Ninety-three percent of women in the U.S. might or would be willing to try a beauty brand if it has earned the U.S. Department of Agriculture organic seal, according to a new consumer survey from the Benchmarking Company.

The allure of USDA's stamp of approval reflects growing confusion among consumers as to which beauty brands truly are naturally or organically formulated and which ones only claim to be.

Among the 1,400 women ages 18 to 50+ polled online by the Benchmarking Company in September and October 2007, 61 percent agreed that it is difficult to discriminate between purists and pretenders.

Currently, 70 percent of women who buy natural personal-care products and 31 percent of women who buy traditional products claim to read labels carefully before making purchasing decisions.

Still, nearly 90 percent of participants said that companies should be more forthcoming about which products are natural and which are not, according to the market research firm's report, released Jan. 15.

While women in the U.S. may be growing more conscious of product labeling and the importance of certification, a November report from Organic Monitor revealed that just 35 percent of natural and organic product buyers in the UK look for certification symbols or logos (¹ Also see "Majority Of Natural Personal-Care Buyers In UK Do Not Check For Certification" - HBW Insight, 26 November, 2007., p. 6).

The firm did tell "The Rose Sheet" it has anecdotal evidence that consumer attitudes may be changing.

Leading European certification bodies have announced their intention to issue a harmonized standard for natural and organic certification by June (² Also see "Natural/Organic Standard In EU Targeted For June; Industry Reps Form NaTrue" - HBW Insight, 7 January, 2008., p. 4).

In the U.S., a Natural Product Association work group chaired by Burt's Bees' Chief Marketing Officer Mike Indursky aims to craft a standardized definition of the term "natural" (³ 'The Rose Sheet' July 30, 2007, In Brief).

When asked why they buy natural or organic products, 27 percent of women surveyed said they believed the ingredients in traditional beauty products are harmful to their health. Eighty percent believe that natural products are better for their skin, and 64 percent said they do not want chemicals on their skin.

Benchmarking Company CEO Alisa Marie Beyer notes that "consumers have been inundated with headlines focusing on lead in lipstick, off-label uses of pharmaceuticals in cosmetics, the potential perils of parabens and other ingredients, Chinese product recalls and global warming caused by manmade toxins. But nowhere has the fear of ingredients been felt more acutely than in the beauty industry."

Beyer adds: "Demand for natural and organic beauty brands may just be the single most important issue to impact the beauty industry in its history."

Marketing Natural: Choose Your Words Wisely

In marketing products, natural personal-care companies should appreciate that the term "-FREE" - meaning free of harmful chemicals, etc. - was the top choice among women asked to identify the most appealing terminology on a beauty label (73 percent), the Benchmarking Company says.

Terms like "clean," "antioxidant," "natural," and "hypoallergenic" followed. Survey respondents indicated that the least appealing marketing language contains the words "therapeutic" (40 percent), "radiant" (37 percent), "dermatology" (32 percent), and "science" (9 percent), according to the researcher.

In fact, "claims using clinical terms and statistics left her cold and she found them least believable," while "claims she felt were most believable were those with a clear explanation of nature's benefits to her skin using soothing, fresh and natural language."

"If there was a cosmetic catchword for 2007," the Benchmarking Company says, "that word was 'mineral.'" Forty-three percent of survey takers reported currently using mineral makeup, and 76 percent believe it to be a natural product.

Fifty-four percent of women say they want to avoid artificial fragrances. Other undesired ingredients include silicone (43 percent) and gluten (34 percent).

Bare Escentuals "holds a special place in [the consumer's] heart and wallet," the researcher says. Seventy-three percent of women know the brand, 26 percent use it, 24 percent feel it is the best makeup product on the market, regardless of price, and 33 percent would recommend it to a friend.

- Molly Laas (m.laas@elsevier.com)

USDA Organic Seal Can Win Over American Women, Survey Suggests

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