Advertising Age I September 3, 2007 I 13
The 'Hairapy
can and should be leveraged and
implemented in some fashion
must be detennined by the product
and/or brand marketer, in many
cases along with the retailer.
Choices are often dependent on a
variety of factors including season,
geographical location, timeliness,
pop ular topics, sports events,
healthcare issues and dlC1ri ty
events.
Equally important is what is
happening in other arenas readting
the shopper such as TV, print,
online and other media campaigns,
and packaging. Shopper ROJ efforts
should be consistent with these
activities so that all of the con-
sumers' expectations are taken into
account and met at the shelf.
Both branding and the shopping
experience today are increasingly
controlled by retailers, who do much
more than simply distribute goods
and services. Retailers are initiators
of value-added activity that can cre-
ate their own brands ru1d encourage
frequent return visits, as well as
inform and educate shoppers.
Beyond traditional supertnar-
kets and retailers, specialized retail-
ers slich as banks, car d.ealers, fast-
food restau rants and insurance
agencies also need to understand
the mindset of their customers and
assess their shopper ROJ. The
most recent retail trends/ such as
pop- up stores and experience
stores, indicate retailers are seeking
to learn about what conswners
want and need so they can find bet-
ter ways to reach them (as well as
affect and leverage one or more of
the six senses).
Shoppers want d,e retailer to
better understand who they are and
what they need. It's not about sell-
ing just a product, but about prod-
ucts that include all com ponents of
the value eq uation-price, quality,
time and convenience- to better fit
the shoppers' hfestyle.
The bottom line is this: How a
brand, company and retailer trigger
purchases at the shelf level can be a
powerful indicator of whed,er they
are effectively motivating shop-
pers---<md creating a positive shop-
per ROl.
JIM LUCAS."
is execVp-{jirector
of the Shopper
Marketing Division
at DraftFCB.
Chicago. He is a20·
year industry veter-
an, the founder 01
the science of Retail Ecology and an expert
on consumer action in retail environments.
HOWARD KLEIN."
is senior V?-cus-
tamer specific mar-
keting at DraflFCB.
Chicago! where he
develops and
directs programs
that maximize in-
store marketing effectiveness [or clients
such as Brown-Forman and Kellogg Co.
TAKE BACK CONTROL OF THE PURCHASE
HOOK UP: See brand value rise by creating strong relationships with consumers and retailers
By RICK ROTH
THE RETAIl TRADE seems to enjoy
more control over the fate of a
brand with eacl, passing day. Years
ago, my clients knew exactly what
they wanted from in-store,
demanded a certain level of per-
fo rmance and got it. Today, there is
one brand major retailers such as
Wal-Mart, Costco, Best Buy, Target
and Sa£eway care most
about-their own.
Marketers are squeezed by an
empowered consumer, a cont.rol-
ling retail channel, and, on top of it
all, a lack of predictability in the
impact media truly delivers. No
wonder they a re increasingly
focused on return on investment
and are zeroing in on where they
can best measure results: at the
point of sale.
There is hope for those who
focus on influencing behavior-
t hat's right, how people act vs. what
they think-as consumers travel
along d,at path to plU'chase, known
as The Las t Mile. And d,ere are
s U'ong odds for success if you
understand the interplay between
three key relationships:
1. BETWEEN YOUR BRAND
AND YOUR CONSUMER
How do your potential buyers
move through their day-to-day
lives? Where does your brand--<J r
ymu competition--corne into con-
tact with them? W here cou ld it?
Marketers m ust identify the most
powerful moments to intervene.
"Get Hairapy " launched
Urulever's Sunsilk brand an d capi-
talized on insights around its key
prospect. The 20-something female
target (nicknamed "Katie") was
cynical about ma rketing, but was
looking for more than just func-
tional help with her hai.r. Katie
..
.'
.~
There are strong
odds for success
if you understand
the interplay
between three
key relationships.
sough t help with her life dramas-
frie nds, boyfriend, job, datin g,
money. Could a shampoo offer her
that?
