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Katie  Lutz  

Alexis  Mortenson  

Stephanie  Spadea  

Stefanie  Cusick  

Chase  Wilson  

Amanuel  Fiseha  

   

 

 

 

 

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Table  of  Contents  

I. Executive  Summary…………………………  3  

II. Rationale…………………………………………  5  

III. Methods…………………………………………..  7  

IV. Results…………………………………………….  9  

V. Discussion  and  Recommendations…….  13  

VI. Appendices………………………………………..  16  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  3  

Executive  Summary  

  Avon  Products,  Inc.  mission  for  the  last  125  years  is  to  be  the  company  that  

best  understands  and  satisfies  the  product,  service  and  self-­‐fulfillment  needs  of  

women.  Although  they  strive  to  appeal  to  all  ages,  through  surveys,  focus  groups  

and  content  analysis  of  Avon  we  have  found  that  the  company  does  not  use  their  

resources  to  effectively  reach  18-­‐21  year  olds.    

  We  found  that  answers  from  the  focus  groups  and  surveys  were  similar  

among  18-­‐21  year  olds.  The  answers  we  received  provided  insight  into  why  Avon  

does  not  appropriately  market  or  sell  to  that  age  group.  An  overwhelming  response  

from  the  students  was  that  they  would  be  more  inclined  to  purchase  cosmetics  

based  on  cheaper  pricing.  Specifically,  participants  would  be  more  inclined  to  

purchase  Avon  if  the  products  were  accessible  in  stores  and  not  solely  through  

representatives  and  online  sales.    

  Through  the  content  analysis  research  we  have  determined  a  number  of  

specific  statistics  in  regards  to  Avon.    We  used  Alexa.com  to  determine  the  reach  and  

audience  that  Avon  has  in  term  of  Internet  users  as  well  as  magazines  that  Avon  has  

been  featured  in.  We  found  that  Avon’s  main  audience  is  not  18-­‐21  year  olds,  but  the  

magazines  they  are  featured  in  reach  that  audience  more  efficiently.  To  determine  

Avon’s  audience  on  Social  Media  we  used  SocialMention.com  and  analyzed  their  

Facebook,  Twitter  and  blog.    

  In  conclusion,  to  reach  18-­‐21  year  olds  more  effectively  we  have  decided  that  

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Avon  should  market  their  products  to  larger  retailers,  maximize  their  use  of  social  

media  websites,  expand  online  presence  to  Instagram  and  offer  more  incentives  and  

promotions  to  appeal  to  the  18-­‐21  year  old  age  group.      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Rationale                  

Initially,  our  group  considered  conducting  research  on  behalf  of  Avon  for  a  

number  of  reasons.  As  a  company,  we  felt  Avon  was  not  effectively  maximizing  its  

potential  reach,  more  specifically,  its  appeal  to  the  demographic  that  includes  18-­‐21  

year  olds.  As  one  of  the  premier  distributors  of  beauty,  household  and  personal  care  

products  in  the  world,  Avon  has  even  more  room  to  expand  beyond  its  door-­‐to-­‐door  

business  model.  After  conducting  our  preliminary  research  on  the  company,  we  

began  to  recognize  various  ways  in  which  the  company  as  a  whole  could  fully  

capitalize  on  its  potential  markets.  

In  this  study,  we  concentrated  our  research  on  the  demographic  that  consists  

of  18-­‐21  years  olds.  A  greater  majority  of  our  research  took  the  form  of  both  surveys  

and  focus  groups,  designed  to  provide  us  insight  into  Avon’s  appeal  to  its  publics.  

Through  this  research,  we  could  in  turn  increase  the  level  of  Avon’s  awareness  and  

appeal  to  target  audiences.  

With  Avon’s  potential  audiences  in  mind,  focus  groups  and  surveys  were  

specifically  tailored  to  render  the  most  beneficial  feedback.  With  the  aid  of  

SurveyMonkey,  we  were  able  to  generate  an  online  survey  that  provided  results  

from  a  larger  population.  The  focus  group  however,  was  designed  to  create  an  

intimate,  more  personalized  setting  where  we  could  obtain  specific  observable  data  

from  a  smaller  population.  

