Pantene's Marketing Essay: External, Competitor, And Consumer Analysis.

In groups of 3 or 4, students are expected to develop a marketing plan for a product of their choice. Students will need to analyse the various environments (external, competitor and consumer) that relate to your product’ market and based on this analysis, develop an appropriate marketing strategy for their new flip-flop brand based on concepts covered in the course.

When preparing the group marketing plans it is important to draw on research to support your critical analysis and application of concepts.

Pantene is a brand of an American organization named Procter & Gamble. The product of Procter & Gamble was introduced in year 1945 in Europe. The product was introduced in the market by Hoffman-La Roche who belongs to Switzerland. The brand Pantene was purchased by Procter & Gamble in the year 1985 for the purpose of competing with the beauty products offered by the organizations. The 2 in 1 Pantene Pro-V shampoo is a famous product of the Pantene company (Pantene.com 2018). The shampoo and the brand of Pantene was established in an effective manner with the help of endorsements that were done by celebrities. The advertising campaigns that have been launched by the company have been able to attract customers from all over the world. The products of the organization have been marketed and promoted in a unique manner foe various countries. The Pantene Pro-V named product of the company was first launched in the United States and Taiwan. The company has been able to offer its various products to customers in different parts of the world (Pantene.com 2018).

The report will be based on the formation of a marketing plan for Pantene. The various aspects of the marketing plan will be analysed in the report in detail. The external environment of the company and the competitors will be discussed in the report. The behaviour of consumers towards the products will be analysed and the segmentation, targeting and positioning based activities will be discussed. The strategies that are used by the company for different purposes like, branding and products, pricing, marketing communications and distribution will be analysed in the discussion.

Demographic environment - The brand named Pantene has been marketed by Procter & Gamble in different parts of the world. Procter & Gamble offers products to its customers in many different categories which include, paper goods, laundry, food & beverages, beauty care, feminine care and many more. The most famous brands of the company include, Pantene, Ariel, Fabreze, Sunny Delight, Head & Shoulders, Oil of Olaz. Almost half of the total sales of the company come from the top brands of the company. Pantene is among the top brands of the company which has helped in increasing the sales of Procter & Gamble in the recent years. The political environment of the different countries has affected the prices of its products (Barros, Hernangómez & Martin-Cruz, 2016). The company thereby needs to satisfy the requirements of the government and the policies that have been formed. The support that is provided by the government also affects the operations of the company in the different countries.

Demographic environment

Economic environment - The performance of the company in the industry of consumer goods is based on the economies of the areas where it operates. The growth of the developing markets where Pantene operates affects the prices of different products.

Social environment - The social factors thereby influence the choice of the customers related to the products. The preference for high quality based consumer goods are has increased in the recent times as well (Daspit et al., 2017).

Technological environment - The technological changes of the external environment have also affected the sales of the company. The growth of online sales and markets has increased the opportunities of Procter & Gamble. The environmental concerns have increased in the recent business environment which has increased the pressure on the company to changed its product offerings accordingly.

Legal environment - The company also needs to comply with different legal bindings to operate in an effective manner and provide its products in the market. The enhancement of the safety standards of the products have become a major concern for Procter & Gamble. The regulations related to the protection of the environment have become important in this case. This has also led to the increase in the need for the company in the modern business environment. The compliance with different laws and regulations has been able to make the business of the company sustainable in nature (Demir, Wennberg & McKelvie, 2017).

Direct competitors - The direct competitors of an organization are those which are able to provide the same products and services like those which are offered by the company itself. The target market of the company is also same which depicts that the customer base is similar. The goal related to the growth of the market share and profit is similar in case of the direct competitors. The direct competitor of Pantene in this case in this case is Sunsilk which offers huge challenge to the company in case of profits and revenues. The prices of the products that are decided by the two brands is also based on the levels of competition that exists in the market. Sunsilk and Pantene are two major competitors in the market which offer similar products (Durand, Grant & Madsen, 2017). The target market of the two brands are also similar which has led to fierce levels of competition between them. Pantene has been able to capture a larger share of the market and Sunsilk has been positioned as the challenger in the market. The major advantage that has been gained by Sunsilk in this case is the low price of the products that are offered to the customers. However, the products of Pantene are considered to be of high quality by the customers due to the high price levels. Pantene has thereby been able to maintain its position in the market with the help of its products.

Economic environment

Indirect competitors - The other major competitors of the company in this sector are mainly, Loreal and Unilever. These two companies cannot be considered as the direct competitors of the company, however, they have been able to provide tough competition to Pantene in the industry (Dyer et al., 2015).

