Colgate Marketing Mix

The Colgate marketing mix framework helps to create effective marketing strategies for the company in such a way that the brand Colgate has become a trusted brand name in most parts of the world.

The brand capitalizes on the Colgate marketing strategy like the product strategy, place strategy, pricing strategy and promotional strategy to gain a good chunk of market share in the personal care especially oral hygiene care segment.

Introduction of Colgate

# Colgate-Palmolive

• Origin Country: United States of America
• Founders: William Colgate (Colgate), Burdett J Johnson (Palmolive) and William J Peet and Robert Peet (Peet Brothers)
• Founded: 1806
• Colgate’s Toothpaste Introduced: 1873
• Headquarters: New York, USA
• Employees in 2023: 33,800
• Annual Revenue in 2023: 17.741 billion USD
• Net Income in 2023: 1.928 billion USD
• Market Cap in 2023: 64.70 billion USD
• Brand Value in 2023: 18.198 billion USD
• Number of Consumers of Colgate Toothpaste in 2023: 139.37 million

The American brand Colgate-Palmolive is a multinational company that deals in the distribution and production of health care, household, personal care and veterinary products like pet nutrition. The oral care products segment is the largest income source of the company with 45% global market share, 47% global net sales and 67.7% global market penetration.

The world-renowned oral care brand Colgate with more than 200 years of business experience and innumerable products and services is the “Most Trusted Brand” in the world. In the initial years, the company sold soap and later toothpaste in glass jars. Colgate toothpaste in tubes was introduced in 1896 and the rest they say is history.

Colgate-Palmolive is the manufacturer and distributor of toothpowder, mouthwashes, toothbrushes and toothpaste under the popular brand name Colgate. The Colgate brand from Colgate-Palmolive is named one of the prominent brand names with the highest growth rate in the world.

Is Colgate an Indian company?

No Colgate is not an Indian company but an American brand. It has blended in the Indian market effortlessly with help of its oral hygiene product lines that appeal to the Indian culture and innovative schemes that have helped to create a loyal customer base.

Colgate launched the first toothpaste products and the first toothbrush in India in 1937 and 1983 respectively and over the years has become a market leader in the oral health segment.

Colgate has been successful in identifying the needs and preferences of Indian consumers successfully in the rural market with help of lower-range oral care products and in the urban market with a slightly higher range of prices. The ayurvedic and natural oral health product lines like the Colgate Vedshakti have been a hit with the masses.

The Colgate-Palmolive Company has adopted innovation, improvement, social responsibility, sustainability, inclusion and diversity strategies to make people’s life healthy and this is what has contributed to its success and growth in India. It has been ranked as the #1 Most Trusted Oral Care Brand in India from 2011 – 2019 by The Economic Times – Brand Equity by a survey conducted by Nielsen.

Colgate Marketing Strategy & Marketing Mix (4Ps)

The marketing mix of Colgate and its business strategies have laid down the groundwork for creating a strong loyal customer base and becoming the market leader in the personal care target market. It is one of the most trusted brands recommended by the Dental Association in the oral hygiene care category.

The Colgate company sell toothpaste and other oral care products like mouthwash and toothbrush. The Colgate marketing strategy makes sure that Colgate serves the interest of the masses in urban, semi-urban and rural parts and that the consumers receive additional benefits so that the brand can keep on flourishing and growing in international markets and achieve desired set targets.

Product Strategy: Marketing Mix of Colgate

The product strategy in the marketing mix of Colgate is focused on the Colgate product line and continuous product innovation. The leading oral care brand offers several types of toothpaste and toothbrush to meet the demands of individual consumers.

The Colgate marketing strategy knows the importance of kids in a household and has introduced special products for kids like the kid’s toothbrush with soft bristles that can reach every corner of the mouth without harming the soft skin of the kids.

The target audience of the personal care brand is in semi-urban, rural and urban parts hence Colgate serves its products in different package sizes and price ranges. Small sizes and affordable prices are a hit in the rural parts of a country, especially in developing countries like India where consumers prefer lower rates. Slightly higher range products are a hit amongst the urban crowd who prefers innovative products even if the cost is a bit high.

Product in the Colgate Marketing Strategy

The Colgate marketing strategy for oral hygiene products and other Colgate products is quite simple as it believes in introducing new products at regular intervals. Introduced in 1873 by William Colgate, the co-founder of the Colgate-Palmolive Company, the brand focuses on customer satisfaction through quality Colgate products.

The Colgate products in the oral hygiene products segment include dental floss, tooth powder, mouthwashes, toothbrushes and toothpaste. Colgate’s oral care products are manufactured by its parent company

Colgate-Palmolive, the parent company of Colgate Company manufacture oral care products. It also produces and distributes household, sports and leisure time equipment, industrial supplies, pet nutrition health care, food and personal care products.

Colgate sells toothpaste in 13 variants and that too in different sizes. An important Colgate product for semi-urban areas is Colgate’s toothpowder.

The toothpaste product line includes whitening toothpaste, fluoride toothpaste, tartar control, plaque prevention, gel toothpaste, specifically flavoured toothpaste and toothpaste with natural ingredients. The extra whitening toothpaste from oral health brand Colgate removes food stains, stops tooth decay, fights bad breath and maintains fresh breath.

