Advertising As A Small Personal Care Business In 2026.
The world of advertising as a small personal care business has changed significantly in the last 3 years, with evolving AI, paid promotions, Influencers, and so much more. In this post, we’ll go over what we learned from Google paid advertising, the evolution of AI, and marketing with social media.
Advertising As A Small Personal Care Business Back In The Day,
Essentials by Catalina has existed since 1999. But serious innovations came when Catalina’s tech-savvy husband Bill, created a webpage for the company in 2001. And said the famous words, ” You sure you’re ready for this? There’s no going back.” Having a webpage as a business back then was uncommon and groundbreaking.
In the very early 2000’s, 56.7% of homes had an internet connection, but only 43.6% of people were actually using it, according to The NTIA and ESA, U.S. Department of Commerce, using U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey Supplements. (Source 1) And since then, the company has grown its online presence organically. Except in 2018 and 2025, but we’ll get to that later. Back then, marketing was mostly television commercials, radio ads, newspaper/magazine ads, email lists, and word of mouth. Fast forward 20 years, and advertising is ruled by the internet.
We tried Google Paid Advertising, and here’s what we learned.
Since 1999, Essentials by Catalina has grown organically. First starting at craft shows, then eventually growing with the internet. But in 2018, we decided to throw money at Google paid advertising to see if we could bring in more traffic. What is paid advertising? When you search for something on Google, the first result is labeled as “sponsored results.” Businesses pay Google a certain amount every time a customer clicks on their sponsored result.
Did it work in 2018? No, but it was because of what we decided to test out our advertising budget on. The mistake was paying for advertising on a product that no one wanted. They were surplus tapered opaque red double-wall jars that were sitting on the shelves for months. So we were discouraged and didn’t try advertising again until 2025.
On August 14th of 2025, we launched a $2000 ad spend campaign through Google. This time, we had a different approach. We were very selective about what products we wanted to push. We pushed Bases that people were actually looking for. An example is our Basic Essentials Shampoo Base. It turned out to be very much worth it. In two months, our 2k in ad spend brought us a little over 15k in revenue. Follow our blog for the detailed article on how our experience went.
Don’t
- Don’t spend money on advertising a product no one is looking for. If it’s not selling after promotions, discounts, and email pushes. Don’t use your precious ad spend on the product.
- It’s not recommended to spend money on ads on products you barely make a profit off. For example, a specific bar of soap takes hours to make, but you only make a dollar off every bar.
Do
- Do spend money on products that are doing well; you want to push your winners.
- Do push your products that make the most profit. This would be a product that doesn’t take long to make, has the lowest cost, and you can crank out a lot in a small amount of time.
Social Media
Social media is the king of retail. It’s no secret that most Americans are on socials. And shopping on social media or being influenced on purchases has drastically shaped the market. The most popular social networks are Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. TikTok shop, Instagram Shop, working with influencers, and brand recognition are essential when using social media for advertising. Here are some methods of making the most out of Advertising on social media.
- PR packages: Sending samples or full-sized products to influencers, journalists, or celebrities to generate brand awareness, buzz, and content for your brand. This method works especially for niche brands.
- Paid Influencer content: You can pay influencers who best represent your brand to make content like a post, story, reel, or video for you using the product you send them.
- Video Content: Video content showing you making product builds brand trust. And video content highlighting product texture can grab scrollers’ attention.
- Paid Social Media Ads: Like Google Ads, you can pay to be pushed into the feeds of potential customers. Every platform has its own program and cost-per-click rates.
Amazon Shopping
Most people, Around 51% of Americans, to be exact, use Amazon for online retail (source 2). It is competing with big box stores like Walmart and Target. There are a couple of avenues you can go down when it comes to selling on Amazon.
Amazon FBA: Also known as Fulfillment by Amazon, is when you send your product to an Amazon fulfillment warehouse, they hold it, pack it, and ship it when someone makes a purchase, and you pay a fee for each item sold.
Amazon FBM: Also known as Fulfillment by Merchant, is when you manage storage and shipping yourself.
For more detailed and easy-to-follow information, check out their “How to sell on Amazon: 6 steps for beginners” article that goes over each option and the requirements. And you can decide if it is the right market for you.
Using AI For Advertising As A Small Personal Care Business
Using AI can be extremely helpful for a small business. But there are a few things you have to keep in mind to keep your business’s integrity intact. AI may seem like a magic tool that can spin up a product in seconds, but for the most authentic product, it is best to use it as a tool rather than a crutch. As time goes on, these tools will get better. AI has changed exponentially in the past 3 years.
Creating a label: Design can be difficult, but using AI can help you get started. There are many design engines where you can enter your style, color palette, and words. Be sure to double-check punctuation, ingredient listing, and size is correct.
Product staging: Sometimes, space can be tight, especially when you are running your business from your kitchen counter, and don’t have room for a full studio. Or you don’t have the budget to have photos professionally taken of your product. So using AI to generate good-quality product photographs is a budget-friendly option for small personal care businesses. Just make sure the product in your listing matches your exact product.
What you see is what you get: This is very crucial when using AI for advertising as a small business. The product shown in what AI spins up MUST match your actual product and packaging. For example, if you offer a face cream that is depicted as white, but the actual product is a clear gel…That’s a problem. Inaccurately showing your product can disappoint customers, leading to a loss of trust.
Closing Thoughts on Advertising as a Small Personal Care Business.
The digital advertising world is ever-changing. With paid advertising, shifting social media platforms, Amazon working with vendors, and the sophistication of AI modules. We hope these tips help you navigate the online world of retail. Shop our website for bases, Fragrance oils, essential oils, and raw ingredients. Follow our blog for market trends, recipes, and ingredient information.
Sources:
Source 1 :https://www.ntia.gov/sites/default/files/data/dn/html/Chapter1.htm#:~:text=Figure%201%2D4%20shows%20how,the%20Internet%20in%20their%20homes;
Source 2
https://www.yaguara.co/amazon-statistics/
