How Unilevers Brands Connect with Consumers

Case 1-1

How Unilever’s Brands Connect with Consumers

From soap to soup, Unilever [http://bi.galegroup.com/essentials/company/742170?u=tlearn_trl] markets a wide range of personal care products, foods, and household cleaners under popular brands like Dove, Bertolli, Lipton, Lux, Axe, Sunsilk, Surf, and Omo. Two billion consumers buy its products every day, adding up to annual revenue of $62 billion. The Anglo-Dutch company constantly conducts research to learn more about what consumers want and need, identifying even seemingly small changes that can make a big difference in the daily lives of people worldwide.

One of the company’s most memorable marketing initiatives has been Dove’s “Campaign for Real Beauty.” Based on extensive consumer research into women’s attitudes and emotions, the campaign uses ads, YouTube videos[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=litXW91UauE], special events, and other communications to counter beauty stereotypes and make the point that real beauty is more than skin deep. By linking its soap brand to messages reinforcing positive self -esteem for women of all ages, races, sizes, and shapes, Dove has won the admiration and loyalty of consumers in many countries. For further insights into this campaign, read this New York Times article [http://bi.galegroup.com/essentials/article/GALE|A326896384/232e7827241bf71ce86f1a47735e3ef1?u =tlearn_trl]

Unilever’s Ragú food brand has been courting parents with Facebook

[https://www.facebook.com/ragusauce/] and YouTube

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChzUN_RvMeY] communications that encourage ongoing conversations with marketers and among its brand fans. For example, marketers recently used the brand’s Facebook page (which has more than one million “likes”) to start a dialogue about getting children to eat. Its Facebook fans responded with dozens of additional ideas, which Ragú’s ad agency turned into helpful online videos that dish up tips with a sense of humor. Heavy use of social media is one way that Ragú aims to create an emotional connection with its customers and understand their ever-changing needs and interests.

Campaigns combining Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/ragusauce/], YouTube

[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChzUN_RvMeY], Twitter

[https://twitter.com/search?q=ragu&src=typd], and special websites have helped Unilever market its food and personal care brands to highly targeted segments such as Latino families in the United States.Unilever’s www.vivemejor.com, the Spanish-language website, and Facebook page provide brand- oriented recipes, coupons, holiday ideas, household hints, and other information that Latino families can use. The company also holds Disfruita la Pasión de la Vida events outside supermarkets to attract and engage Latino consumers. In planning such events, the company turns to its Multicultural Consumer Marketing Insights research team for guidance.

Unilever is looking beyond immediate acquisition behavior to encourage healthy, environmentally sustainable behavior all over the world. Through research, it has determined that the first step is to help consumers understand why they should do something (such as wash with soap to prevent the spread of disease). The next step is to show them how easy it is to take action (buy bars of soap and use them).Then, they must make the new behavior desirable (washing can keep the family safe from germs). Next, it is important to make consumers feel good about doing this action (for themselves, their family, and society). Finally, find a way to continue the behavior over time (ask children to wash before every meal).(Consumer Behavior, 7e Wayne Hoyer, Deborah MacInnis, Rik Pieters) (Solution Manual, For Complete File, Download link at the end of this File) 1 / 4

With these five steps, Unilever has convinced millions of consumers in developing countries to adopt the healthy habit of washing their hands—promoting the company’s Lifebuoy soap brand at the same time.

Unilever also sells laundry products in developing nations where water is a scarce resource, yet consumers are accustomed to rinsing clothes several times to get them clean. To address both consumer needs and environmental issues, CEO Paul Polman explains, “We’ve put products out in the market— fabric softeners—that only need one rinse.” Even then, “consumers were still doing two or three rinses, so we had to be very creative in educating them,” he says. Clearly, Unilever wants to build strong relationships with its customers by making sure its brands are down-to-earth and “real.” i

CASE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

• How is Unilever applying its understanding of internal consumer processes in the psychological core

to market its products?

Responses will vary.Unilever understands there are many important psychological processes consumers must go through during the acquisition, use, and disposal of offerings. By using market research, the company taps into specific aspects based on the particular product’s target audience. For many products, such as Lifebuoy soap, Unilever steps consumers through all of the psychological processes, from awareness to attitude change in order to acquire new customers and retain current users.

• Which of the four external processes in the consumer’s culture do you think have been the most

important to the success of Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty? Why?

