Emerging Overseas Brand! How did Colorkey ignite the Beauty Category on TikTok?

In recent years, with market expansion, increased consumer demand, and the rise of the industry, Chinese cosmetics have entered a "golden period" of development. Many brands have successfully entered the international market, igniting a trend of Chinese makeup products and challenging the dominance of Western brands. From the timeline of overseas expansion, we have seen benchmark cases such as Perfect Diary and Florasis, followed by emerging brands like Judydoll and ZEESEA, which have quickly made their presence known in international markets. Currently, Chinese cosmetics have established a presence in over 10 countries, including Japan, Vietnam, Malaysia, the United States, and Australia.

Recently, there is another Chinese cosmetics brand quietly making its entry into Southeast Asia. Leveraging the TikTok platform, this brand has swiftly risen to become the top brand across all categories on Vietnam TikTok Shop in just five months, becoming a sensation in the local market. According to data from GoodsFox, Colorkey's Water Tint series of lip tints and B5 series of face masks have achieved impressive sales performance in the past seven days, ranking second and third respectively in the beauty category.

01 Brand Overview

Colorkey is backed by Meishang (Guangzhou) Cosmetics Co., Ltd., which was established in 2018. As a rising star in the beauty industry, Colorkey has gained rapid popularity in the domestic market through its strategy of creating popular single products and leveraging influencer partnerships. The brand is primarily targeted towards young women and aims to unlock the beauty of the Z generation by promoting a sense of independence and coolness.

In the early stages, Colorkey followed a similar trajectory to many other influencer-driven brands. It utilized a "viral marketing" strategy on popular social media platforms in China, such as Xiaohongshu (Little Red Book), Douyin (TikTok), and Bilibili, to quickly generate high brand awareness. The brand successfully created its first "hit product," the Air Lip Tint, which became the top-selling beauty product on Tmall within four months of its launch. Subsequently, Colorkey signed popular actress Dilraba Dilmurat as its brand ambassador and collaborated with iconic IPs such as Hello Kitty, Doraemon, and Pokémon to release limited-edition makeup collections, further elevating the brand's profile.

Benefiting from its successful domestic experience, Colorkey swiftly applied the same marketing approach to overseas markets. Moreover, due to the similarities between Japanese, Southeast Asian, and Chinese consumers in terms of skin tone, culture, and aesthetic preferences, Colorkey identified Japan and Southeast Asia as their preferred initial destinations for international expansion. Additionally, their brand ambassador, Dilraba Dilmurat, enjoys significant popularity in both markets, which facilitates the activation of marketing resources and enables a swift entry into the local markets.

It is known that Colorkey has established its presence in Japan through platforms such as Amazon and the Cosme Awards, a popular beauty website. In the Southeast Asian market, Colorkey has taken advantage of the TikTok platform and quickly established its presence in the TikTok Vietnam store, marking a crucial step in its global expansion strategy.

02 Product Analysis

According to GoodsFox data, Colorkey has more than 15 products with sales performance in the Vietnam TikTok Shop in the last 30 days. Among them, there is a significant difference in sales between the top-selling products and the rest. The best-selling product in the past 30 days is the Matte Water Tint Lip Series, with total sales exceeding 30,000 units. The second-ranked product is a Rose Lock Foundation Liquid, which has achieved sales close to 7,000 units in the past 30 days. These products were all launched in October 2022 and continue to maintain strong sales performance.

来源：GoodsFox，日期：2023.5.9

Colorkey water tint

This product is a best-selling lip tint launched by Colorkey in the TikTok store last year. In terms of product features, it offers long-lasting adhesion, lasting hydration, and a natural transparent finish. Based on customer reviews, the majority of users are satisfied and highly appreciate its moisturizing, long-lasting formula. In terms of pricing, this product is priced at $5.76 on TikTok, which offers a competitive price compared to other similar products in the market.

In terms of sales, this product has achieved an increase of 30,190 units in the past 30 days, resulting in a sales revenue of $173,000. The product's sales trend has been consistently strong, with the highest daily sales reaching 2,896 units. The most recent peak in sales occurred around May 4th, with a maximum of 2,465 units sold in a single day. It is expected that this product will continue to maintain a strong sales performance for an extended period of time.

Colorkey foundation Airy Rose-Kem

This product, also launched on TikTok Shop in October last year, is a popular foundation liquid from Colorkey, which has gained significant traction in the domestic market. The product boasts two key features: long-lasting performance with a duration of up to 12 hours and high coverage that effectively conceals flaws and minimizes pores. It is priced at $9.86 on TikTok.

Although not as popular as the lipstick mentioned earlier, this foundation liquid can still be considered a "mini hit" among products in the same price range. In the past 30 days, it has gained an additional sales volume of 6,743 units, generating a total revenue of $66,000. The sales trend of this product has shown some variations, with the highest number of daily orders reaching 940 units on April 25th. The most recent sales peak occurred on May 4th, with a total of 593 units sold on that day.

03 Marketing Analysis

Colorkey primarily focuses on building an overseas social media matrix for promotion. It is understood that Colorkey has currently established a presence on media platforms including Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Among them, Colorkey places particular emphasis on TikTok and has created a series of official accounts, such as TikTok Japan Official Account, TikTok Vietnam Official Account, and TikTok Malaysia Official Account. Currently, Colorkey has garnered over 200,000 followers on TikTok.

In terms of marketing, Colorkey primarily focuses on building an overseas social media matrix for promotion. It is known that Colorkey has established a presence on various media platforms, including Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok. Among them, TikTok is a key channel for Colorkey, and they have created a series of official accounts, such as TikTok Japan Official, TikTok Vietnam Official, and TikTok Malaysia Official. Currently, Colorkey has amassed over 200,000 followers on TikTok.

Apart from the aforementioned marketing strategies, Colorkey also demonstrates notable performance in advertising on TikTok. According to GoodsFox, most of the popular products from Colorkey have advertising presence. The advertising creatives of Colorkey on TikTok exhibit several key features:

To visually demonstrate the product's performance features, Colorkey utilizes video materials that highlight specific aspects. In the example below, the video showcases the "non-transferable" feature to reflect the advantage of the long-lasting adherence of the lip gloss. This effectively enhances the brand image and boosts the product's selling power. Such materials enable consumers to gain a deeper understanding of the product's performance and characteristics, strengthening their determination and confidence to make a purchase.

Showcasing a wide range of available lip gloss shades. In the example below, the material compares and displays multiple color options, effectively capturing users' attention and satisfying their personalized demand for a variety of shades. This enhances the consumers' willingness to purchase by offering them a diverse selection to choose from.

Collaborating with Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) for product endorsement videos. In the example below, the material features a real person providing detailed explanations and reviews of the product, effectively bridging the gap between the brand and the users and creating a sense of closeness. Additionally, leveraging the KOL's influence within their community can help the brand rapidly expand its reach, enhance its influence, and drive sales.

END