In another indication the pace in development for face filters and online makeup is growing, Maybelline has revealed its first-ever virtual make-up looks on video platform Microsoft Teams.
Called the Maybelline Beauty App in Microsoft Teams, the addition to the popular meetings software offers what the brand calls a ‘virtual makeup bag in a click’, with 12 virtual makeup looks that can be applied to your face during Teams calls.
The looks are intended to recreate the results of real Maybelline products and in a bid to drive sales, users will be shown details on the exact colours and items the looks correspond to.
The virtual makeup looks are now globally available as an option in Teams video calls to those with a Teams enterprise license.
“Whether you are working in-person or virtually, feeling good about yourself can help put your best foot forward,” Trisha Ayyagari, Global Brand President of Maybelline New York, said in a press release announcing the new offering.
“That’s why we partnered with Microsoft Teams to develop virtual makeup looks,” says Ayyagari.
“Now even on the busiest day, you can put makeup on with just a click. We hope we make people’s lives a little easier.”
Advancing technology and establishing an exciting presence in the digital world continues to be a top priority for beauty brands, many of which are early adopters in the possibilities the metaverse provides.
Translating physical and traditionally sensory products and services via virtual experiences where you can’t feel, touch or smell poses a challenge. But instead of replacing them, the metaverse offers additional opportunities to engage, entertain, educate and create crucial brand loyalty, particularly with younger customers.
It also offers a new way for people to express themselves outwardly via their online personas, something beauty enthusiasts have quickly embraced thanks to spaces where personalisable avatars are used. These spaces, including face-filter apps, games, immersive virtual reality worlds and shoppable experiences are in turn influencing the appearance and performance of real-world products like otherworldly chrome-effect makeup and gleaming ‘glazed skin’ serums.
The scope of commitment from brands is huge, and runs from augmented virtual reality makeup ‘try on’s’ where you can see if the colour of a lipstick or eyeshadow suits you, like those from Lancôme and MAC, to the rise of virtual influencers in beauty.
Earlier this year Maybelline launched it’s first ever digital spokesperson, an avatar named May who helped promote the brand’s Falsies Surreal Extensions Mascara alongside fellow real-life top model Gigi Hadid.
Maybelline’s new Beauty App in Teams uses AI-powered technology by ModiFace. Founded by University of Toronto engineering professor Parham Aarabi, ModiFace quickly became a market leader in augmented reality and artificial intelligence for the beauty industry.
Maybelline’s parent company L’Oréal acquired Modiface in 2018, recognising its potential, and has since used it in a number of launches for makeup and hair ‘try on’ capabilities where consumers can see the predicted results of a brand’s products, like different lipstick colours or hair dye shades.