Content  Analysis  was  performed  to  measure  Avon’s  existing  presence  on  the  

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Internet.  Content  analysis  was  an  important  part  of  this  process  to  see  who  Avon’s  

age  demographic  on  the  web  was  and  on  a  larger  spectrum  how  much  if  any  were  

they  reaching  to  the  18-­‐21  year  old  age  group.    

In  all,  our  primary  rationale  behind  conducting  thorough  research  into  this  

company  was  our  shared  belief  that  this  renowned  brand  and  industry  standard  

could  further  its  already  outstanding  appeal.    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Methods  

  The  research  methods  consisted  of  three  key  strategies-­‐  focus  groups,  

surveys  and  content  analysis.  They  were  selected  specifically  to  gain  insight  into  our  

area  of  interest  with  Avon.    

  The  focus  group  was  held  with  the  intention  of  gaining  an  understanding  of  

the  various  demographics  that  associated  with  Avon  and  why  they  were  limited  to  

those  demographics.  We  held  one  large  focus  group  of  ten  people,  all  varying  in  

gender,  race,  and  age.  The  goal  was  to  understand  their  perception  of  Avon  and  their  

overall  interest  in  the  company.  All  the  participants  were  aged  18-­‐21  and  they  were  

all  Flagler  College  students.  With  a  focus  group  of  seven  girls  and  three  guys  to  

imitate  Flagler  College’s  student  population,  we  asked  them  questions  about  their  

knowledge  of  Avon.  The  students  were  all  from  various  parts  of  the  country  giving  

us  a  broad  spectrum  of  participants,  most  of  whom  did  not  know  each  other.  Our  

focus  group  imitated  our  target  audience,  which  was  people  aged  18-­‐21.  After  a  

brief  introduction  from  the  participants  about  where  they  were  from,  how  old  they  

were,  and  what  year  they  were  at  Flagler  College,  we  began  asking  them  questions  

about  our  company.    

  The  surveys  we  created  were  designed  to  give  us  an  understanding  of  Avon’s  

brand  awareness  reach  and  what  would  appeal  to  those  who  weren’t  informed  

about  the  company.  The  surveys  were  able  to  reach  a  larger  population  due  to  the  

fact  that  we  had  online  surveys  and  hard  copy  surveys.    

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  The  online  surveys  were  created  and  posted  on  SurveyMonkey  and  they  

were  created  to  be  easy  to  answer  yet  informative  enough  for  us  to  evaluate.  We  had  

a  total  of  ten  questions  that  required  our  audience  to  respond  with  short  answers  

varying  from  “yes/no”  to  multiple-­‐choice  questions.  With  the  use  of  Facebook,  

Twitter  and  emails  as  our  method  of  distribution,  we  were  able  to  get  feedback  from  

80  willing  participants,  with  50  ranging  in  our  18-­‐21  age  group.  

Our  survey  methods  were  implemented  to  help  us  understand  our  audiences  

shopping  behaviors  and  to  help  us  assess  better  ways  to  increase  brand  awareness  

for  Avon.    

Our  last  method  of  research  was  the  use  of  Avon’s  already  existing  presence  

on  the  web.  We  used  Alexa.com  to  analyze  Avon’s  reach  to  18-­‐21  year  olds  on  their  

personal  website  and  search  engines.  We  also  found  Alexa.com  beneficial  for  our  

research  so  that  we  could  analyze  the  reach  of  the  magazines  that  feature  Avon  

Beauty  Products.  We  analyzed  InStyle,  Lucky,  People  and  Allure  Magazines’  target  

audience.    

We  also  utilized  SocialMention.com  to  track  and  monitor  Avon’s  presence  on  

social  media  websites  such  as  Facebook,  Twitter,  Youtube  and  Photobucket.  

SocialMention.com  was  able  to  give  us  insight  into  the  most  popular  keywords,  

hashtags  and  users  throughout  these  sites.          

 

 

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Results  

  After  completing  the  three  differing  methods  of  research  including  focus  

groups,  surveys,  and  content  analysis,  it  was  apparent  that  Avon  was  not  

maximizing  its  opportunity  to  appeal  to  the  target  demographic  of  18  to  21  year  

olds.  While  individuals  in  older  demographics  were  far  more  privy  to  Avon  products  

and  the  brand  itself,  the  company  needed  to  spread  its  reach  to  this  younger  target  

audience.      

