era. Now, social network applications are so powerful and the content is so snackable that the word spreads even faster without barriers—anyone can be part of the game.”

Virality has become central to how beauty brands grow. A Redseer x Nykaa report revealed that e.l.f. Cosmetics experienced a 0.5x growth in India in 2024 alone, owing to its viral marketing campaigns within and out of the country. 

On Instagram, #viralbeauty clocks over 1.6 lakh posts. On TikTok, the #TikTokMadeMeBuyIT tag is practically a shopping list. From Glow Recipe to Fenty and The Ordinary, consumers increasingly trust the algorithm over adsy—making purchasing decisions after being “influenced” by their hype on TikTok and Instagram. 

But while virality once stemmed from authentic word-of-mouth, it’s now often premeditated. A new launch arrives and so does the content around it: a plethora of influencers, identical call-outs, uniform reviews, and the universal buzzword—viral. For now, the strategy seems to fetch profits. Influencer marketing spends in India are expected to grow at a 40-45 per cent compound annual growth rate between 2023 and 2028, with the beauty and personal care segment making for a sizeable 20 per cent of such investments.

Does virality secure beauty brands an infallible spot in consumers’ carts?

Take Laneige, for instance. The Korean beauty brand was launched in India in 2018, but it was virality that turned its Lip Sleeping Masks and Glowy Lip Balms into cult products.  “Going viral helped people discover our products, try them, and share their experiences. It turned these products into must-haves,” says Mini Sood Banerjee, marketing head at Amorepacific. With Laneige having launched its globally trending Glaze Craze Tinted Lip Serums in India, the product was a hit. “The mix of care and colour has already created a huge demand,” shares Sood Banerjee. “The Indian beauty community was excited, thanks to social buzz and influencer support, and the product sold out within the first week of its launch.”

Fable & Mane followed a similar arc. Launched in 2020 in the United Kingdom, the brand quickly caught on with both Western and Indian diaspora audiences, thanks to TikTok traction. “We created products with purpose and authenticity, paired with high-performing and clean formulas, creating an emotional appeal that translated incredibly well on platforms like TikTok and Instagram,” says the brand’s co-founder Akash Mehta. “Virality didn’t just boost sales, it built trust. When thousands of people are sharing their own experiences and results, it becomes a movement.”

That kind of trust, however, tends to be product-specific. Virality draws attention to a single SKU (stock keeping unit), not necessarily the full brand. “I think what worked, ironically, is that we were never trying to go viral,” says  Nikita Khanna, founder of homegrown hair care brand Moxie. “We spoke about the underserved problems, what the products achieve, and the science behind them,” and it worked for the brand gradually. “If virality is your goal, you may do a gimmicky campaign for shock and awe, but that is very short-term thinking,” adds Khanna.

Fame comes with caveats

In the early age of influence marketing, it took weeks of blog posts, GRWMS, and YouTube videos to finally promote a product to viral status. Think: Tarte’s Shape Tape Concealer or Kylie Cosmetics’ liquid lipsticks. Today, fame is instant. A trending format, a viral audio, a slick demo—done. But as every brand jumps on the same buzzy category of lip oils, tinted balms, and blush sticks, the signal gets drowned in the noise. 

“Embryolisse’s virality started with backstage moments—whether it was a make-up artist’s kit or a model’s ‘what’s in my bag’ video,” shares Neha Modi, whose company BDesir imports the French brand to India. Now, a product goes viral every day. It dilutes the very idea of hype. 

US-based beauty journalist and podcast host, Kirbie Johnson, agrees. “Becca had a massively viral hit with the Champagne Pop highlighter in 2015 and the brand shuttered in 2021. Given how quickly product interest turns over now with platforms like TikTok, it would be fatal for a brand to be striving for virality over consistency. Especially since there are now entire brands whose brand premise is duping viral products from established brands at a cheaper price.”

That volatility makes retention harder than ever. “Today’s consumer is incredibly discerning and highly demanding, a very difficult combination for brands to cater to. They may love one product from your brand, but if another doesn’t work, they don’t hesitate to switch,” says Shamika Haldipurkar, founder of d’you. “That’s why acquiring a customer with one viral product isn’t enough—you have to retain them with every new launch and exceed their expectations.”

From a business standpoint, with digital acquisition costs becoming astronomical, it is the lifetime value of a customer that makes a brand’s financials stronger, she notes. “The aim is to always have more than 1-2 well-performing products in the portfolio for brand longevity.” 

The limits of virality: Operational chaos and consumer fatigue

Virality might skyrocket visibility—but it’s not a safety net. “It’s like a bonus, a rocket that shoots up your brand’s visibility”, says beauty editor and author, Vasudha Rai. However, she adds, “When a product goes viral, the brand shouldn’t sit on their laurels and think that this is the only thing that will keep giving the brand a push. We’ve seen many influencers go viral in the past, and today, they’re nowhere to be seen—virality can be very fleeting.” 

Diipa Khosla, founder of indē wild, agrees, “I’ve seen the highs of going viral, but also how fleeting that can be.” Her focus lies in consistency, not spikes. “People don’t relate to ads anymore—they relate to [other] people. That’s why community is so central to us.”

