Marketing Mix of Colgate: Company Overview & 4Ps Explained

About Colgate

Colgate is an oral hygiene care company that is now a universal product and is sold across countries. The company was founded by William Colgate and its headquarters is situated in New York, USA.

During the early stages, it used to sell soaps only, since 1873, it began to sell toothpaste in jars, and tubes were introduced later. The company gained a lot of popularity with the slogan “It Cleans Your Breath While It Cleans Your Teeth”. According to research in 2015, Kantar Worldpanel claimed that Colgate is the only brand in the world that is purchased by more than 50% of all households. They cover 67.7% of the global market penetration and 45% market share.

Specifically in India, Colgate is one of the leading oral hygiene products. It has an enriched portfolio of different products like Colgate® Sensitive Prevent & Repair™ Toothpaste, Colgate® Kids My First® Fluoride-free Toothpaste, and many more.

What’s new with this brand

• Colgate-Palmolive Webcasts Presentation at the Barclays 2023 Global Consumer Staples Conference.
  Colgate-Palmolive Chairman, President, and CEO, Noel Wallace, presented on Wednesday, September 6, 2023, at 7:30 a.m. ET at the Barclays 2023 Global Consumer Staples Conference.

• Andhra Pradesh Government and Colgate-Palmolive join hands for Oral Health Awareness with Project Dr YSR Chirunavvu.
  This began on the 1st of September at a school in the Nellore district, where Colgate-Palmolive India worked with the state government to educate children on oral health and build awareness on saying ‘No’ to tobacco.
• Announcement of results for the quarter ended 30th June 2023, double-digit net sales record @ 12.8%.
  Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited today reported Net Sales growth of 10.8% over the same quarter of the previous year aggregating to Rs. 1314.7 crore for the quarter ended June 30, 2023. Reported Net profit after tax for the quarter was Rs. 273.7 crore, a growth of 30.5% as against the Net Profit of Rs. 209.7 crore for the same quarter of the previous year.

Marketing Mix of Colgate

The term “Marketing Mix” indicates the collection of marketing techniques that are used by a company to achieve its marketing objective in a target market. It is a foundation model of a business that normally focuses on the 4Ps, which are product, pricing, place, and promotion.

Thus, it helps a business to cover its marketing and business strategies. Let’s understand the marketing mix of Colgate.

1. Product Strategy of Colgate

Colgate is an oral hygiene brand that serves its customers globally. The brand is famous for mouthwash, toothpaste, and tooth powder. Colgate has 13 variants in the toothpaste segment and a special segment dedicated for children’s toothbrushes.

The best part about its product mix is its availability of different sizes. Colgate sells its toothpaste in sizes ranging from 20 gms to 300 gms, making it easy for consumers to buy the product as per their demand and convenience.

Below is the list of all the products and categories handled by Colgate:

(a)Toothpaste

(b) Toothbrushes

© Mouthwash

(d) Floss

(e) Professional oral care products

(f) Personal care products

(g) Home care products

(h) Pet nutrition products

2. Price Strategy of Colgate

To have a perfect marketing mix of Colgate, the brand follows the discrimination of price a lot. This discrimination refers to the variety of prices for different products. They have different prices for different segments.

As oral hygiene is part of an oligopoly market, there are a small number of sellers in this market, but the number of purchasers is huge. In India, Colgate has several competitors hence it uses competitive pricing also for the same kind of segments. It uses the psychology of consumers by displaying that its products last long and have significant long-lasting effects. The products are available in various packs and combination offers which attract customers and enable them to pay extra.

3. Place and Distribution Strategy of Colgate

Colgate has been doing business for more than 150 years and it operates its activities in more than 200 countries. To control this perfectly it has amassed a massive distribution network. Their placements depend on their extensive distribution network. The Colgate company manufactures its oral hygiene products massively and distributes them to retailers across the world.

