5 Things Beauty Brands’ Websites Need

I really feel like the online shopping experience for beauty leaves something to be desired! I wish beauty brands would put a little more into their websites.

1. INGREDIENTS should be mandatory!  Not only is it frustrating that many brands don’t list their ingredients online, but when you inquire via e-mail, they refer you to call a 1-800 number. Is it really appropriate to have that kind of information–with all of those scientific ingredients–read over the phone?  They have to be on the box, so it’s not like it’s forever secret information.
2. REAL PHOTOS seem to be more than just lacking but nigh on impossible to find on major beauty brands’ websites.  I know that Illamasqua has lip swatches, which is something you rarely see from bigger brands, that are much appreciated. I guess I’d be out of a job, though  You just see a lot of template photos that have the color altered in Photoshop rather than brands taking actual photos of each shade.
3. QUANTITY should be displayed.  It drives me batty when a brand doesn’t list it.
4. SHADE DESCRIPTIONS are so much more important than brands think!  When you’re using computer-generated color blocks for your swatches, a few words to describe the color would be so much more helpful!  No color descriptions is particularly egregious when the naming scheme is numbers!
5. POST POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE REVIEWS if you ever want me to trust your reviews section. After hearing from readers about experiences where sites don’t post a negative review but will post a positive one, I’ve lost so much faith in the process.  Beauty consumers are getting smarter every year!

What are beauty brands’ missing on their websites?