The Musings Of An Opinionated Sod [Help Me Grow!]

Northern Planner just used a phrase ”stay close to the money” and I agree with him (as I know you do) but it seems the guys behind Colgates work spend too much time with the sales people because the work smacks of being written for them to ”sell” into the trade and ignoring their customer needs bar the usual category norms.

Lots of companies are like this but given you’re turning one of the worst culprits around (Sony) I believe you when you say you could make Colgate more effective in all areas of their business.

I love that phrase by NP and its so true because company salesmen want sales, not self-indulgent ads so if you understand where they are coming from, you can not only embrace it into your thinking [afterall, our job is to help make our clients better businesses] but it also helps sell work that they may otherwise put a stop to.

However, as you rightly say Pete, you do have to balance all this ‘internal need’ with consumer/cultural insight otherwise you’ll end up with work that will work against clients [retail] customers, but not with their actual consumers.

Walmart tells its suppliers that if products don’t have significant innovation they will immediately impose an annual 10% price reduction … so to maintain their sales and profit levels, there is internal pressure to create products [and ads] that are more focused on keeping Walmart happy than looking into the specific needs and wants of their customers, customers.

All this means is that the real definition of consumer choice is basically you get what the retailers want you to have, hahaha! [Dictatorial Democracy?]

I would just like to point out that I stole the phrase from Marcus.
And it’s basic economics – if you don’t innovate you die.
You’d be amazed at what some people call innovation though.

Following on from my previous comment …

I think I read somewhere Colgate are one of the biggest ‘innovators’ [said in the loosest sense of the word] of products in the World.

The problem is they have taken the INNOVATE OR DIE philosophy at its most basic level so ignore things like social ‘needs / wants / cultual changes’ and just turn out any old tat they can.

That’s probably why their “Honey Flavoured Toothpaste” failed so miserably and why they still rely on spending billions of dollars on brainwashing their consumers into buying and using their ‘passive’ products.

I actually don’t think so Mr M … I think it’s more a case of them living in a blinkered World.

[http://robcampbell.wordpress.com/2007/06/04/who-do-they-think-they-are-kidding/]

Good point pooR, some of the ads that ran in India for toothpaste were really great. The one with the ‘lights’ was especially wonderful.

When Wrigley’s repositioned their chewing gum from ‘mouth occupying food’ to ‘dental health’ the effect on the Listerine brand was unbelievably destructive.

Such was their market share loss that they acknowledge this was the single biggest driver of innovation within the company [both interms of product and ‘thinking’] … so I just hope the bods at Unilever, P&G and Colgate react in a similar way should a competitor ever be able to shake the tree a to the point where even their distribution stronghold isn’t enough to ensure continued volumes – even though I think in more ‘developed markets’ this is a big ask.

How are you by the way? Not heard from you in ages, hope all is toptastic.

I am fine thank you. Toptastic as always. How have you been?
Yes, I did read about how the move from Wrigley shook Listerine. And it should be a learning lesson for the big daddies. Since most of the ‘experimentation’ is happening in the Asian market, I won’t be surprised if Wrigley’s make a similar move here. Something to seriously think about. Great post.

Sure bloody is John – but that’s because Asia still represents quite an untapped market … hell in some Chinese rural towns, they buy toothpaste interms of ‘one use sample sizes’ and even then only use it for special occasisions.

Bit like most Brits, haha.

PS: I do think your calculations are ‘rough’ because that does seem an inordinately high figure!

PPS: Are you saying that the Chinese Government are letting my blog ‘come through’ these days? How cool … I’ve been ‘accepted’. We need to talk soon, I’ve just had a very interesting conversation with someone who I believe may of pissed you off Charles and would welcome the chance to be your ‘hit man’.

He’s fine Andy … but yes, I do hope he comes back to his ‘spiritual home’ and writes his fucking clever [and sometimes mad] comments on whatever shite I’ve written about that day.

I see Marcus as the Red Bull of blogging … wherever he turns up results in a frenzied spree of blog commenting from all and sundary. I mean that as a compliment but I appreciate I’ve made him sound like some Bernard Manning character that just gets debate by pissing people off. Though in the case of NP that’s true, well when he talks about Boney M it is.

[BTW my Mum voted for Boney M … gawd bless her, what a woman!]

Right, I’m heading home now so can you [ie: Andy] please call me on the mobile as I really want to catch up regarding you-know-who before you’re incommunicado for fuck knows how long 🙂

http://investor.colgate.com/pressroom/pr_releaseDetail.cfm?ReleaseID=256278&ReleaseType=Earnings&ReleaseDate=%7Bts%20'2007-07-25%2000:00:00'%7D

youre a demanding little queen arent you campbell.

😉

Andy, you been behaving like an arse? Again?

Who, pray tell, gives a flying toss about what you think Fairy?

Before anybody asks….I’m a fucking mind reader.

How did you know I was going to say that?

Yeah, I made a telescopic ladder out of 2.000 tubes of colgate extra fresh minty.

I am not a number!

Just goes to show how much you fucking know about my business doesn’t it Campbell.

I run a LONG TERM business here! Milk teeth are nothing more than “low hanging fruit”, but the bonuses involved in the long term health of adult teeth are considerable.

Now, go to bed. Expect a surprise when you go to brush you’re teeth in the morning.

Word of advice Robert, don’t go to sleep with your head under the pillow. Last time you did that they took your hair and by the sounds of it, if you do it again you’ll be living off soup till your dying day.

This has been a very welcome break, thank you Marcus, I needed that. Don’t be a stranger on this blog anymore, it’s a quieter and less interesting place without you.
Off to save Andy now, wish me luck.

What they need is a drumming gorilla.

Good luck George, I have a feeling you may need it.

Good to see Uncle Marcus back.

Hi John – you’re right, those figures do seen to reflect an enourmous expenditure by Colgate on marketing in the region but as I said, it could be because Asia still represents a fairly large untapped market given many people in the region still don’t use toothpaste as a ritual part of their hygenie program.

Or it could be some Enron type accounting, haha!

Would a leper have feet?

No … but then I am short sighted. Ahem.

Andy steals the feet from lepers and the money from business partners, hahaha!