Colgate-Palmolive Company 2008 Annual Report

Strengthening Colgate’s connection with consumers around the world and providing them with innovative, value-added Oral Care, Personal Care, Home Care and Pet Nutrition products is a cornerstone of Colgate’s strategy to drive global growth.

With more than half of purchase decisions now being made in the store, connecting with consumers while they shop is more important than ever. Colgate’s global shopper marketing initiative focuses on analyzing in-store behavior to convert shoppers into buyers. In Thailand, for example, Colgate captured the attention of mouthwash users at the store shelf by offering a trial size of Colgate Plax mouthwash and allowing shoppers to sample different variants right in the store. To attract non-users of mouthwash, who may not go down the mouthwash aisle, the trial size of Colgate Plax was offered on a movable display in other areas of the store. As a result, in just one year, the market share for Colgate Plax jumped from 1% to 14%, its share of the retail shelf increased from 2% to 20%, and the mouthwash category grew by 25%.

Colgate is also reaching consumers with integrated marketing communications that include a mix of traditional and new media, as well as creative promotional activities. In Latin America, for example, the launch of new Lady Speed Stick Depil Control deodorant, designed to provide a closer shave experience and a smoother skin feel, included television, magazine and outdoor advertising, a web site and extensive in-store display materials, all featuring heroine Barbara Blade, the brand’s well-known spokeswoman who leads a busy, adventurous lifestyle. Since the launch, market shares for Lady Speed Stick deodorant have grown nearly a full share point throughout the region.