Brand Strategy articles from March 2005

Brand Strategy archives from March 2005

LEADER: Tectonic plates.(Editorial)
March 4, 2005... It could be the most important story of our age. Almost two out of every five people on the planet are Chinese or Indian. China alone has more people than Latin America and sub-Saharan Africa combined. The economic rise of Asia's giants is...

PepsiCo buys PJ Smoothies.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... PepsiCo has bought UK fruit juice and smoothie brand PJ Smoothies for an undisclosed sum in order to boost its presence in the UK premium juice market. PJ Smoothies has a 33% share in this market competing with independently-owned Innocent...

Levi Strauss increases gross profit.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Levi Strauss increased its gross profit by $210m (#111m) in 2004 and delivered $30m (#15.8m) in net profit compared to a net loss of $349m (#184m) in 2003. Increased sales were attributed to growth in the Asia- Pacific region and increased...

Wal-Mart net profit increases.(Wal-Mart Stores Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Wal-Mart's net profit increased by 15.9% to a record $10.3bn (#5.4bn) in 2004. International operating profit (from countries outside the US) was $2.99bn (#1.58bn), an increase of 26.1% compared with $2.37 (#1.25bn) for the previous year....

P&G acquire Gillette Company.(Procter & Gamble Co.)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... P&G has acquired The Gillette Company, which owns brands including the Mach3, Venus, Duracell, Oral-B and Braun. Valued at $57bn (#30bn), this is the largest acquisition in P&G's history. Historically P&G has been strong in women's personal...

Unilever profits fall.(Unilever Group)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Unilever's profits fell by 31% in 2004 to E1.9bn (#1.3bn) hit by declining sales for Slimfast, ice cream and frozen foods, and beverages across Europe. Unilever has replaced the dual chairman structure with one CEO, Patrick Cescau. It will...

Nintendo supports pan-European launch.(Nintendo Company Ltd.)
March 4, 2005... Nintendo is supporting the pan-European launch of its new handheld video system, Nintendo DS, with E35m (#24.1m) marketing spend. The campaign, called Touch Me! is Nintendo's biggest ever marketing campaign. The product, launching this month,...

Warburtons launches new loaf.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... UK baker, Warburtons, is launching a new loaf aiming to attract consumers wanting low glycemic index (GI) products. A #2m TV advertising campaign will promote the 'All in One' loaf in April; the bread will be marketed as a source of...

Coty Beauty signs deal.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Coty Beauty has signed a deal with David and Victoria Beckham to develop a Beckham Beauty House featuring fragrances and other products under each of the couple's names. A male fragrance will launch under David's name in autumn. This will...

Nestle Rowntree rebrands Aero in UK.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Nestle Rowntree is rebranding Aero in the UK, launching two new flavours and a new product, Aero's Bubbles. Marketing will cost #6m. The company has extended Polo in the UK launching Polo Liquid Orbs and Polo Plus Vivazol, mints containing...

McDonald's partners with MTV Networks.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... McDonald's has partnered with MTV Networks' Advance Warning programme; the show will reach nearly 400 million homes in 162 countries. The collaboration boosts McDonald's commitment to music and entertainment, building on its 'I'm lovin 'it'...

Speedo develops global brand communications campaign.(Speedo Europe uses DDB London's campaignfor global brand communications )(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Speedo is developing a global brand communications campaign to run in countries including the US, Japan, Australia and in Europe. The campaign by DDB London will deliver a consistent brand message in 176 countries. Since 2002 Speedo has...

Orange launches lawsuit against easyGroup.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Orange has launched a lawsuit against easyGroup over using the colour orange. Proceedings began in advance of easyMobile launching this month. EasyGroup founder, Stelios Haji-Ioannou says that it is easyGroup's right to use its own corporate...

