Precision Toothbrush

2. PROBLEM STATEMENT
Suggesting a marketing strategy for the new
toothbrush: Colgate Precision

5. VALUE
• More economic
• Average price : $1.29
PROFESSIONAL
• Better quality
• Average Price : $1.59 to $2.09
SUPER-PREMIUM
• Improved designs
• Average Price : $2.29 to $2.89

6. CONSUMER ANALYSIS
• Three distinct consumer groups:
1) Therapeutic Brushers
2) Cosmetic Brushers
3) Uninvolved Brushers
• Each having different expectations from
toothbrushes

7. COMPETITOR ANALYSIS
• Oral-B and Johnson & Johnson trying to
capture more market in super-premium
range
• Competitors offering coupons, refunds etc.
to get an edge
• Sizeable revenues spent on advertisement

8. Prior to finding solutions to the problem, an extensive analysis on
the Company’s strength and weakness must be done. This helps
us to know the potential areas of improvement and the inner
strengths.
• Was a global leader in the
house hold and personal
care products
• Introduced 275 new
products world wide
• Held the number one
position in the U.S retail
toothbrush market with a
23.3% volume share. *Data w.r.t 1991 sales statistics
• Was unable to achieve proper
credibility from the dental
association on its products when
compared to its competitor ORAL-
B
• Introduction of new products may
result in cannibalization of other
products like colgate plus.

9. MAIN REASON %
Fits comfortably 63
Getting at hard
to
Reach places
52
Bristles of Right
softness
46
Bristles of right
firmness
36%
The table gives a broader view on the priority of choice of
Brand based on their effectiveness and functionality
Continued…

10. TAKING NOTES OF CHALLENGES FROM COMPETITORS
• Oral-B has heavy professional endorsement and is
known as “The dentist’s toothbrush” thus giving a
tough match in the competition.
• J&K’s Reach-has excellent innovations like-a beveled
handle to help consumer brush at 45 % angle.
The Brand has scheduled the Launch of ‘Reach
Between’ on September 1992.This has to be kept in
mind-after few months- Precision has to launched
• P&G ‘s Product claims to have the ability to reach
between the teeth up to 37% farther than leading
brands.
• Smithkline Beechman’s AquaFresh Flex had flexible
handles and allowed gentle brushing.The Brand has

11. OPPORTUNITIES
• Super-premium category can help increase
market share
• Younger generations becoming more
health conscious
• Can capture people who make unplanned
purchases by focused advertisement

12. THREATS
• Severe competition and incentives given
by competitors
• Aggressive expansion in different
segments by other brands
• Competitors launching new products with
added features

13. POSITIONING!
Precision wasdeveloped with the
objective of creating best brush
possible and as such becoming a top-
of-the –range product. Now how do
we position it?

14. We hadtwo choices!
NICHE POSITIONING
STRATEGY
MAINSTREAM
POSITIONING
STRATEGY

15. MAINSTREAM POSITIONING BENEFITS :
• Accessible to larger market size
• Simple and direct campaigning
• Possibility of greater returns

16. MAINSTREAM POSITIONING HARMS :
• Higher price can turn people off
• Uninvolved consumers can’t be included in target market
• Greater cannibalism of Colgate Plus and Colgate Classic’s market share

17. NICHE POSITIONING BENEFITS :
• A clear cut strategy can be used
• Can be later broadened to a mainstream position: can’t be done the other
way round
• Target group more open to paying higher prices
• Less erosion of existing products
• Entry into superior market: can compete with Oral-B

18. NICHE POSITIONING HARMS :
• Less contribution to profit in coming years
• Reach limited to a specific section

19. • Executives believed that Product
should stand alone and the
PRECISION brand name should be
emphasized.
• Stressing Precision asopposed to
Colgate would-limit the extent of
Cannibalizationof Colgate plus.
• It was estimated ,both under
mainstream and niche positioning
scenarios, the cannibalization figures
For Colgate plus would increase by
20% if the Colgate brand name was
stressed.

20. TESTREULTS WEREAS FOLLOWS
• Thetoothbrush’s feature of preventing
Gum disease motivated the greatest
purchase intent among test consumers.
• Additional consumerresearchrevealed
that 55% of test consumers found
Precision to bevery different from their
currenttoothbrushes.
• Theresearch also revealedthat the more
the consumers weretold about Precision
and howit worked, the greater the
enthusiasm for the product.

21. • However,the clichéd look of
the brush put the consumers in
dilemma.
• Also it was difficult to translatethe
message of greater plaque removal
with a broad consumer appeal,
since few consumers
acknowledged that they might
have gum disease.

23. POSITIONING:
• Initially Positioning Precision as NicheToothbrushand
later broadening to mainstream positioning would help
the product gain sufficient recognition by avoiding
cannibalization and would ensureadditional capacity once
it enters the mainstream.
• Broadening into themainstream positioning would
enhancegreaterproportion of sales which would now also
occur through mass merchandisers and club stores apart
from the food and drug stores.
BRANDING:
• “Precision By Colgate "would be moreprominent as it
would reducecannibalization of Colgate Plus-which is the
bread andbutter of CP’s toothbrush line and secure its
marketposition.
• Placing ThePrecision at the center of the Brushes inthe
storage shelves would ensureeasy acceptance due to the
prevalence of the Brand at the same time-give it a unique
stand.
RECOMMENDATIONS:

24. FUTURE SCOPE
• Can expand the toothbrush into
mainstream market later
• Can replace Oral-B as the leading
brand in Super-Premium range
• Can expand into other oral care
products for therapeutic consumers

25. COMMUNICATION STRATEGY:
.
Investinga littlemore on
Advertising and Promotion
would notdo much harm as it
shallgive a head start to this
potentialproduct
There must be several
Consumer promotions to back
the launchfor the mainstream
positioning asthis w attract alot
more potential buyers.

26. Since sampling would be criticalto Precision’s success, it
would be better to use Dentists to sample consumers
since professional endorsements were more credible.

27. Spending 75%of all advertising dollors of CP’s category
spending for Precision was essentialbecause it ensured
Precision wasable to Reach its Potential consumers through
extensive advertising.
Thiswould not be a threat for CP’s Colgate plus asit has its
market share secured by the Colgate’s Brand name,which is
not the Case with Precision.

29. DISCLAMER:
Created by Chaitanya Shinde, VNIT, Nagpur,
during a marketing internship under Prof.
Sameer Mathur, IIM Lucknow.