Figure 1 – Source - (Dyer et al., 2015)

The main business of an organization like Procter & Gamble is based on the understanding the consumers and offering them the products according to their tastes. The behaviour of a person thereby changes from place to place and is also dependent on the situation. The consumers can satisfy thereby satisfy their needs with the help of products that are offered by many brands. The companies in this industry need to understand the needs and the demands of the consumers so that they are able to provide the desired types of products. The behaviour of the consumers can change based on the ways by which they are able to use the specific products. The psychographic theories can help the company to understand and further predict the needs of various consumers (Engert, Rauter & Baumgartner, 2016). The perception of consumers can also be detected which can help the company to understand the different features that the products need to offer. The lifestyle and personality of the consumers is also an important factor which helps the company to detect the ways by which they can behave towards the products. The personality of the consumers affects their choice of products and their behaviour towards different product offerings. The ideas and images that the customers have about the products of Procter & Gamble will have effects on the sales of Pantene. The two major factors that are taken into consideration for advertising the products mainly include, the increasing the expectations of the customers from the products and secondly trying to present the brand in a superior manner for the consumers (Frynas & Mellahi, 2015). This has helped the company to control the behaviour of its consumers and further to maintain a competitive position in the market as well.

Figure 2 – Source - (Frynas & Mellahi, 2015)

Segmentation - Pantene shampoo has been offered to the customers with the help of different segmentation based strategies that have been formed by Procter & Gamble. The process of market segmentation helps the company to divide the market into different segments which can be reached by the company in an effective manner. The three major segmentation strategies that are used by Procter & Gamble are, consumer market segmentation, business market segmentation and international market segmentation. The consumer market has been segmented by the company with the help of different variables which include, the demographic process of segmentation which is based different groups (Hill, Jones & Schilling, 2014). The different groups that belong to the demographic segmentation process are based on age, sex, family size, income, occupation. The geographic segmentation is another variable of the demographic process which helps the company to decide the type of shampoo that it wishes to offer in a particular area. The region to which the customers belong and the climate of that area affects the shampoo types that can be used by them. The psychographic segmentation process is used for the purpose of dividing the customers into different groups which are related to their social class, their personality and their life style as well. The shampoos are offered to the customers based on the group to which they belong. This also helps the company to understand the types of customers (Hubbard, Rice & Galvin, 2014). Behavioural segmentation is also used by the organization to divide the customers with respect to their knowledge levels, their attitudes and the ways by which they respond to the products.

Social environment

Targeting – The overall marketing based strategy that has been formed by Procter & Gamble to promote Pantene is based on the target market to whom the products are offered. The evaluation of the segments of the company can thereby lead to the formation of a target market for whom the products will be designed. The different strategies that have been employed by the company for targeting the appropriate customers are as follows,

• Undifferentiated marketing – This strategy is used by P & G in order to target the entire market with the same product. The shampoo that will be offered by the company using this strategy will be common for the customers of a certain area. The product of the Pantene company named Pantene Pro-V is mainly a type of product which can be offered to all the types of customers. This shampoo can be used by all types of customers and their needs can be satisfied easily (Karadag, 2015). The process of undifferentiated marketing can also cause issues for the company if it is not able to satisfy the individual needs of the customers in an effective manner.
• Differentiated marketing – The differentiated marketing strategy is used by the company for the purpose of providing products to the customers based on their individual needs. P & G thereby attempts to offer products to the customers based on the ways by which they are able to satisfy their needs. The different needs of the customers are thereby satisfied by different products that are developed by Pantene. The specialised desires of the customers are easily fulfilled with the help of the products of Procter & Gamble. The benefits that are offered by the products are different with respect to the needs of the customers (Kasemsap, 2014). The various products that are offered based on the differentiated strategy are, Pantene Total Damage Care range, Pantene Hair Fall Control shampoo, Pantene Silky Smooth range, Pantene Lively Clean shampoo, Pantene Nature Fusion Fullness & Life shampoo, Pantene Anti Dandruff shampoo, Pantene Gold Series Moisture Boost shampoo. These different products are mainly based on the varied needs of the customers based on their issues and desires. The segments of the consumers of Pantene are evaluated by the organization with the help of their wants and needs. The ways by which the products of Pantene are promoted by the company are also quite different in nature (Meyer, Neck & Meeks, 2017).

Positioning – The market positioning strategy is also used by Procter & Gamble for capturing the market. This strategy helps the products of Pantene to occupy a position in the market. The products of Pantene and their image needs to be developed with respect to the perception of the consumers. The organization plans to position the products in such a manner which can help Procter & Gamble to distinguish its products from the other competitive brands. Pantene can thereby occupy a position in the market with the help of different products which belong to the varied ranges. The unique image of the company can be created with the help of suitable products of Pantene (Michael, Storey & Thomas, 2017).

