Beauty Changes Lives is leading a hyper-targeted, social advertising campaign uniting some of beauty’s biggest brands, salons, and media voices.

The “Make Your Mark” campaign aims to transform traditional perceptions about careers in beauty and raise awareness of the career opportunities, possibilities and potential available to licensed beauty professionals.

COTY and Ratner Companies are the first two partners to join the campaign. COTY has pledged $100,000 to Make Your Mark and Ratner Companies has pledged a $25,000 campaign contribution. The program is endorsed by the Beauty Changes Lives board of directors, representing some of the most respected names in beauty including Bellus Academy, CND, Cosmoprof, COTY, Kao, Loreal, Make-Up Designory, Paul Mitchell, Pivot Point, Ratner Companies, TIGI and Unilever. Beauty Changes Lives and its partners aim to raise $1 million by 2020 to fund the first phase of the campaign launching January 2020.  

Realizing that authenticity is central to engaging Generation Z, the Make Your Mark campaign is bringing together legends and micro-influencers to share their personal stories with key stakeholders including Gen Z, parents and guidance counselors. First-person stories will blend with real-world data about the entrepreneurial, financial and creative opportunities available in a $560 billion industry projected to grow 36% through 2026.

Campaign elements include a consumer awareness campaign; an interactive microsite highlighting an evolving mix of legends, micro-influencers, stories and trends; and eye-catching outdoor postings strategically placed within 10 miles of select cosmetology schools. Instagram ads will target Gen Z young adults with interactive quizzes and inspiring content, while Facebook posts will feature relevant parent-focused facts that substantiate beauty as a booming industry.

The Make Your Mark campaign highlights growing demand for spa and salon professionals. Employers’ job demand for licensed beauty professionals continues to build as the most current data suggests 1.3 million jobs could be left vacant in the next 10 years.

Phil Horvath, president Ratner Companies and a member of the Beauty Changes Lives board of directors says the Make Your Mark campaign is an opportunity for the industry to come together in support of its future.

“What started as a realization that our industry is facing a job crisis has evolved into a rallying cry to inspire the next generation as we shine the spotlight on the creativity, earning potential and unlimited possibilities our industry offers,” he says. Prospective partners can learn more and indicate “they’re in” as a Platinum ($100,000), Gold ($50,000) or Silver ($25,000) partner at https://beautychangeslives.org/make-your-mark/.

Participatory and collaborative in nature, the Make Your Mark campaign allows partners to integrate the national recruitment initiative into their existing marketing programs. For example, COTY has developed an inclusive “points program” allowing salon partners to leverage the company’s product loyalty program and make donations to the campaign. “Recognizing how critical attracting talent is to the future of our industry, we are inspired to engage our salons in supporting this campaign, and we challenge other partners to join us in supporting the future of our industry,” Coty Professional Senior Vice-President Sennen Pamich says. “We are in, and challenge everyone in the industry to ‘Make Your Mark’.”