Responses will vary.Values, personality, and lifestyle: Dove's campaign is based on market research into women's attitudes and emotions, which are closely tied to their values. The campaign highlights the value that "real beauty" is more than skin deep; sentiment women in their target audience value and believe is reflective of their personalities.

Reference groups and other social influences: Dove uses "real" women versus models with whom their consumers can because they are members of their reference group.

• Do you agree with Unilever’s decision to link its brands with efforts to encourage healthy and

environmentally sustainable behaviors? Explain your answer.

Responses will vary.Linking brands to healthy and sustainable behaviors helps Unilever create an emotional connection with its customers because they perceive the company cares about more than just profit.

i “Unilever Ramps Up Hispanic Marketing,” Media Post, April 2,2012, www.mediapost.com; Anna Maria Virzi, “How Unilever Connects with Hispanics on Facebook,” ClickZ, February 28, 2012, www.clickz.com; Louise Lucas, “Changing Lives,” Financial Times, March 20, 2012, www.ft.com; Louise Jack, “Unilever CEO Paul Polman on the Packaged Goods Giant’s Creative Shift,” Fast Company, January 12, 2012, www.fastcocreate.com; Ann-Christine Diaz, “Behind the work: Ragu and BFG9000’s Tips for 2 / 4

Finicky Eaters,” Advertising Age, March 20, 2012, www.adage.com; and Ekaterina Walter, “Marketing to Women,” Fast Company, March 19, 2012, www.fastcompany.com. 3 / 4

Case 1-2

Swatch Makes Time for Luxury

From plastic to platinum—the wristwatch company known for fun fashion accessories is now focusing on the watch as a status symbol. When Switzerland-based Swatch Group [http://bi.galegroup.com/essentials/company/115?u=tlearn_trl] was founded in 1983, popularly priced quartz watches made by Japanese firms had taken considerable market share from traditional Swiss watch brands. Swatch’s bold idea for recapturing share was to combine colorful cases, bands, and faces into eye-catching watches that were functional, affordable, and fashionable. The company began introducing an ever-changing array of new models, which helped consumers begin to think about wristwatches as both trendy and collectible. It also decided to restrict some models to certain geographic areas. This encouraged consumers to be on the lookout for new Swatches when traveling and to snap up models not sold in stores at home.

The idea of building a wardrobe of watches caught on. Consumers—particularly women—quickly became accustomed to buying Swatch watches as they would any fashion accessory, on impulse or to match particular outfits. Showing off new and unusual Swatch models—especially those not locally available—became another way to express individuality and status. Soon Swatch’s success attracted the attention of rivals that entered the market with a wide range of inexpensive watches for everyday wear.

To avoid the profit-sapping problems of this intense competition, Swatch made another bold decision.Without abandoning its basic $35 Swatch models, the company started acquiring established quality brands such as Omega and Hamilton. It also bought super-luxury brands such as Breguet, which offers hand-made, limited-edition watches priced as high as $500,000. The posh image of these brands brought a new dimension to Swatch’s corporate reputation and new possibilities for marketing more watches to more segments.

Now the company can cater to buyers seeking an extraordinary piece of jewelry for themselves or to give as a special gift—buyers for whom price is a secondary consideration. Swatch’s high-end brands can also satisfy the needs of wealthy consumers who get in a buying mood while on vacation and choose fancy watches in exclusive boutiques or airport duty-free shops. Knowing that more luxury watches are sold to men than to women, Swatch has also partnered with the Tiffany jewelry retail chain to design and market high-quality women’s watches as fashion accessories.

To connect with customers beyond the purchase of a single wristwatch and strengthen brand loyalty, Swatch has been using a variety of marketing communications. Its luxury brand ads appear in magazines geared to high-income consumers. It publishes Voice, a twice-yearly lifestyle magazine, to inform customers about fashion trends, special Swatch events, new product news, and more. Its online newsletter keeps customers updated on the latest styles and trends. On the Swatch website, enthusiasts can click to join the Swatch club and gain access to members-only products, contests, collectible watches, blogs, photos, and videos. In addition, Swatch mounts special events for customers all over the world, such as a beach-theme party in Austria and a weekend pirate-theme cruise in Turkey.

Thanks to its portfolio of more than a dozen brands and a global chain of 600 stores, Swatch has become the world’s leading watch marketer. Its annual sales have risen to $5 billion, despite mixed global economic conditions. In fact, luxury watches now account for more than half of Swatch’s profits, and the company is readying more fine-jewelry accessories under its status-symbol brands. Still, competition

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