The company controls the marketing campaigns as well as the manufacturing of products. After completing the manufacturing, these products are packaged for shipment. Retailers collect their products from their dedicated shipments. Retailers finally sell these products to the audiences or customers of the market.

As Colgate has become one of the most selling products in India, it can be found in almost every retail shop and supermarket. Colgate products are sold at 2 million stores in India, to learn in detail read this. Their products are also distributed in many hotels and motels.

4. Promotion Strategy of Colgate

The advertising campaigns of Colgate are at their best. Colgate’s promotion strategy focuses on advertisements through media channels, such as television, online commercials, sponsorship, social media sites, social media influencers, and so on.

The company airs commercial ads on television worldwide in different national languages. In 2004, Colgate launched an oral health awareness campaign in India named – ‘Oral Health Month’. This campaign included free in-clinic dental check-ups. It also launched a campaign named “Spreading a million smiles with a mobile” to boost awareness throughout the nation. And this still occurs around every year. They also introduced a TVC campaign named #SmileKaroAurShuruHoJao and the purpose is to spread smiles all over India.

All its marketing and promotional activities are engaging to the customer which makes a connection with them and leads to a loyal customer base. It also uses various celebrities and doctors in its advertisements which makes those ads relatable for consumers.

How does this brand use digital marketing in its strategy?

1. Social Media Presence: Colgate had established a strong presence on major social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube. They used these platforms to share informative content, engage with customers, and run advertising campaigns. Social media allowed them to connect with a global audience and create brand loyalty.
2. Content Marketing: Colgate created and shared valuable content related to oral health and hygiene. This content included articles, videos, and infographics that educated consumers about the importance of dental care. This not only positioned Colgate as an authority in oral health but also promoted its products indirectly.
3. Influencer Marketing: Colgate collaborated with influencers and dental professionals to promote their products. Dentists and oral health experts often endorsed Colgate products, helping to build trust among consumers.
4. Email Marketing: Colgate employed email marketing campaigns to reach out to customers with personalized product recommendations, promotions, and educational content. They used data analytics to segment their email lists and tailor their messages.
5. Search Engine Optimization (SEO): Colgate optimized its website and online content to rank well in search engine results. This helped them attract organic traffic from people searching for dental care information and products.

Marketing Mix of Colgate: Use of Traditional Media

The brand employs traditional media into its marketing mix to promote its products. Multiple channels like print media, TV commercials, radio ads, Out-Of-home advertising, etc lets the brand draft compelling and informative ad messages that attract the audience to buy Colgate.

Not just this, Colgate aims to create relatable marketing campaigns that are inspired from its target group’s daily life. By doing this, they create relatable brand messages that build connectivity among the users and the brand.

Marketing Mix of Colgate: Location-Based Targeting

The company has employed location-based targeting techniques in its advertising campaigns. It uses many venues to launch advertising campaigns that have the potential to generate leads and favorable feedback. Using the Kumbh Mela in India as their location objective and detecting commercial messaging on radio and cell phones was one of the main instances.

Top Competitors

1. Procter & Gamble (P&G): It is a multinational consumer goods company that produces a wide range of products, including oral care products under brands like Crest and Oral-B.
2. Johnson & Johnson: It is another major player in the oral care market, with brands like Listerine and Reach in its portfolio.
3. Unilever: It offers oral care products under the brand name Signal, as well as other personal care brands like Close-Up.
4. GlaxoSmithKline (GSK): It owns brands such as Sensodyne, Parodontax, and Aquafresh, which compete in the oral care market.
5. Church & Dwight Co., Inc.: This company owns brands like Arm & Hammer and Orajel, which offer a range of oral care and dental hygiene products.

Conclusion

Colgate has been a successful company in terms of both quality & variety of products. Their price is not so high for the customers to afford. As a result, it is affordable for both the audience and the industry. Their geographical reach is commendable for all types of customers. The company needs to work on its innovation strategy and expand itself in different markets to become a market leader. Overall the company is doing good in the industry and can sustain its position.

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