The  survey  we  conducted  was  intended  to  reach  100  participants,  while  we  

didn't  reach  100;  we  were  able  to  reach  80  willing  participants.    Our  surveys  were  

designed  to  give  us  an  understanding  of  Avon’s  brand  awareness  reach  and  what  

would  appeal  to  those  who  weren’t  informed  about  the  company.    Of  the  80  

participants  who  took  our  survey,  we  found  that  over  60%  fell  into  our  target  

audience  of  18-­‐21  year  olds.    This  outstanding  statistic  is  very  beneficial  to  our  

research  because  we  are  gaining  insight  about  Avon  from  our  target  audience,  

rather  than  the  older  demographic  that  they  usually  reach.    

 From  our  survey  results,  we  have  selected  a  few  questions  that  will  help  us  

better  understand  what  our  target  audience  looks  for  in  a  brand.    When  asked  what  

they  looked  for  when  purchasing  cosmetics,  an  overwhelming  response  stated  they  

look  for  quality  as  their  first  priority,  followed  by  pricing.    Another  overwhelming  

result  that  we  focused  on  was  that  80%  of  our  participants  occasionally  or  never  

buy  products  online,  while  only  12%  buy  products  online  very  often.    From  our  

results,  we  found  that  online  purchasing  is  a  huge  hindrance  to  our  age  

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demographic,  61%  say  they  do  not  purchase  Avon  products  because  it  is  strictly  

sold  by  a  representative  or  online.    When  asked  what  would  convince  them  to  buy  

Avon  products,  70%  of  our  participants  agreed  in-­‐store  purchasing  would  be  an  

incentive  for  them  to  buy  Avon.    The  last  question  we  focused  on  was  how  Avon  

compares  to  other  leading  competitors  in  the  cosmetic  industry,  through  this  

question  we  found  52%  of  participants  believe  Avon  is  equal  while  39%  believe  

Avon  is  a  fair  competitor.  

Conclusive  to  our  survey,  our  focus  group  yielded  similar  results.    We  

gathered  ten  willing  participants,  seven  of  which  were  females,  while  the  remaining  

three  were  males.    These  participants  varied  in  age,  race,  major  and  general  

interests.    All  ten  of  the  participants  fell  in  the  18-­‐21  year  old  age  group  and  

attended  Flagler  College.  We  found  the  majority  of  our  focus  group  to  not  be  

knowledgeable  about  Avon  and  their  products.    Almost  all  of  the  feedback  we  

received  from  the  focus  group  directly  correlated  to  our  survey  results.    The  focus  

group  provided  the  information  that  the  majority  of  our  participants  associate  Avon  

with  an  older  age  demographic,  60%  said  that  either  their  mother  or  grandmother  

use  Avon  products.              

Our  last  method  of  research,  content  analysis,  yielded  clear-­‐cut  statistics  that  

gave  us  insight  into  Avon's  already  existing  presence  on  the  web.    We  used  

Alexa.com  to  analyze  Avon's  website  and  found  their  most  active  audience  to  be  55-­‐

64  year  old  females  that  have  children,  have  received  some  type  of  college  education  

and  frequent  their  website  from  the  privacy  of  their  own  home.    In  addition  to  using  

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Alexa.com  to  find  Avon's  most  active  audience,  we  have  also  used  Alexa.com  to  find  

out  how  well  they  are  effectively  reaching  18-­‐21  year  olds.    In  relation  to  the  general  

Internet  population  who  frequent  Avon's  website,  18-­‐21  year  olds  are  the  least  

active  group  to  visit  the  site.    These  results  from  Alexa.com  show  that  Avon  is  not  

effectively  reaching  18-­‐21  year  olds,  but  rather  reaching  an  older  demographic.      