Heineken investing in brand equity.(Heineken N.V.)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Heineken will invest an extra E100m (#68.9m) in 'high-impact, aggressive marketing' and innovation this year to reinforce brand equity, improve sales and address changing consumer needs. The announcement followed the release of Heineken's 2004...

Japan's adspend.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Japan's advertising expenditure has risen by 3% to Y5,857bn (#29.3bn); its first year-on-year increase for four years. The Athens Olympic Games and hot weather between July and September accounted for some of the rise. The broadband and...

Football club earnings.(and rankings)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... The world's top 20 football clubs should earn more than E3bn (#2bn) in 2005, according to Deloitte. With an income of E259m (#178.5m), Manchester United took the top position for the eighth year in a row; Real Madrid and AC Milan followed....

China's consumer economy.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... China has overtaken the US in consumption of four out of the five basic commodities: grain, meat, coal and steel. Oil is the only resource consumed more by the US. China's consumer economy has seen explosive growth, especially in...

Apple - Appointment.(Allison Johnson, Apple Computer Inc.)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Allison Johnson has been appointed VP worldwide marketing communications at Apple, reporting to CEO Steve Jobs. Johnson will work with Jobs on Apple's advertising, marketing communications and creative services. Johnson moves from HP, where...

Procter and Gamble Western Europe - Appointment.(appoints Paul Polman as group president)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Laurent Phillippe will succeed Paul Polman as group president, P&G Western Europe in June when Polman retires after 25 years with the company. Phillippe is currently president of P&G Greater China. He will be replaced by Daniela Riccardi,...

Cadbury Schweppes - Appointment.(Matt Shattock)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Cadbury Schweppes has appointed Matt Shattock as president EMEA, replacing Andrew Cosslett who has joined Inter-Continental hotels as CEO. Shattock joined Cadbury Schweppes in February 2003 as president, Americas Confectionery, where he oversaw...

L'Oreal - Appointment.(promotes Jean-Paul Agon to chief executive officer)
March 4, 2005... Jean-Paul Agon will be promoted to CEO of L'Oreal from April, succeeding Lindsay Owen-Jones who is currently chairman and CEO of L'Oreal. Agon joined L'Oreal in 1978. He was appointed director for the development of The Asia Zone in 1997 and...

New friends of the earth: the eco elite.(buys green products)
March 4, 2005... Katie Kaylor looks at the new breed of eco-friendly consumers who can afford the green lifestyle The palette for 'going green' has evolved. It has faded away from the in-your-face fluorescent green of the 'Swampy' days to a paler,...

BRAND STUNT: Absolut Vodka turns advertising on its head in China.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Absolut Vodka starts the Chinese New Year with a cracker of a local campaign. Ruth Mortimer reports Absolut Vodka is hoping to cause fireworks in China with a campaign to celebrate Chinese New Year. The initiative, which started in...

BRAND MOT: Unilever.(marketing)
March 4, 2005... Unilever, owner of Slimfast, Dove and Lipton tea brands, experienced a 31% fall in profit in 2004, to E1.9bn (#1.3bn) and a 0.4% increase in sales. The company admits that it lost its way with its five-year 'Path to Growth' strategy. It has...

FOCUS - JAPAN: When the beauty queen met the drinks giant.(Coca-Cola Co. partners and Shiseido Company Ltd.'s marketing)
March 4, 2005... The Coca-Cola/Shiseido tie-up is not an obvious union but both brands are forging ahead in the fast growing health and functional category. Ruth Mortimer reports Does beauty really come from within? Coca-Cola obviously thinks so. It...

OPINION: Profit-focused marketing.(financial performance improvement)
March 4, 2005... Professor Robert Shaw discusses the last bastion of financial performance improvement Marketing is in line for a makeover. Finance directors have squeezed dry the performance opportunities in the supply-chain, operations and elsewhere...

OPINION: Baffling branding in personal finance.(brand names)
March 4, 2005... Jeremy Bullmore is the non-executive director of WPP Increasingly, I worry about the word 'marketing' and how it has come to be used. Fifty years ago, Peter Drucker said, "Marketing is not a specialised activity. It is the whole business...

