Consumers in the US and France are focusing on personalized products, while the Japanese investigate the science behind products and regimens, according to Google’s Beauty Trends 2017 report – Skincare Edition, which compares markets in the US, France and Japan.
One common denominator was the popularity of masks, with ‘face mask’ and ‘charcoal mask’ high in searches in the US and France, and ‘sheet mask’ and ‘lip mask’ the two most popular searches containing the word ‘mask’ in Japan.
A main global concern associated with masks is acne. However, as masks are taking off in the US and France, interest is declining in Japan. Meanwhile, the Japanese interest in using masks for other parts of the body than the face, such as legs and cuticles, could indicate a trend to come in the US and France, the company says.
Other findings include:
- Cellulite is a strong seasonal trend in France, with interest spiking each May, as temperatures rise. The average person in France is 30 times more likely to use this search term than the average person in the US, and 170 times more likely than someone in Japan
- Cleansing is popular overall, however the average person in Japan is six times more likely to use the term in a search than the average American, and 13 times more likely than the French
- In Japan, searches for ‘enzyme’, ‘carbonated’ and ‘water cleansing’ are growing
- DIY is a top-trending topic in both the US and France. US consumers mostly seek to create homemade face masks, while French searches mention more diverse products, including soap and shower gel
- In terms of skincare ingredients, consumers in the US are most interested in clay, aloe vera and charcoal; French users search for aloe vera, coconut oil and hyaluronic acid, while the Japanese have enzyme, ceramide and vitamin c as their top-three ingredient searches
- Bathing is popular in the US and France, with the term ‘bath bomb’ rising rapidly in the US and beginning to take off in France
- Searches for men’s skincare remains lower than other top-trending terms but have increased in all markets