Marketing mix of Pepsodent – The 4 P’s of Pepsodent

Pepsodent is an acknowledged brand name that manufactures toothpaste and tooth brush. In the year 1915, Chicago’s Pepsodent Company introduced this toothpaste in the American market. It is rated as one of the top leaders in the oral hygiene market. In India the company, “Unilever” owns the brand and launched it in the year 1993, to cater to the needs of the consumers. Under the personal care category, Pepsodent offers various solutions for oral care that are on the specific needs of the consumers.  Pepsodent faces stiff competition from companies like

• Colgate
• Oral B
• Anchor
• Close-up

Products in the Marketing mix of Pepsodent

Pepsodent is an established brand that is endorsed by the global dental association. It guarantees customer satisfaction as it fights the germs in and around the teeth. The toothpaste is also an apt solution for sensitive teeth and the gums that are bleeding. Pepsodent is supposed to make our gums healthy, the teeth strong, provide protection against cavities and make the breath fresh. The toothpaste has a digestive agent called pepsin that helps in the breaking and digesting of food deposited on the teeth.

To tackle the problem of diverse toothpaste brands the company has kept all its products innovative and unique. The brand has taken steps so that the consumers can easily distinguish their products from those of their competitors. It has positioned its merchandise as a fighter of germs more focused on the process of fighting than on the result.

The pepsodent variants available in the market are as follows-

• Pepsodent Whitening that fights the yellowness of teeth and makes them sparkling white.
• Pepsodent Germicheck to fight the existing germs
• Pepsodent 2 in 1that provides double care
• Pepsodent Gum Care for healthy gums
• Pepsodent Center Fresh to maintain fresh breath
• Pepsodent Kids in three different variants called Barbie that is pink in color, Tom & Jerry that is orange in color and Superman that is blue in color.
• Pepsodent Sensitive for tackling the sensitivity of the teeth

In order to meet the needs of oral hygiene the company has also decided to add toothbrushes to its product kitty.

Place in the Marketing mix of Pepsodent

In order to create a market for its products Pepsodent has decided to create and maintain a professional approach. The company has made its distribution channel very organized so that products can be easily available to the customers. The product is producedat the manufacturing plants of the company and from there they are dispatched to the wholesaler. The next step is to send the products to the retailers who in turn supply the items to the various showrooms and outlets.  The consumers can easily buy these products because of their easy accessibility in every nook and corner. As its distribution network is immense, the products are available in both rural market and semi urban market.

Pepsodent is committed to gain better understanding of the market and hence they are always in the lookout for improving any hiccups in the distribution channels. They have the backing of their parent company Unilever and hence it is possible to send the products easily in every part of the country. They have large warehouses for storing and safekeeping of their goods. Products from these warehouses are sent to the retail outlets as per demand. The items are available in nearly 80% of the retail outlets across India because of the timely delivery.

Price in the Marketing mix of Pepsodent

Pepsodent had earlier mainly targeted the urban households who do not hesitate to dole out the extra money for qualitative products. However, it has now penetrated the rural market with less costing packages that is easy to afford. The brand has adopted a method of psychological pricing policy in order to capture the oral care market.

In order to keep the stiff competition at bay they have decided to keep their pricing policy reasonable. They have a research team that collects data about the market demand and about the pricing strategies of their adversaries. This helps them to analyze and set up their own pricing strategies. They also have a competitive strategy where they determine their selling price after taking into consideration the various cost factors and the level of profit the company is determined to earn.

In Pepsodent’s case, the company has decided on selling more products in order to increase the volume of sales. Hence, the reasonable pricing will allow the buyers to buy the products easily. This will ultimately lead to larger revenues.

Promotions in the Marketing mix of Pepsodent

Pepsodent has taken the help of social and digital media to promote its advertising campaign at its maximum capacity. There promotional strategy has proved effective as the brand has gained the trust of the consumers and the people have started identifying Pepsodent with quality.

 It is necessary to keep a competitive approach, as there are manytypes of toothpaste in the market who are ready to take advantage of any sloppiness. In order to maintain the freshness of the campaigns they have been continuously experimenting with their marketing strategies. The main target audience is the female who is the decision maker in an Indian household and the adult male who is the breadwinner.

In2002, the pepsodent packs included an indicator that could tell the consumer the level of efficiency of the toothpaste. Some of their campaigns have been very educative emphasizing on the need to brush their teeth at night. The company has also launched small packages for penetration in the rural area markets and even has tie-ups with schools and hotel chains to promote and sell their products. It has also introduced free packs for ten-day trials. In some cases, schemes were launched where the 200 gm. pack had a free 50 gm. pack at the same price.

In other instances, free gifts like dummy tron bikes were distributed with Pepsodent pastes. At one time Pepsodent toothbrush was distributed with toothpastes.  In order to create trendy ads the company released some very catchy taglines and some  of its famous tag lines are “My toothpaste fights 10”, “Gets your teeth their whitest”, “Protection outside freshness inside” and “DSS nahi to bas nahi”. Pepsodent has many famous personalities as its brand ambassador. Actor Shahrukh Khan has been closely associated with their ad campaigns.

Also read – Marketing mix of Colgate | Marketing mix of Dabur | Top FMCG rivals