The key to one of Unilever's
biggest and m ost successful
lalmches ever in the hair-care cate-
gory was understanding Katie, how
she moved through her day, and
where one could make meaningful
connections. The "Hairapy Guys"
allowed Sunsilk to enter her space,
in her language, and on her terms.
The marketing helped her not only
lallgh away her hair problems and
life dramas with honest opinions
and style tipS1 but it communicated
with her at points of contact which
proved real understanding: in ba rs
and restaurants, when she was
surfing the web, walJcing on the
street, and at point of sale.
The brand understood Katie's
attitudes, perceptions and real life.
It created the kind of dialogue
through which special relationships
are made.
2. BETWEEN YOUR BRAND AND
YOUR KEY RETAtLCUSTOMERS
Retailers hold tremendous leverage
in the relationships shoppers have
with your bra nd. CMOs must
investigate the relative strengths of
each key retailer as well as their
individual brand propositions and
thei.r category and market chal-
lenges. CMOs must also build mar-
keting plans in such a way that
considers the needs of their retail
brand, and, ultimately; they must
create programs that contJibute to
retailers' and their own businesses.
Some retailers are extremely
sophistica ted and know what
makes their shoppers tick. O thers
lack the diSCiplin e or capability to
build d,e kind of experiences that
drive shopper loyalty. So it's no
surprise that marketers who build
their business as well as that of
retailers will enjoy tITle advantage
and partnership with the consumer.
There are endless examples of
marketers who have created shared
programs with their retail cus-
tomers so the overall relationship
benefits. When Levi's n eated a new
brand exclus ively for Wal-Mart,
the retailer was able to leverage the
credibility of the Levi's name, and
Wal-Mart provided Levi's with an
unmatched volume opportunity as
a means to jump-start their new
brand.
That was a win-win program.
And how much mutual benefit
will come from the exclusive rela-
tionship between Apple and AT&T
wid, the recent launch of iPhone?
AT&T will benefit from a rapid
infusion of ultra modernity-not
to mention mass usage on its net-
work. IPhone gets a powerful,
world-class network with a sprawl-
ing chain of retail outlets. This
arrangement should be so positive
that, in the end, it may be di.fficu.lt
to answer who is the marketer and
who is the customer.
3. BETWEEN SHOPPER
AND RETAfLER
I have lost track of how many con-
sultancies and industry gtoups mon-
itor the percentage of people who
make a purchase decision at the
point of sale. I believe it was
McKinsey & Company who noted
Guys' are here
to help you
The affable feIIas are Sunsilk's
vehicle for entering the space
of target consumer "Katie." in
her language and on her terms.
Sunsilk marketing helps Katie
laugh away her hair problems
as well as her life dramas, com-
municating with her at points of
contact: in bars, on the web, at
point-of-sale.
that approximately 70% of purchase
decisions are made at the shelf-
regardless of w hat the consumer was
originally intending to buy.
An in-store study we did for one
of the largest global cereal mar-
keters investigated how shoppers
relate to a product display. It discov-
ered 37% of consumers walked by
displays without even looking at
cl,em; 32% looked, but did not
bother to stop; 4% stopped, but did
not buy; 27% stopped, shopped and
bought in the al tegory
The study pinpoints seven ctiti-
cal moments-from category visi-
bility to checkout-that lead a shop-
per to purchase. Barriers are at each
step and involve everything from
planogram and store design to prod-
uct placement, packaging, signage,
pricing and shopper demographics.
There are ways to understand
how purchase decisions vary by
category, geography, and gender.
And once you understand this, you
can build media-spend models that
are based on behavior as opposed to
traditional approaches, which
dump money into broadcast.
Marketers today must find
ways to build unique relationships
with cooSluners and with the retail
trade. If these relationships are
founded on real understanding and
commitment, they will see brand
val ue rise.
RICK ROTH."
Rick Roth is global
CEO of DqilV'{Actio~
the worldwide brand
activation arm of
the DqilV'{ Group. He
previously served as
president of Ogllvy
los Ange~~ where he helped attract new
clients such as BP and Miller Brewing.