Unilever 2012 Annual Report Download - page 17

14 Unilever Annual Report and Accounts 2012Report of the Directors About Unilever
WINNIN WITH BRANDS AND INNOVATION continued
onsumers as brand ambassadors
Word of mouth has always played an
important role in communicating the
benefits of our products. Parent to
child, sibling to sibling, neighbour to
neighbour – a good word from a trusted
source is a high endorsement for any
product. Now, in the digital age, millions
of consumers from nearly every geography
and demographic are connected in a giant
conversation in which the brands they
love play an important part. By creating
brands that have meaning and purpose
for consumers, we are harnessing that
connectivity – and enabling consumers
to become our brands’ ambassadors.
Part of the success of our Dove Self
Esteem Project, which encourages
women and girls to develop a positive
relationship with beauty, has been an
increased willingness among consumers
to spread the brand’s affirmative message.
Research by Millward Brown shows that
among women in the US who are aware
of the Dove Self Esteem Project, 62%
would recommend the Dove brand to
others – that’s 16% more than among
those who are not aware of the project.
Leverage bgger brands
Leverage bgger brands
Once we have identified brands with a
clear purpose in consumers’ lives, we can
have the greatest impact by concentrating
our efforts on a selected number of key
brands and leveraging the benefits of
scale. We’re making greater investments
in fewer, bigger projects and focusing
on margin growth.
Makng a mark wth consumers
Bigger marketing campaigns which
can operate through multiple media are
achieving what we call ‘media cut-through’:
when a campaign remains memorable
despite the many competing claims on
consumers’ attention. Our ‘Dirt is Good’
(DiG) brands, which include Omo and Persil,
re-launched in multiple markets in 2012
with a powerful mix of traditional and digital
advertising, reassuring parents that their
children can learn through healthy, messy
play because of our products’ tough
stain-removing performance. Five key
markets have already grown market share
as a result and more DiG re-launches
are planned for 2013.
Drvng down costs
Negotiating larger advertising and
promotion deals also allows for greater
economies of scale, especially where
campaigns can be adapted for different
regions and countries. Margins can be
further increased when bigger projects
allow other savings – for example, in waste.
Innovatng wth ambton
In 2012 we took important steps to align
R&D within our category organisation.
This allows for an integrated product
innovation funnel from idea through
to market, informed at every step by
consumer benefit and value. Our six
major laboratories across the world are
complemented by a network of regional
centres that give us the strength to deliver
innovations globally and apply regional
variants that consumers value.
At the same time as strengthening
R&D within our categories, we continue
to look to the future through a core group
of scientific experts. These are charged
with uncovering breakthrough scientific
developments and providing thought
leadership and connections with the
external world to fuel our future category
R&D programmes further.
LOWER ALORIE
IE REAM FOR KIDS
More at wwwunlevercom/heartbrand
As part of the Unilever
Sustainable Living Plan, we set
ourselves the target of ensuring
that our children’s ice creams would
contain 110 kilocalories or fewer per
serving by the end of 2014. We are introducing
the Specially for Kids logo on Max and
Paddlepop branded ice creams to reflect
our commitment to products which combine
fun tastes, textures, shapes and colours, and
comply with this target so children can enjoy
them as part of a balanced diet and active
lifestyle. By the end of 2012, more than 80%
of our children’s ice creams had met our target.
14 Unlever Annual Report and Accounts 2012