This week our focus in class was on how to manage successful products,
services, and brands. We talked a lot about the product life cycle, the
importance of branding strategies, and the role of packaging and labeling on a
product’s success. Central to our learning all semester has been the idea that
all successful products must be well managed. Furthermore, products that
continue to remain profitable must constantly be aware of how their brand is
doing as well as its place within the minds of consumers. Thus our discussion
of product management this week sparked quite an interest in me to devote my
third blog post all to the role of product management, specifically by
highlighting one of my very favorite brands!
A perfect example of a company that has revamped its marketing
strategies is Proctor and Gamble’s Pantene line of hair care products. It is
also a perfect example of a brand that I use daily and one that I would highly
recommend to everyone! As mentioned in chapter 11 of our textbook, Pantene’s
shampoo and conditioner line is a great example of what successful product modification looks like.
Product modification is the
altering of one or more of a product’s characteristics, such as its quality,
performance, or appearance, in an attempt to increase the product’s value to
customers and increase sales. Pantene specifically did this by
reformulating their shampoo and conditioner lines and also re-launching the
brand with a multimillion-dollar advertising and promotion campaign after they
noticed an increase in competition. The result?
Currently, Pantene is the most successful shampoo and conditioner brand
in the United States. This is quite an accomplishment considering the fact that
the company was founded back in the 1940’s. This only reaffirms the point that
product modification can be the key to a product’s success!
Pantene is not only a brand known for its shampoos and conditioners,
however. It is also a great example of a company utilizing the concept of product line extensions, which is the practice of using a current
brand name to enter a new market segment in its product class. Pantene has
over 20 types of product lines ranging from anti-breakage formulas to color
renewal treatments. Not only do they offer shampoos and conditioners, but other
hair products too, such as hairsprays, serums, and creams.
I think that Pantene also does a good job with their packaging and labeling, both of which are correlating factors to a products
ultimate success. Packaging and labeling not only creates customer value, but
it also adds a competitive advantage to the product. Successful packaging and
labeling offers a communication benefit
to the consumer, because it not only draws interest to the product but also explains
what the product is. Proper packaging and labeling also ensures that the product
is well protected and stored, which is a functional
benefit that shows the consumer that the product is of good quality.
Finally, successful packaging and labeling has a perceptual benefit, because it sticks in the consumer’s mind and peaks
their interest. This is arguably the most important piece to what packaging and
labeling aims to do, because if a product is not able to stand apart from
others it is less likely to be picked up and purchased.
Another avenue of marketing that Pantene has done a successful job in is their current media campaign. Pantene has succeeded in bringing awareness to their
brand through celebrity endorsement, as I mentioned in my previous post as an important aspect of marketing.
Recently, Selena Gomez has been the face of the line and I think that this has generated not only an increase in buzz marketing for the company, which attracts consumers attention, but also an
increase in sales.
To conclude this post, I hope that you all will try Pantene’s products because they really do
work and are truly of great value. Next time you are at the store, wander down the
hair care isle and see if any Pantene products catch your eye!
That's all for now,
-XOXO M
-XOXO M
Sources:
Marketing, 12th Edition Roger Kerin, Steven Hartley, William Rudelius. McGraw-Hill: New York, 2015
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