PROFILE: John Edwards on driving growth.(Biography)
March 4, 2005... Joanna Doonar meets John Edwards, Jaguar and Land Rover's director of overseas operations, who is the ultimate team player in a global automobile marketplace John Edwards is being photographed outside on a cold, windy day in central...

Q&A: Experience and Discovery in the auto industry.(John Edwards, Land Rover North America Inc.)(Interview)
March 4, 2005... John Edwards discusses the challenges facing the Land Rover and Jaguar brands and expounds the company's belief that experiencing the product drives brand success JD: What's the biggest challenge for Land Rover? JE: Land Rover's...

When BUPA got better.(BUPA International's brand image)
March 4, 2005... The BUPA brand appears to have a steady pulse, operating in 180 countries across the globe. Ruth Mortimer looks at how it plans to broaden its appeal into other areas of 'wellness' It's a brand that likes to concentrate on wellness. Private...

MOBILE MARKETING: Up close and personal.(marketing via cellular communications)
March 4, 2005... Mobile handsets are becoming increasingly powerful. Joanna Doonar studies the rise in mobile marketing and investigates the perceived barriers and its place alongside other communications "Marketing directors know they should be doing...

MOBILE MARKETING: Mobile opportunities for companies.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... SHORT TERM: * Sales promotion and direct response advertising. * Improving the customer service quality and ROI by enabling orders, reservations, confirmations, notifications, reminders, alerts, info search, usage guidance with SMS,...

CASE STUDIES - MOBILE MARKETING: Elizabeth Arden.(FFI Fragrances markets Britney Spears scent, Curious via cellur communication)
March 4, 2005... Market: US Agency: Goodby Silverstein & Partners Summary: Online pull campaign. Consumers were prompted via the web to submit their mobile phone numbers to receive a voice message from pop star Britney Spears. Elizabeth Arden...

CASE STUDIES - MOBILE MARKETING: McDonald's.(advertising through cellular communication)
March 4, 2005... Market: Austria, Germany, Italy Agency: 12snap, Germany Summary: On-pack pull campaign. On-pack messages prompted consumers to text for free Finding Nemo-branded mobile phone content. McDonald's invested in a mobile on-pack...

CASE STUDIES - MOBILE MARKETING: Sony PS2.(Playstation 2)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Market: Germany Agency: 12snap, Germany Summary: Push campaign. Viral marketing encouraging consumers to purchase a Playstation 2, via messages from Santa Claus. In December 2002 Sony aimed to push sales of Playstation 2 using a...

CASE STUDIES - BRAND (AGENCY): FCUK (enpocket and marvellous mobile).(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Aims Promote the brands radio station. Create a buzz round the brand. Increase traffic in retail stores. Activity UK and US customers texted the shortcode 8FCUK. They then answered questions to win prizes. They could also...

CASE STUDIES: BRAND (AGENCY): Novartis (Flytxt).(Novartis AG, Flytxt)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Aims Alert UK hayfever sufferers to better manage their allergy and medication. Support and promote the launch of Aller-eze nasal spray and eye drop products. Activity A daily pollen count text message was sent to sufferers...

CASE STUDIES - MOBILE MARKETING: Duplo and Hanuta.(Ferrero Deutschland)(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Market: Germany Agency: 12snap, Germany Summary: On-pack pull campaign. On-pack messages prompted consumers to text to receive free Shrek-2 branded mobile phone content. Ferrero's Duplo and Hanuta brands used a mobile on-pack...

MARKETING CAPABILITY: Measure for measure.(improving avertising effectiveness)
March 4, 2005... In an occasional series on improving marketing capability, Elen Lewis eavesdrops at The Marketing Excellence Forum to discover how to measure the effectiveness of training programmes Measuring the effectiveness of marketing campaigns is...