On  the  contrary  to  the  poor  findings  from  Alexa.com  regarding  our  specific  

age  group,  we  have  found  that  magazines  that  feature  Avon  products  reach  our  

target  age  group  of  18-­‐21  year  olds  regularly.    To  determine  how  well  the  magazines  

that  feature  Avon  products  are  reaching  our  target  audience,  we  decided  to  use  

Alexa.com  to  analyze  four  different  magazines.    These  magazines  that  feature  Avon  

Products  are  Instyle,  Lucky,  People  and  Allure.    By  using  Alexa.com  to  analyze  these  

top  selling  magazines,  we  have  found  they  do  an  excellent  job  in  reaching  our  target  

audience  of  18-­‐21  year  olds.    For  example,  Alexa.com  reports  18-­‐21  year  olds  to  be  

the  most  active  audience  for  Instyle  Magazine,  and  also  reports  Instyle's  Magazines  

to  have  Internet  users  who  do  not  have  children  and  have  a  college  degree.    These  

findings  are  beneficial  to  Avon  because  although  Avon's  website  does  not  effectively  

reach  our  target  audience  of  18-­‐21  year  olds,  the  magazine  in  which  they  are  being  

featured  in  regularly  do.  

In  addition  to  using  Alexa.com  to  analyze  Avon's  reach,  we  utilized  

SocialMention.com  to  track  and  monitor  Avon's  presence  on  social  media  websites  

such  as  Facebook,  Twitter,  Youtube  and  Photobucket.    By  using  Social  Mention,  we  

have  found  Avon  to  have  a  very  strong  presence  in  the  digital  world.    For  example,  

our  findings  report  the  last  mention  of  "Avon"  was  26  minutes  prior  to  our  original  

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search  time,  and  Avon's  overall  perception  on  the  web  is  either  positive  or  

neutral.    Social  Mention  has  also  provided  us  with  insight  regarding  the  social  media  

platforms  people  use  to  search  Avon  products.    These  findings  report  Photobucket  

to  be  the  leading  social  media  platform  that  users  utilize  to  search  for  Avon,  

followed  by  Youtube,  Twitter  and  Picasaweb.        

Another  vital  component  of  Social  Mention  that  will  help  us  reach  Avon's  

target  audience  of  18-­‐21  year  olds  in  a  more  effective  manner  is  analyzing  the  top  

keywords  generated  by  Social  Mention.    Social  mention  lists  “avon”  to  be  the  top  

keyword  searched  by  Internet  users,  followed  by  products,  beauty  and  skin.    All  of  

these  keywords  can  be  implemented  into  Avon's  campaigns  and  advertisements,  

therefore  increasing  more  visibility  on  the  web.    Since  we  know  these  keywords  to  

be  the  most  frequently  searched  on  the  web,  we  can  use  this  to  our  advantage  when  

implementing  new  campaigns.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Discussion  and  Recommendations  

While  Avon’s  door-­‐to-­‐door  business  model  has  proven  to  be  effective  

amongst  older  demographics,  the  results  yielded  from  our  focus  groups  and  online  

surveys  have  allowed  us  insight  into  ways  Avon  could  further  its  reach.  After  

compiling  the  results  from  the  online  survey  and  focus  groups,  it  was  apparent  that  

individuals  within  the  18  to  21  year  old  demographic  would  be  more  inclined  to  

purchase  Avon  products  if  they  were  sold  in  definitive  retail  locations  such  as  a  

Sally’s,  Ulta  or  or  Sephora.  Having  Avon’s  products  consistently  available  in  retail  

locations  would  only  allow  its  consumers  to  have  further  access  to  these  products.  If  

Avon  were  to  expand  its  distribution  into  the  commercial  retail  market,  then  Avon  

could  follow  this  change  with  an  advertising  campaign  designed  to  market  towards  

the  demographic  of  18  to  21  year  olds.  This  simple  change  would  prove  that  Avon  is  

willing  to  institute  change  within  the  company  to  suite  the  needs  of  its  consumers.  

By  doing  so,  Avon  would  further  its  transparent,  and  lasting  relationship  with  its  

publics.  

Aside  from  the  institution  of  Avon  products  into  retail  stores,  there  are  other  

ways  in  which  Avon  could  increase  its  appeal  to  individuals  ranging  from  18  to  21  

years  old.  With  the  rise  of  social  networking  and  the  increasing  number  of  outlets  

such  as  Facebook  and  Twitter,  it  is  vital  for  Avon  to  maximize  its  presence  in  all  of  

these  platforms.  Maintaining  a  strong  online  presence  is  vital  for  brand  recognition  

and  promotion.    

