Marketing: science or art?

Bank data will gives you up to date and fresh database. You will get phone number or whatsapp or telegram data here.
Post Reply
ayshakhatun663
Posts: 94
Joined: Mon Dec 09, 2024 4:26 am

Marketing: science or art?

Post by ayshakhatun663 »

Professor of the Trade Marketing course at the Universidad del Pacífico. General Manager of Sudamericana de Fibras

This is a question we have been asking ourselves for years… As a scientist, I have found in marketing the “perfect balance” between science and bc data vietnam art. Over the last few years, as a general manager, I have noticed a trend where art is winning over science – despite all the information and data we have available. On this occasion, I will share my vision on this “perfect balance” that does not pretend to be exact or precise, but that has worked for me for more than 20 years in the three pillars of marketing:

1. WHO : “ More science than art”

Understanding our “3Cs” in depth: Consumer, Buyer and Channel. To visualize this better, I will use my first marketing project as an example: the launch of Always sanitary pads in Peru, in the early nineties.

Consumer : Statistics showed that + of women were loyal to a feminine protection brand if it worked (kept them cleaner and longer) and if it connected on an intimate (emotional) level. Our primary target was women aged 25-35, who represented ~ of consumption.
Buyer : The same consumer in more than 90% of the cases.
Channel (primary) : Wineries, as they represented +80of the market at that time.
Science (statistics) helped us define WHO, while Art helped us find the insights that allowed us to develop the category, because, at that time, seven out of ten towel changes were with a “cloth rag” ( Believe it or not!

Image

2. WHAT : “ Balance between science and art”

Product : The product itself requires a lot of science to achieve a differential benefit (with technical support), while the packaging requires more art, as it must communicate the relevant information in ONE visual impact. The Always brand offered superior protection (cleaner and drier than the competition) and the packaging solved the confusion in the category with only three versions: 'Normal', 'Wings' and 'Night'.
Brand strategy : The promise must be supported by science, but the selling line must bring the benefit to life in a relevant and memorable way – which is more of an art. At Always it was: “ cleaner, drier… more protected!” It may not sound so memorable now, but at the time it was a very direct and disruptive message, since in those days women were “sick” during their period and stains were “accidents”. Always was the first brand to speak clearly and directly.
Financial : In marketing, art (which is subjective) can fail, but science NEVER! Remember that marketing was born with the objective of satisfying consumer needs, but also of generating profitability; therefore, numbers can never fail us. At P&G we changed the word “expenses” in marketing to “investments”, since every dollar had a return. When I changed from Finance to Marketing, I discovered that trade marketing offers better and faster returns, returning up to $10 for every dollar invested in the POS.
3. HOW : “ More art than science”

Advertising : Definitely more art than science, especially considering that we get ~3,000 advertising messages a day today. Example: The Always commercial showed a woman in a visual plane resembling an intimate conversation between best friends, and used very direct language for the time.
Price : The secret here is to find the price point that maximizes the value equation and…it is more science than art. Always was launched at S/. 2.00 per package (10 towels); i.e. , same price, but it lasted twice as long.
Point of sale : Purchasing process.
See : Balancing PRESENCE (science) with RELEVANCE (art). Stores used to “hide” sanitary pads at the top back of their shelves, but Always managed to get into the “hot spot” (next to the store owner) with a “demo kit” that challenged the buyer to do a side-by-side demo vs. any pad on the market.
Scan : Make the category LOGICAL (science) and EASY TO SHOP (art). Always organized the towels by flow type (logic) and simplified the names, making it easy to shop.
Select : Combine PRICE (science) with PROMOTION (art), where Always offered the winery more margin than any competing product.
In conclusion: Marketing is a “delicate” balance between science and art, which produces better results for those who master it. The outcome of the example is that Always achieved market leadership (+30% share ) in just 10 months (P&G record).

All statistics (approximate for this article) were generated between June 1994 and September 1995 through qualitative-quantitative studies conducted by Mayéutica Research and Market Studies for Procter & Gamble, which included in-depth interviews, focus groups, store panels , as well as studies of habits and practices in Feminine Protection.
Post Reply