BRAND PAPERS: A sachet economy.(in Philippines goods are sold in small quantities)
March 4, 2005... Manufacturers in the US may be driven by the 'super-sized', bulk- obsessed consumer but in the Philippines, orders come bit by bit, says Tina Arceo-Dumlao In the Philippines, big profits come in small packages - from cigarettes sold by...

BRAND PAPERS: FMCG juggernaut.(Procter & Gamble Co.'s merger with Gillette Co. )
March 4, 2005... Is it a merger made in heaven? Russell Braterman outlines the reasons and benefits behind P&G's acquisition of the Gillette brand Perhaps we should have seen it coming - it was about time we had a good mergers and acquisitions story in...

BRAND PAPERS: In praise of the old.(discussion groups for brand managers)
March 4, 2005... Discussion groups may be out of fashion, but the methodology still has relevance and strengths for brand managers, argues Giles Lury Discussion groups have come in for a hard time recently. Liam Fox, Conservative Party chairman said at...

BRAND PAPERS: Hungarian cool.(brands' image in Europe)
March 4, 2005... Do Western brands still represent quality to Eastern Europeans or is growing nostalgia changing consumers' perceptions, asks Daniel Dumoulin 1 May 2004 saw the extension of the EU to 25 members. So what are the consequences of the...

BRAND PAPERS: Sound and vision.(music in advertising)
March 4, 2005... Steve Levy examines the growing importance of music in TV and cinema advertising. A strong theme tune creates a more compelling message A whole generation of style-conscious, 'cool' consumers has grown up watching music videos since the...

BRAND PAPERS: Time to get personal.(internet advertising)
March 4, 2005... Advertising is regarded as the fourth most concerning pollutant in the US. Greig McCallum says it's time for the DM industry to change its approach In the 1980s, citizens enjoyed the freedom to buy their home, choose their phone...

BRAND PAPERS: Promises, promises.(surveys)
March 4, 2005... The public's increasing interest in the company behind the brand means the horizons of a brand manager need to broaden, argues Stewart Lewis A powerful trend of recent years: the sharp rise of interest in the company behind the brand, has...

BOOKS: A brand reality check.(The Business of Brands)(Book Review)
March 4, 2005... Dorothy MacKenzie, director at Dragon says The Business of Brands has no fresh ideas but it brings clarity; and in some instances ammunition, for the marketer presenting the case for a brand strategy to the board The Business of Brands,...

FROM THE BOOKSHELF OF: Russell Davies, Nike.(Interface)(Brief Article)(Book Review)
March 4, 2005... Russell Davies, global planning director, Nike Interface by Neal Stephenson and Frederick George There's an old and reputable theory that science fiction authors invent the future; because whatever they come up with is built by...

MARKETING TO MEXICAN CONSUMERS.(research)
March 4, 2005... It is vital for marketers to understand the Mexican psyche. The psyche of every country is, to varying degrees, a product of its culture, history and geography, and helps explain particular attitudes and behaviours - why Greeks throw plates...

RESEARCH: GET IN TUNE WITH CONSUMERS.(surveys)
March 4, 2005... The music tastes of under-25s are a reflection of how they see the world and their place in it. There is a powerful link between brand choice and favourite music genres among this age group, according to research by music sponsorship...

RESEARCH: VITAMINS AND DIETARY SUPPLEMENTS.(industry forecasts)(Industry Overview)
March 4, 2005... Global sales of vitamins and dietary supplements (VDS) reached $38bn (#20.1bn) in 2003, increasing 9% since 2002, according to Euromonitor International. Rapid growth was partly a result of double-digit gains in value in Europe and...

Market focus: Breakfast cereals.(Brief Article)
March 4, 2005... Britain is Europe's top consumer of cold breakfast cereals. Eighty seven per cent of British adults (over 15 years old) eat cereal for breakfast compared to an average of less than half that figure in Germany, France and Spain. Britons...