Revolutionizing Selfies: Providing Virtual Tools To Clients Help Put Company On the Map

Perfect Corp., a beauty based tech company founded in San Jose, came onto the scene in 2013 with its YouCam Perfect app. The app offered different filters to allow high level editing of selfies. The company has recently launched its YouCam Makeup app, which allows users to test different hair and makeup looks. Richard Carriere, SVP of Global Marketing, talks about the app's development and its launch.

Identifying a niche

Alice H. Chang, CEO of Perfect Corp., was working for a multimedia software company when she got the idea for Perfect Corp's first app. According to Carriere, "Alice grabbed the opportunity to create our first beauty app, YouCam Perfect. While there were already dozens of general purpose photo apps in the market, she wanted to develop tools that would cater primarily to women and help them look great, feel confident and enjoy themselves." Following its launch, YouCam Perfect grew to over 80 million downloads.

Expanding into new territory

The success of the initial app eventually led Chang and the Perfect Corp. team to develop other apps for women who wanted more than just a vast selection of selfie filters. Its current selection of apps is designed to offer users an integrated experience. Carriere states, "We had a much more ambitious goal to create a true-to-life virtual makeup app that would be far more realistic than anything ever seen in the market, and which would convince leading beauty and cosmetic brands to offer their colors and products to bridge the virtual and real world. In order to create that bridge and to make the app highly interactive, we quickly integrated our virtual community, Beauty Circle, and embedded the network into all our beauty apps as a social platform where beauty lovers, brands, influencers and leading beauty publications could interact together, and through our virtual tools. YouCam Makeup recently reached the 100 million download mark on Android alone, and now exceeds 160 million downloads when adding iOS."

Expanding market reach

One of the ways Perfect Corp. has grown its success is by allowing users of its apps to become familiar with various cosmetics brands. Carriere notes that this is a feature that makes the company stand out. "Users of our apps can try-on dozens of looks, products, colors and shades in a matter of seconds, with natural results and without any risk. The idea was to partner with real brands to make the experience as close to reality as possible, and empower our users to virtually experience looks that they could recreate in real life."

Using tech to enhance business

These days, technology is more a fact of life than a pipe dream, and many companies are finding new ways to bring their companies into the fold. Carriere offers the following advice to beauty gurus who may be hesitant to join the wave of technology. "Perfect Corp. employs dozens of beauty minded people who did not come with a technology background. Anyone interested in beauty-related technology should not hesitate. As long as they have good knowledge of the market and a clear idea in mind how technology can enhance the beauty industry in their respective area of expertise, they should go for it and join the group of mavericks who will transform this amazing and important industry."

By identifying a need in the beauty community and using her knowledge of the tech industry, Chang was able to successfully build a successful beauty brand from the ground up. Tapping into your own skills and interests can serve as the inspiration you need to fill your own perceived gaps in any marketplace.

This article was written by Alaina Brandenburger of Examiner.com for CBS Small Business Pulse.