The activities of a company associated with buying and selling a product or service. It includes advertising, selling and delivering products to people. People who work in marketing departments of companies try to get the attention of target audiences by using slogans, packaging design, celebrity endorsements and general media exposure. The four 'Ps' of marketing are product, place, price and promotion Market Segmentation A marketing term referring to the aggregating of prospective buyers into groups (segments) that have common needs and will respond similarly to a marketing action.
Market segmentation enables companies to target different categories of consumers who perceive the full value of certain products and services differently from one another. Branding The process involved in creating a unique name and image for a product in the consumers' mind, mainly through advertising campaigns with a consistent theme. Branding aims to establish a significant and differentiated presence in the market that attracts and retains loyal customers. Branding is strategic.
Marketing is tactical. Marketing may contribute to a brand, but the brand is bigger than any particular marketing effort.The brand is what remains after the marketing has swept through the room. It’s what sticks in your mind associated with a product, service, or organization—whether or not, at that particular moment, you bought or did not buy. “A product is something that is made in a factory a brand is something that is bought by a customer. A competitor can copy a product, a brand is unique.
A product can be quickly outdated, a successful brand is timeless. ”(STEPHEN KING) Earlier in India oral hygiene was the domain of local homemade ayurvedic powders or natural herbs.The history of toothpaste in India can be traced back in year 1975. Now the awareness regarding oral hygienic Indian society has increased with the different brands of toothpaste. Colgate-Palmolive Company is an American multinational consumer products company focused on the production, distribution and provision of household, health care and personal products, such as soaps, detergents, and oral hygiene products (including toothpaste and toothbrushes).
The Brand – Colgate Dental Cream (Colgate – Palmolive Company)Colgate in partnership with the Indian Dental Association announces the 9th edition of ‘Oral Health Month’ With ‘Mission Zero Tooth Cavity’ the mass awareness program will travel across more than 1,000 cities and towns. Mumbai, October 11, 2012: Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited, the market leader in oral care, and the Indian Dental Association (IDA), today announced the commencement of the 9th edition of the Oral Health Month. This 2-month long intensive oral care awareness initiative aims to improve the oral health condition and generate awareness about tooth cavities in the country.Championing the cause of oral health over the last 75 years, the Oral Health Month was launched by Colgate in 2004 as a 6-city program. Today the program reaches people across 1116 cities and towns, in partnership with over 25,000 dentists.
Spanning across October-November, the ‘Oral Health Month’ involves in-clinic free cavity check-ups, school contact programs, mobile dental vans with free cavity check-up facilities and other engaging awareness activities. To avail of a free in-clinic cavity check-up, all one has to do is SMS his/her postal pin code to 5676711 for information on a dentist in their locality.The dentist details are provided as a reply to the SMS. As part of this initiative, 13 mobile dental vans will also travel across 39 cities to make basic oral care facilities accessible to the underprivileged, through the support of IDA dentists. Dr.
Ashok Dhoble, Hon. Secretary General, Indian Dental Association added, “We are proud to be associated with Colgate for the Oral Health Month We have been closely working with them on this initiative for the last eight years and believe that this is an effective campaign to spread awareness on good oral hygiene.For most, oral care is about finding a cure for their toothache, little realizing that a simple daily regime can prevent painful cavities and help them lead a healthier life. Through the initiative, we are encouraging people to have their dental health checked, so that they can understand directly from reputed dentists what remedial action they need to take, as well as learn basic habits that can help maintain better oral health.
” Most Trusted Brands 2012: How Colgate has managed to retain the top-most ranking. (Ref : Economic Times India 6 Nov, 2012) Brand Colgate has come a long way since the days when a tube cost 14 annas.Today, in addition to a wide range of toothbrushes, mouthwashes, whitening and expert care products, Colgate has well over ten variants of toothpaste including everything from regular plain ol' white paste and flavored toothpaste for kids to Active Salt and Sensitive Pro-relief 'Brush your teeth the Colgate way, every day,' ends the long copy from a 1939 print ad for Colgate. And every day since then millions of Indians, young and old, have used the oral-care brand in various forms, everything from powder to paste, for generations. It is perhaps the consumer's first brand encounter of the day.That is of course if oral hygiene takes precedence over breakfast routine.
Indeed, Colgate's advertising has changed over the years, long copy has given way to celebrities showing off their pearly whites or getting advice from the experts. However, some things are better left untouched. For the second year running Colgate has taken the number one position on Brand Equity's Most Trusted Brands survey. In 2011 after spending years in second place, the brand dethroned Nokia.
And they have done it again this year by retaining the title as the consumer's pick of the Most Trusted Brand.So what makes Colgate tick after over seven decades? Prabha Parameswaran, MD, Colgate-Palmolive India says Colgate's 75 year long journey in the country has been remarkable. "It commenced on an interesting note; beginning with Colgate Dental Cream toothpaste being distributed on handcarts. We have come a long way from offering one toothpaste brand. Today, we provide a product portfolio that addresses a wide array of consumer oral health needs.
Whether it's launching products at the lowest possible price point to overcome the entry barrier or driving growth in the premium category through relevant product innovation; we have been addressing consumers at both ends of the spectrum and all points in between. "Advertising has played a critical role in shaping that journey. The brand's communication has evolved over the years, in line with India's fast changing environment, to best connect with consumers. "We create integrated marketing campaigns that combine consistent brand messages with new ways of reaching consumers, including innovative in-store execution, mass media innovation and exploring strategic approaches to social media," says Parameswaran.
New media channels like digital are becoming an integral part of the communications mix.For example, to connect with youth, a core segment of their TG for Colgate Plax, they leveraged the augmented reality medium for heightened consumer engagement and also partnered with the Sunburn Festival and Mood Indigo, popular youth centric platforms, to create brand awareness and relevance. Mobile marketing is another powerful medium of communication, given Indian's mobile growth and rural penetration. Parameswaran says, "Even for our hallmark brand, Colgate Dental Cream, we try and refresh our integrated marketing campaigns to make the brand relevant and top-of-mind for the consumers. "
