How to Get Rich by Giving Gifts

It was the 1940s-1950s. Most cosmetics companies relied on magazine advertising and mass marketing campaigns.

Estée Lauder refused to spend money on traditional advertising. Instead, she believed in direct, personal customer contact and word-of-mouth marketing.

She broke the industry standard for cosmetics companies. They tried to sell without personal demonstration or customer interaction.

Estée was different. She gave personal demonstrations. She brought her creams and cosmetics to salons, hotels, and department stores. There, she allowed customers to experience the products firsthand before purchasing.

Cosmetics companies sold their products at fixed prices without additional incentives. She pioneered a new practice, based on a psychological principle.

She offered free samples and “gifts with purchase,” which became an industry standard.

It’s a strategy based on the principle of reciprocity. That is, giving something of value to encourage future purchases.

Back then, the industry standard was a transactional approach. Sales representatives offered little to no customer follow-up.

Estée was different. She called customers by telephone. She followed up on their satisfaction, and built lasting relationships.

Her philosophy was about “touching” customers. She meant it in a literal sense, through product demonstrations. She also meant it in a figurative sense, through personal care and attention.

Most cosmetics companies focused on wholesale distribution to retailers.

Estée was different. She began by selling direct to customers at salons. She built relationships one customer at a time before expanding to department stores.

Expensive advertising and fancy packaging was the industry standard for cosmetics companies. That’s how they attempted to gain premium positioning.

Estée was different. She created luxury positioning through exceptional personal service.

She educated her customer. She demonstrated that she cared, making each customer feel special and valued.

Estée Lauder was ahead of her time. Her approach became the foundation for modern cosmetics marketing.

Free samples are now standard across the industry.

“Gift with purchase” is a ubiquitous marketing strategy.

Personal beauty consultations became standard in department stores.

Customer relationship management became a crucial part of beauty marketing.

Estée Lauder understood what the cosmetics industry failed to recognize: Personal relationships. Selling personal products requires trust, experience, and emotional connection.

Which is something that traditional advertising alone won’t achieve. She established principles that remain effective today.

I like you,

– Sean Allen Fenn

PS: Fake it until you make it. Born as Josephine Esther Mentzer, July 1, 1908 in Queens, New York, she reinvented herself as Estée Lauder. Josephine was the daughter of Jewish immigrants. She grew up working in her family’s hardware store. Her uncle was a chemist who developed homemade skin creams. She learned the fundamentals of beauty and product formulation from him. Throughout her career, Estée Lauder fostered various myths about her background. Which included claims of being from European nobility as part of her brand’s mystique.

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