Marketing Programs for Kleenex Brand, Research Paper Example

Introduction

In the past year, Kleenex has managed to team up its public relations, social responsibility campaigns and marketing, to create a strong brand, positive approaches to tactical promotion, as well as a campaign that uses multiple channels to communicate with potential customers. In the below study, the authors would like to review the strengths and development areas of the campaign, taking into consideration the five P model: product, price, place, promotion and people. As the company operates worldwide, the study would include a global strategy for marketing, taking into consideration the characteristics of the most significant customer groups, the main promotion methods and the company image that is commonly accepted around the world. People in this study would represent all the subgroups, and the promotion will be related to all the products the company offers worldwide.

Product

The products of Kleenex are developed to be suitable for all ages; they are hypoallergenic and well positioned on the competitive tissue market. Kleenex has been the leader of the facial tissue industry for over a decade, and the popularity of the brand, the appreciation of the quality does create an added value to the product. The product groups include everyday tissues, ultra-soft, lotion and anti-viral solutions, and the product development to provide more than an ordinary tissue would do target various groups of people. Kleenex products are known by the extra features delivered; hypoallergenic, safe, green and super soft. The products vary based on different target groups: there are family-sized packs for people with kids and man-size tissues for males who prefer quality and would like their tissues to represent their masculinity. Towels for the kitchen target housewives and busy single women. Therefore, it is evident that the products are designed to meet the expectations of various sub-niches.

Price

Although the price of Kleenex products is higher than the average market price for tissues, the difference is justified by the noticeable extra softness, caring agents, anti-viral, soothing and other comfort options. Unlike ordinary tissues, the Kleenex brand adds value, promotes social responsibility by taking care of the environment, through the manufacturer’s (Kimberley Clark) social responsibility campaigns, including sustainable forestry. However, some of the green organizations, such as Greenpeace have criticized the company for being only committed for preserving forests on the surface. (Greenpeace) Still, compared to other, high quality products, and the design of the boxes, the elegant and sleek appearance does somewhat justify the difference in the price. Kleenex might not be the cheapest tissue, however, it is a symbol of elegance and caring, and the comfort, lotions and special features increase the perceived value of the product.

Place

The company is present in North America, Europe and Australia. Although the major supermarket chains feature the product very often, and there are multiple promotions organized every year, it is worth to mention the importance of online campaigns making the brand selection and the list of retailers available online. The social media campaigns including promotional offers and coupons have become successful, as well. Convenience stores, online supermarkets offer the full range of Kleenex products, knowing that consumers usually already have a brand preference and are looking for discounts and multi buy deals. The availability of the product is high, and the supply chain is well organized to provide customers various options for purchasing different tissues at ease. The Internet sites are providing information by country on where the different types of tissues and paper hygiene products are available.

Promotion

Promotion through different channels is built around the good feeling and the different types of products. The variety of available Kleenex tissues varies based on the country, however, the social media, newspaper advertisement, TV ads, featured commercials before feel-good movies are still the main channels. It is important to note that the combination of social responsibility public relation campaigns and advertisements featuring positive emotions, relationships and also the variety of products. Newspapers often feature coupons to exchange to discount offer or rebates, and seasonal campaigns on the Internet and in the television (main flue season) are also planned based on consumer demand. Public relations has a great importance in the marketing strategy of the company, and press releases, research results and development news are often featured on the Internet and in printed media.

People

People Kimberley Clark targets with the Kleenex brand are individuals with high expectations, who like quality, do not mind paying extra for more comfort, and generally those who care about their families’ and their own well-being. Kleenex is also building its promotion campaigns around the future, targeting families with children, to get them involved in the social responsibility initiatives of the company. The brand-awareness and preference among the population is high, and this is one of the major factors of Kleenex’s successful marketing strategy. The target market of the products is segmented based on the type of tissue the company offers. There are products developed for young families, men, and housewives, however, the main characteristic of the average customer is that they like comfort and ease, simplicity and quality, and they do not mind paying extra for a better product.

Conclusion

The five P model has revealed the strengths of the company’s marketing strategy, and it has also revealed some important improvement areas. Increasing visibility of campaigns and allowing the public to participate in different campaigns would allow the company to respond to criticism and further strengthen the relationship between marketing and public relations. (Heath et al. 2006) The future Kleenex’ brand marketing campaign lies in the opportunities provided by online advertising and social media. As the majority of the existing customers, who have already got a strong brand-preference uses the Internet, and a great proportion of the consumer group uses mobile devices, creating mobile and Android apps featuring promotions and providing useful health tips related to the tissues in the flu season would be a feasible option. The above analysis showed that brand-loyalty is high among existing customers, and this provides Kleenex with a competitive advantage it can build its marketing strategy on. Building on the positive brand image and the firm’s reputation is a good starting point of a long term promotion campaign, and the TV advertisements need to be connected to the online content, incentivizing sharing videos and articles by discounts or voucher codes. This would provide the company with free word-of-mouth advertising, on the top of a successful social media campaign.

References

Greenpeace’s Response to Kimberly-Clark’s Propaganda. Online. http://kleercut.net/en/ResponsetoKC

Heath, R., Brandt, D., Nairn, A. (2006) Brand Relationships: Strengthened by Emotion, Weakened by Attention