And when virality strikes unexpectedly, it can often cause more stress than celebration. “Going viral is exciting, but it also comes with real challenges. Sudden spikes in demand can make inventory planning, logistics, and restocking tricky,” says Sood Banerjee.

“That puts pressure on a number of aspects: inventory forecasting, supply chain, production timelines, even customer service. If you are not prepared for it, it can be detrimental on the back end with out-of-stock issues, which can cause disloyalty stress with customers,” adds Mehta.

The pressure is amplified for brands that don’t white-label—or when brands buy products from another brand and rebrand them as their own.“We don’t white-label anything, so there isn’t a manufacturer on stand-by, waiting with all the raw material stock in bulk—the case for most other brands. Many of our raw materials are imported to India only for us, in small quantities,” shares Khanna. 

For d’you, a K-beauty manufactured brand, the surge in demand was both a milestone and a logistical headache. “When the In My Defence moisturiser first went viral, we sold out three times in the same year,” recalls Haldipurkar. “That kind of surge in demand can be both exhilarating and overwhelming, especially for a young brand with a lean supply chain. But we’ve learned from those moments and adapted quickly, building buffer inventory, scaling production, and improving forecasting.”

Even consumers are becoming more wary of the hype around certain products. “If I see a ton of people talking about a new product I usually wait until the barrage of posts and stories dies down,” says Johnson. “Then look for people who have tested it for a long period [of time] before I decide I want to invest my time or money into it.”

The work that lies ahead to avoid the ‘one-hit-wonder’ tag 

There’s always a risk that the brand’s entire identity will be reduced to the one viral product—especially if this happens in the nascent stages of the brand. 

While Rai believes that a hero product could act as a means to open more doors for a brand, Johnson thinks it can also pigeonhole a brand. “If all you’re known for is a viral product, it can be difficult to adjust expectations of the customers you acquired with that product when you’re ready to expand.” A break-out hit can easily become a trap—especially when the audience sticks around only for one product. 

At Fable & Mane, Mehta is actively building against that—they want to be known for a complete ritual, scalp to strands, not just a single hero product.  

Khosla, meanwhile, has taken the opposite approach, keeping her range of offerings at indē wild intentionally tight. “Every product is designed to be a standout in its category,” she says. “One AM serum, one PM serum, one hair oil, one hair serum—the only deviation from that rule is the Dewy Lip Treatment. Instead of chasing a single ‘hero,’ we treat every SKU as a one-and-only.”

At L’Occitane India, hero products are just the hook. “We see them as entry points into a much richer narrative that includes the spirit of Provence [from where the ingredients are sourced], a deep commitment to sustainability, and the essence of self-care,” says Vibhuti Munjal, head of marketing. “We use that moment to tell a deeper story about the product; we highlight the origins of its ingredients, the craftsmanship behind it. We also guide consumers to discover more of our collections through sampling, curated experiences, and engagement both online and in our boutiques.”A

For founders of brands across the board, virality’s biggest payoff isn’t just visibility—it’s community. “The very core of our consumers is super active on social media, so it’s our most relevant way to reach them, have them engage with us, give us feedback, and hopefully learn from each other,” says Michelet. “Greater the virality, greater the interactions, and greater the satisfaction among consumers—it sums up our core strategy.” 

Sood Banerjee agrees, “For us, virality means creating moments that resonate deeply—visually, emotionally, and culturally. We prioritise social-first content, work closely with influencers, and create immersive retail experiences. Our goal is to turn curiosity [among consumers] into a long-term association.”

Virality is a trust multiplier for Mehta. “It helped the business in terms of sell-through awareness, gaining more trust, and even our stakeholders, like our retailers, started believing in us.” But it was their intimate community that made the real difference. “We’re able to celebrate moments that are culturally relevant, timed to Diwali and Ramadan, with our community. We’ve also done partnerships with chai cafes globally, and working with different industries has worked well for us.” Khanna echoes the sentiment, sharing, “Media may be changing every few years, but this fundamental of brand building hasn’t.” 

Yet, simply garnering attention isn’t enough—you have to educate consumers too. “When a product takes off, our first instinct is to turn that attention into education,” shares Haldipurkar, who is frequently seen breaking down skincare jargon through her brand’s advertisements. “We make sure that new audiences understand not just the hype, but the ‘why’ behind the formula, what it does, who it’s for, and how it works. We double down on storytelling through content, leverage User-Generated Content (UGC), and creator partnerships that go beyond surface-level reviews.” 

Modi also underscores the importance of narrative—sharing stories from backstage artists, dermatologists, and real users who have trusted Embryolisse for years. Haldipurkar adds, “Another very important thing to do is introduce entry-level sizes (or minis) of that viral product, so more consumers can access the product and sample it first.

Ultimately, virality may sell out a lip balm in under five minutes—but it won’t build a brand that lasts five years. Cultivating that takes trust, consistency, and a story worth returning to—long after the algorithm moves on. “Virality today is the new word-of-mouth—fast, visual, and emotional,” says  Modi. “But it still is a spark, not a strategy.”

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