In 2018, Colgate launched Colgate Smart Electric Toothbrush and in 2020 a toothpaste with hemp seed oil. The next-generation toothpaste Colgate Total contains fluoride to fight plaque buildup. The Colgate toothbrush for kids has extra soft bristles that with help of Colgate’s toothpaste remove food stains and fight bad breath.

Some of the renowned products from the brand are –

• MAX FRESH TOOTHPASTE
• ACTIVE SALT
• COLGATE ZIG ZAG ANTIBACTERIAL CHARCOAL
• COLGATE KEEP TOOTHBRUSH
• COLGATE SENSITIVE

Place in the Colgate Marketing Strategy

Colgate-Palmolive has a product presence in 200 countries all over the world. The company operates with help of several subsidiary organizations spread in 200+ countries but is listed in only three countries Pakistan, India and the United States.

Colgate-Palmolive in the United States operates with help of 60 properties that work as manufacturing and warehousing facilities out of which 14 are fully owned and overseas with nearly 280 properties out of which 80 are fully owned. Important overseas facilities used by the home care and personal care segment are in India, Italy, Australia, China, Brazil and South Africa.

Place and Distribution Strategy: Marketing Mix of Colgate

The place and distribution strategy in the marketing mix of Colgate focuses on the typical distribution channel that includes manufacturer >> wholesaler >> retailer >> end customers. The manufacturers dispatch the products to the wholesalers who in turn sell the products to the retailers who with help of retail outlets sell the products to the end customers.

The distribution channel of the retailers in the distribution strategy of Colgate-Palmolive includes

Retail Stores

The Colgate marketing strategy focuses on selling the finished goods to the customers through the retail stores. These include supermarkets, co-operative stores, departmental stores, convenience stores, grocery stores, corner shops, pop-and-mom stores and numerous medical stores.

Online Stores

The distribution marketing strategies also focus on selling the products with help of the company website, other online shopping portals and the online websites of numerous medical stores.

Price Strategy in Marketing Mix of Colgate

The pricing strategy in the marketing mix of Colgate is dependent on its products and market segmentation. The oral and personal care brand makes sure that consumers receive added benefits besides the full value of their money.

The business strategies of the brand have made sure that different prices are adopted for the different product offerings.

Price in the Colgate Marketing Strategy

The price in the marketing strategies of the brand includes the following conclusion

Colgate Competitive Pricing Policy

The company faces stiff competition in the market in almost all the product categories and hence has adopted a competitive pricing policy to tackle the rival brands. Most of the product prices are quite similar to those of the competitors so the consumers cannot differentiate based on price.

Affordable Pricing Strategy

Colgate’s marketing strategies focus on affordable pricing so that it can sell to the masses far and wide. The products are also available in different sizes with different prices so that everyone can afford them easily.

Bundle Pricing Policy

The brand has adopted a bundle pricing policy where it clubs products and sells them to customers at reasonable rates.

Promotional Marketing Strategies in the Marketing Strategy of Colgate

Colgate’s promotional mix has adopted aggressive marketing strategies to promote its products in the market, increase its consumer base and boost the brand image. The company takes the help of the following advertising strategies to increase its visibility amongst customers.

Traditional Media

Colgate brand uses traditional media like electronic and print media for the digital marketing of its products. The ad campaigns are informative and attractive so that the customers can relate to them. These are shown in print media via newspapers, magazines and other media outlets like television, radio, hoardings and billboards etc. The company also uses attractive packing strategies to lure in more customers especially for kids’ products so that the children find them attractive.

Social Media Sites

The brand realizes the importance of social media sites and uses Facebook, YouTube and Twitter etc. to promote its brand image and products. Various product-related information along with ad campaigns are posted on the company website to keep the customers in the loop.

Collaboration with Influencers and Celebrities

The brand has always used celebrities and influencers like Ranveer Singh and Sloan Stephens to promote its brand amongst the target audiences.

Location-Based Targeting

As part of its promotional marketing strategies, the brand has used location-based targeting tactics. It taps different locations and creates campaigns that can garner lead generation and positive responses. One of the primary examples was using Kumbh Mela in India as their location target and sensing promotional messages via mobile phones and radio.

Colgate Digital Strategy – Notable Digital Marketing Campaigns

Smile Karo Aur Shuru Ho Jao

The ad campaign “Smile Karo Aur Shuru Ho Jao” conceptualized by RedFuse and directed by Bollywood director Vikramaditya Motwane has been a hit amongst the masses as it depicts the story of an elderly person finding happiness during and after the tough times of the pandemic.

The Smile Show

“The Smile Show” was created with help of influencers Andrea Brooks and Blair Fowler and shown on YouTube with fun content that appealed to everyone. Every video had a different product and the show led to an increase of 13% in brand awareness and a 10% increase in purchase consideration.

Key Takeaways in Colgate Marketing Strategy and Marketing Mix

The key takeaways from the Colgate marketing mix and marketing strategy are-

• Focusing on product innovation
• Creating consumer-friendly products
• Maintaining affordable pricing
• Continuing with the advertising and marketing strategies

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