Scroll through almost any beauty brand’s Instagram page and you’ll see everything from tutorials on how to use their latest launches, to influencer partners modeling their products, to fun, artistically photographed product images. But when you visit Lush Cosmetics’ profile page, you’ll see the phrase “You’re in a different location.” That’s all.
Rush means this both literally and figuratively. The brand shut down its Instagram and Facebook pages in November 2021 after deciding they weren’t really the best place for its customers, or anyone. Jack Constantine, Chief Digital Officer at Rush I can’t do that.” “At the end of the day, the audience that watches Rush is teenage girls, the same people whose suicide rates are said to be high in statistics. At what point do we draw the line? Are you saying we can’t be involved and say that’s not where we stand as a brand? The decisions we make are not necessarily about popularity, but rather where we stand within our principles. It’s about who you are and where you feel comfortable. That means making hard choices.”
Rush had been considering leaving Metaplatform for some time, but Francis Haugen’s testimony was crucial. Annabelle Baker, director of Lush’s global brand, said: “Her statistics on self-harm, depression and ultimately suicide in young women have had a huge impact.” Masu. “As a brand, we know that many of our users are young people and they are in that space. We cannot justify continuing to utilize a platform that is so harmful to so many consumers. And obviously data privacy is a big issue and that’s why we pulled away from that platform.”
Lush has a long history of standing up for the things we believe in, from fighting animal testing to supporting good causes with our Charity Pots, with profits going to support a variety of initiatives. The brand is always committed to due diligence, so when it comes to the digital landscape, it partnered with strategic visionary consultancy The Future Laboratory to conduct a study titled Digital Engagement: The Future of Society. A report has been created.
This report focuses on the lightning-fast changes in the ever-evolving digital landscape and examines the impact on consumers and the current obstacles impeding digital transformation. Essentially a manifesto on the digital world, Lush has made this report free to everyone with the aim of creating a healthier digital future for everyone. They presented their findings at South by Southwest, where Rush hosted a full four-day show.
Five top technology experts collaborated to produce the report, which surveyed more than 12,000 consumers across the UK, US and Japan about their views on the future of social media and digital engagement. He said one of the reasons Rush decided to pursue this report was to investigate Rush’s anti-social policies and show that the digital environment is changing and has the potential to become a safer and healthier environment. That was it. That’s what consumers want too. According to the report, 69% of adults surveyed believe that brands should leave social media platforms if they are unethical, and 62% said they are “more concerned about the number of people they can reach than the number of people they can reach.” The company also respects “ethical brands on social media platforms.” ”
Constantine points out that brands don’t need to be on social media to be innovative. Instead, Rush has developed a presence on other channels such as her YouTube. Lush does not offer shopping through Instagram or Facebook, instead encouraging customers to come into stores to shop in person and experience human interaction. Constantine points out that word of mouth is still a huge step forward. For those who aren’t near a Lush store, they’re ramping up live chat on the app as well as the website, which is becoming a bigger sales driver. “This kind of inclusivity and diversity in technology can be very important,” Constantine points out.
The report also found that consumers are spending less time on social media across all platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, BeReal, TikTok, and more. Part of this trend is that 57% of those surveyed feel that big brands and companies dominate technology and online culture, and 55% would like to see less control of big tech online. This may be due to the fact that there are Many people are concerned about safety, with 70% wanting global laws to protect users, but especially Gen Z (54%), who some groups ignore in the digital realm. They believe that they are being rejected or marginalized.
Consumers believe brands should support the good fight, with 62% agreeing that companies should support ethics in the digital space. Rush is hoping for significant changes to be made to potentially rejoin the meta platform. But reform goes deeper than that. “Perhaps the answer is less about which platforms we retreat from and more about allowing young people to make those platforms what they want them to be, or at least to talk about the things they care about. It’s about making it usable as a platform,’” says Mica Le John, CEO and co-founder of Idoru, an avatar app focused on self-expression. “For us, when we think about digital identity and avatars as a medium of self-expression, these social platforms are an opportunity for young people to broadcast their values to their communities, and to focus on brands that actually align with their values. Connect, support the ideas and values that are meaningful to them and mean the most to them.”