Our  group  noticed  that  Avon  does  not  have  a  presence  on  Instagram,  a  photo-­‐

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sharing  and  social  networking  service.  If  Avon  were  to  take  advantage  of  this  

particular  social  media  platform,  then  the  company  would  be  able  to  showcase  new  

product  lines  and  promotional  offers  instantly  with  its  consumers.  Instagram  also  

connects  to  other  social  media  platforms  such  as  Facebook  and  Twitter.  This  allows  

for  photos  that  are  shared  on  Instagram  to  simultaneously  be  updated  onto  these  

other  networks.  

Avon  also  does  not  have  a  very  strong  presence  on  any  social  media  website  

appealing  to  the  18-­‐21  year  old  demographic,  if  Avon  wishes  to  reach  a  younger  

audience  than  they  should  utilize  Facebook  and  Twitter  more  affectively,  we  have  

also  noticed  that  while  they  do  use  Pinterest  and  Blogs  to  connect  to  a  younger  

audience  both  would  be  a  way  to  reach  the  younger  audience  more  affectively.    

Yet  another  recommendation  that  would  increase  Avon’s  appeal  to  its  

younger  audiences  would  be  through  an  increase  in  promotional  offers.  While  Avon  

does  employ  the  use  of  promotions  to  its  consumers,  the  institution  of  point-­‐based  

rewards  system  could  be  greatly  effective  for  the  company.  In  our  research,  we  

noticed  that  pricing  is  a  prominent  issue  to  our  college-­‐aged  target  audience.  By  

issuing  a  promotional  strategy  that  rewards  frequent  buyers  with  discounts  on  

products,  Avon  would  increase  its  appeal.  These  incentives  would  further  the  

promotion  of  Avon’s  brand  and  increase  demand  for  its  various  product  lines.    

One  thing  Avon  is  doing  well  in  appealing  to  the  18-­‐21  year  old  age  bracket  is  

the  companies  use  of  celebrity  endorsements.  Avon  uses  celebrities  such  as  Reese  

Witherspoon,  Patrick  Dempsey  and  Fergie.  Although,  more  celebrity  endorsements  

would  be  beneficial  in  reaching  the  target  audience.  We  believe  this  is  an  important  

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factor  to  appear  to  that  age  group,  as  celebrities  are  influential  in  today’s  society.      

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Appendices  

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 Magazines  

                   

                                 

       

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Facebook:  

                             Twitter:  

   

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   Blog:  

                   

               

                         

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Social  Mention:  Avon  Beauty  Products  

          Alexa.com  Instyle.com  

Allure.com

               

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Avon.com  

                                                     

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Focus  Group  Questions  Opening  Questions  What  is  your  name?    Where  do  you  go  to  school?  How  old  are  you?  What’s  your  major?    Transition  Questions  Do  you  use  beauty  products?  How  often  do  you  use  these  products  per  a  week?  What  is  your  preferred  brand  of  products?  How  much  are  you  willing  to  spend  on  the  beauty  products?  Do  you  buy  your  products  normally  from  stores,  online  or  from  a  representative?    If  you  like  a  particular  product,  do  you  recommend  it  to  friends  or  family?  What  is  important  to  you  when  choosing  your  beauty  products?    Key  Questions  What  do  you  know  about  Avon?  What’s  your  perception  of  Avon?  What  is  your  personal  experience  with  an  Avon  representative?  Have  you  ever  bought  Avon  products  online,  why  or  why  not?  What  is  your  perception  on  beauty  product  advertisements?  Do  you  know  anyone  who  buys  Avon  products?  If  so,  who?    What  is  your  experience  of  Avon  through  Facebook?  Twitter?  Pintrest?  YouTube?  Tumbler?        Ending  Questions  After  hearing  everyone’s  response  on  Avon,  do  you  feel  your  perception  has  changed?    Would  you  consider  buying  Avon  products?  If  you  had  more  knowledge  on  Avon,  would  be  more  likely  to  purchase  products  form  there?  Because  Avon  is  only  online  or  by  a  representative,  does  it  hinder  your  purchases  from  there?    What  would  make  you  choose  Avon?                

 

 

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