Uncovering changing needs, the art of ‘social listening’
Above all else, today’s consumer wants to be listened to. To get new insight into how top companies are uncovering the changing needs, motives and interests of the new consumer, executive director Dan Mack moderated a panel discussion of leading marketers as part of its April 6 New General Market Forum, a one-day leadership event co-hosted by Drug Store News and Mack Elevation.
(Click here to download the full New General Market report.)
Anchoring the panel, Walgreens DMM beauty Holly Schmidt talked about Walgreens’ efforts to form cross-functional teams across all age groups and demographics. “The team is highly involved in our customer insights,” and in helping the retailer to learn about segments about which it is not educated,” Schmidt said. The retailer is using these insights to set assortments and plan navigation, making it easier for customers to shop. A tremendous volume of assets is being invested in Walgreens’ e-commerce and digital website to make it more inclusive across demographics. “The goal is ultimate service, in-store and online,” Schmidt concluded. “It’s not about the transaction or the retailer, it’s about the experience.”
For Unilever, it isn’t just about speaking with consumers, but also about trying to understand their world — the experience of millennials around the globe. In addition to leveraging technology to get the job done, the company has undertaken multiple initiatives to obtain the information it needs. “We can talk to consumers all around the world, even from our laptops, and connect with them,” said Paula Girardi, Unilever’s U.S. brand building, consumer markets insights, skin cleansing and care. “We go to colleges and talk with them, shop with them, try to understand and find out how they shop, do ethnographic research, go to their homes. It’s not just speaking, but understanding.”
Gonca Paul, global director at Paris Presents, talked about the power of “social listening” and how the company has leveraged YouTube in cultivating the New General Market. Paris Presents harnesses YouTube — which has 3 billion views per month — to engage customers by educating them about beauty, as well as to execute direct connection marketing. “It’s social listening,” Paul noted. “We hear the commentary from our fans who say, ‘I’d like to have a makeup brush that does this and this, and provides me with that solution.’ We turn around and deliver that solution to consumers.”
Additionally, Paris Presents relies on perspective from its brand managers and buyers from its top three retailer customers — all of whom are millennials themselves, she said. “We know they understand their customers,” she said.
For its part, Hyland’s is banking on a tendency among consumers to purchase a wide variety of products within a brand once they “enter the franchise,” said Kara Errickson, an industrial designer who helps Hyland’s re-engineer for the new market. The company’s target customers are millennial moms, and Hyland’s marketing department comprises millennial moms, Erickson said. The group routinely looks for voids in the market and tries to fill them.
Recently, Errickson’s six-month-old child was experiencing a problem. “We went straight back to the team and said, ‘there’s nothing for this,’ and the team started working on it,” she said.
Hyland’s has successfully captured many customers by growing its assortment over the past three years to cultivate millennial moms as they emerge from the “pre-millennial” stage, become mothers and switch their internal focus from themselves to their families.
Meanwhile, Milani has been able to gain “a ton” of New General Market traction through event marketing, Glenn McCloskey, VP sales at Milani and Jordana Cosmetics, shared. The team looks at other brands at these events to see what can be learned. Additionally, internal teams “pick the brains” of friends and family members who are under 25 years old. “We’ve done college recruiting, but the best ideas come from these people,” said McCloskey.
Lornamead has repositioned its Yardley brand for younger audiences. Yardley was reformulated in a move to persuade younger consumers to use it instead of a prestige boutique option. “We’ve looked at how to bring boutique-inspired products into the market and make them more available to the mass consumer,” said company president Randy Sloan. “Historically, we haven’t been focused on digital,” but having succeeded in “bringing the target age group down,” more product sampling and more digital events have been put on the table to “broaden that universe and expand the portfolio” even further.
Kao has changed along with the consumer, especially positioning its perennial favorite John Frieda brand. For example, options have expanded for curly haired women. Now women can do what they want, said Heather Warnke, director of marketing of Kao. Hiding flaws are out, and women embrace their imperfections. “We have uncovered that her hair is an expression of herself, and we are showing we are there with you on this journey.” Millennials are changing the hair color category, she added, fueling demand for flexible and temporary color.