Baker added that a regulatory framework for how these platforms work is still needed. “The fundamental problem is that algorithms are not built to be transparent,” she says. “Right now, the system is very opaque and designed that way because we see it as commoditization and monetization to protect the product. But the reality is that there are major I would like to see change. When small changes occur in algorithms, who makes those decisions? And how do we actually educate data scientists?” What’s next? A good idea, Baker suggested, is for social media platforms to simulate harsh live conditions so engineers can understand the impact of their decisions by preparing how to adapt the platform. doing.
“We’re in America, so we’re talking about this in an American context. We’re talking about money here,” says Le Jon. “At the point of de-platforming, you’re going to see a lot of change by forcing conversations, but it’s up to brands to actually take a stand. It’s very contrary to the way companies have historically operated, which is that they need to appeal to people. Brands need to decide what they believe in, communicate it, and stand by it. Until we know, I don’t think much will change, at least in terms of brands and their relationship with big tech.”
Many big tech companies don’t view individual users as people, but just data, says the director of the Liiv Center, a nonprofit organization that advances the world’s understanding of people and communities in the digital age. I’m digital anthropologist Katie Hillier. “Instead of using metrics to track what’s going on, you start to see the people who are interacting behind these brands,” she says. “These microcultures that exist all over the internet have values and belief systems and worries and fears. If they’re doing the right thing, they’re going to make decisions about who they are and how they’re going to serve those people, because the people you’re trying to serve. Because it’s your job to find human problems in the world and within our communities. We’ve spent a lot of time focusing on the big data that powers the world and many of our systems, but… Human data, the context, is the reason behind what we do. It is exactly what will drive the direction the future will take.”
Hillier says that to make an impact, brands need to go beyond just talking about what they believe in. They need to be transparent about what’s going on behind the scenes and integrate the brand’s values into the company’s systems. I believe that we need to act based on our beliefs. “That’s the only way we’re going to make progress, because brands have a responsibility to track that and actually claim that we’re looking at this ourselves,” she says. . “Progress is made by being transparent.”
This will especially resonate with Gen Z because their core values include transparency, which influences how they interact with brands, according to Le Jon. “At the end of the day, we’re talking to consumers as people, not as a demographic,” she says. It stands to reason that as different multidisciplinary designers build and extend these platforms, these spaces and experiences will become more inclusive and more humane.
“When I talk from a brand perspective about how other companies are approaching this commitment the same way we are, I always encourage people to start that educational journey today,” said Brandi Halls, chief ethics officer at Lush. I recommend it.” “It can be scary for organizations and businesses to figure out how to engage in conversations around reproductive freedom.” She suggests finding a partner organization as a first step. It also helps hire activists.
It’s important for brands to stand their ground, even in the face of opposition. “What’s so important about the campaigns we’re doing is that we’re founded by activists and from the top of the organization we wholeheartedly believe in the campaigns we work on,” says Halls. . “When you undertake such efforts across your organization, in difficult times and when there is public backlash, it is important to come together within your organization and be courageous in leading the conversation. One of the reasons we campaign is to invite people into the conversation, but that doesn’t necessarily mean we only want to talk to people who have the same point of view as us. We actively engage in conversations with people. Sometimes this happens on our store floor. Similar things have happened before on our social channels. Even in difficult times, we We remain true to what we set out to do. We rely on the support of our partners and we call them for support when we believe their expertise exceeds ours. I would not hesitate to invite them into the conversation.”
It’s important to remember that the digital world isn’t all doom and gloom. The report’s findings show that there remains optimism about digital platforms, with 33% still seeing them as a place to connect with others and 39% using social media to express their identity. He says it is helpful. To foster positive innovation and progress, Rush has identified his six principles for digital platforms and spaces. Replace competition with cooperation. Community-managed decentralized data ownership. Agility in a digital environment. Accessibility and inclusion. And an attitude that affirms life.
Mr Constantine hopes Lush’s anti-social policy and report will encourage other brands to do the same. “Whether other brands follow suit will ultimately depend on customer sentiment,” he says. “We’ve found that with the different themes we’re involved in, we’re getting there early and getting there before others stay. Many of the messages of ethical entitlement that we have also discussed have not always been at the forefront of popularity, but they grow in popularity. Because I felt it. I feel the same way about this. It may not be tomorrow, but I feel that direction is inevitable.”