Figure 3 - (Michael, Storey & Thomas, 2017)

Product objectives - Pantene is considered to be the subsidiary brand of the parent company named Procter & Gamble. The products of Pantene are mainly a part of the FMCG sector which belongs to a company that has its origin in the United States. The main objective of the company is to maintain its competitive position in the industry in which it operates.

Product mix - The various brands that are offer competition to Procter & Gamble include, Dove, Sunsilk, Clinic Plus, Loreal, Fructis, Tresemme, Head & Shoulder, Rejoice. Pantene is a brand that offers the products on an international basis which deals with the hair care products. The brand has provided some of the best shampoos which consists of a lot of variants as well. The brand has been able to create a name for itself which has helped in fulfilling the responsibilities towards the customers (Morschett, Schramm-Klein & Zentes, 2015).

Brand development strategies - The organization thereby ensures that the innovative processes are used to enhance the products and cater the needs of the customers who are price-sensitive. The various needs of customers are catered by the company with the help of shampoos of different kinds, hair treatment based products, styling products, conditioners and many more. The wide range of products that are offered by the company thereby include, truly relaxed, smooth and sleek, truly natural, sheer volume, nature fusion, ice shine, full and strong, daily moisture, damage detox, curl perfection, classic clean, aqualight, anti-breakage, advanced care. The products are aimed towards the different needs of the consumers which can be fulfilled with the different variants of Pantene shampoo (Sakas, Vlachos & Nasiopoulos, 2014). 

Technological environment

Pricing objectives - Pantene is considered is an important and recognized brand in the global market. The brand has mainly targeted people who are concerned about the quality of their hair. The brand has offered a health care regime to the customers at the affordable rates. The brand value of Pantene is considered to be quite high.

Details of the prices - The prices of the products that are offered by Pantene are kept at par with the prices that are offered by its competitors in the market. The best value is offered to the customers for the products that they prefer. Periodic discounts are offered to the existing customers which include many free offers as well. The value pricing based policy has also been applied by the company so that the prices of products can be adjusted with the local conditions. This strategy helps in increasing the sales of the company and the revenues are also increased in the process (Simon, Fischbach & Schoder, 2014).

Figure 4 – Source - (Simon, Fischbach & Schoder, 2014)

Marketing objectives -

• Increasing the sales of the company in the FMCG industry.
• Maintaining the topmost position in the market as compared to its competitors.
• Increasing the reach of its products to various areas of the world.

Advertising - The marketing communication is done by Pantene with the help of promotions of the brand. The company has adopted a marketing strategy that is aggressive in nature and takes advantage of the various advertising tools as well. The campaigns are mainly targeted towards the women by giving importance to the advantages that are provided by the usage of this brand. The communication with the customers are done with the help of digital and print based media.

Sales promotion - The posters and hoardings are used for reaching more and more customers and thereby increasing the awareness of the brand in their minds (Steinbach et al., 2017). The visibility of the brand is also given utmost importance which helps in creating a space for the products in the minds of consumers.

Direct response marketing - The recent communication platform that is used by Pantene is the social media and the website of the company itself. The important information based on the products is updated in the website at regular intervals which provides the customers all relevant details that they require about the products (Trigeorgis & Reuer, 2017).

Figure 5 - (Trigeorgis & Reuer, 2017)

Distribution objectives - The distribution network that has been created by Procter & Gamble has helped in creating an international presence for Pantene. The network of the product has been created in the countries like, India, China, France, United States, Australia, Taiwan, United Kingdom, France and Bangladesh.

Legal environment

Direct or indirect distribution - The organization has a wide network and the parent company is mainly responsible for the entire distribution based process. The traditional channel of retailers, stockists and wholesalers is used by the company. The distribution channel of the company is strong and fast which helps the products to reach the retail market much faster. The loyalty of the customers towards the brand is maintained by making the products readily available in the stores for them. The easy availability of the products from this brand has thereby increased the customer base of the company (Wheelen et al., 2017).

Conclusion

The report can be concluded by stating that the external environment of the FMCG industry where the parent company of Pantene operates has increased the levels of competition for the brand. The competitors of the company are also quite strong in spite of which the company has been able to maintain the topmost position in the market. The behaviour of the consumers towards the products is also an important determinant of the types of products that are offered to the customers. The market segmentation for the products of Pantene and the targeting and positioning is also done based on the likes and needs of the consumers. The products are offered to fulfil the variety of needs. The prices of products are thereby decided based on the consumer segments. The marketing communications are therefore used for the purpose of creating an awareness of the brand in the minds of the consumers. The distribution channel of the company thereby holds utmost importance for the maintenance of the loyal customer base of Pantene.

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