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In the age of pocket sanitizer, the biz needs to get a little more advanced.

A big portion of the commercial beauty experience, let’s call it, is going into a physical store, getting a sample of some new product and putting on your face. Obviously, in the pandemic age, people are a lot less willing to go into a physical storefront, to say nothing of touching a dispenser pump that who knows how many other people have touched. If the industry wants people to be engaged with their products, they’re going to have to incorporate some modern edges to keep things clean.

According to Jenni Middleton of trend forecasting firm WGSN, the beauty industry needs to reconsider how their products are packaged and presented to suit the more sanitary-minded customer. “We’ve never been more aware of everything we touch. Safe contact packaging is going to become really important for brands,” she said at last month’s WeCosmoprof virtual event. What does safe packaging refer to in this case? For one thing, touch-free sensor dispensers, not unlike a soap dispenser in a public bathroom. Instead of physically touching a dispenser, you could wave your hand under something to get a sample. This would be great for things like skin creams and certain cosmetics.

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More than that, though, Middleton stressed the importance of “virtual try-ons” through smartphone apps. Photo apps that allow you to sample certain cosmetics like eye shadow and lipstick have been around for a couple of years, but more as a novelty than a proper feature. If the industry were to embrace the idea a little more enthusiastically, though, customers could try out a shade before buying online just like they would at a physical store, which would give them a lot more confidence in their purchases.

While it would be nice if it could be under better circumstances, the time has definitely come for the beauty industry to enter the digital age.