Shopping Product Reviews

Superior marketing often trumps superior product

The best-selling mouthwash brand in the world is Scope by Procter & Gamble. In second position is the very popular and familiar Listerine. These products enjoy massive sales and international distribution. They control the dominant positioning on the shelves of big and small retailers. There are very few homes that do not use one of these products to combat halitosis.

And yet a better, scientifically verified product, and the brand that invented the term “halitosis” to describe bad breath, is largely forgotten. Once a top seller, Lavoris has precipitously declined in popularity with consumers. Because?

Originally, Lavoris was used as an antiseptic during the Civil War. Formulated using the ingredient Zantrate, Lavoris was first marketed as a mouthwash in 1903. Zantrate is a proprietary ingredient, and along with low alcohol content and a pleasant cinnamon flavor, Lavoris quickly exploded in popularity.

Zantrate has been clinically proven to instantly neutralize the bacteria that promote bad breath. Clinical studies at Hill Top Research in Cincinnati and the University of British Columbia claim to show that Lavoris is three times more effective than Scope at killing oral bacteria. These studies were so convincing that all three major television networks accepted and validated the results.

Richardson-Vick, the former owner of Lavoris, created a classic marketing and advertising campaign that still resonates with older Americans to this day. The Company created the word “halitosis” as a powerful branding aid to identify the problem that Lavoris could solve. It was so successful that the word “halitosis” is now in Webster’s Dictionary. Furthermore, the term “Pucker Power” became one of the most famous catchphrases of all time after years of use in Lavoris advertisements.

How does a brand with a century-old pedigree, strong clinical backing for its best-performing claims, and savvy branding fall off the cliff and all but disappear from the consumer’s radar? It’s actually not that unusual and the reasons are usually quite similar. Lavoris lost sight of the famous old marketing adage: “You are never the best, only last.”

Graphics, packaging, branding, sales promotion, sales assurance, public relations, display, advertising strategies, sampling, and product placement are just a few of the components involved in constantly updating a product. product. The goal is to keep the brand fresh and at the forefront of the consumer’s mind as times, tastes, and competition change. However, it is imperative that the consumer not be discouraged by the new and the changed. Do you remember the New Coca-Cola? Do you remember the K-Car?

The Lavoris brand found itself in a constant state of change. The product was involved in a series of corporate ownership changes that forced frequent creative and management adjustments. Each new owner was less interested in updating the brand and making essential investments that could have protected its place on the shelves, while the profits were used for other corporate purposes. Faced with an aggressive attack from brands like P&G’s Scope, Lavoris withered.

There are many examples of great products outselling more pedestrian quality competitors. Resources to market appropriately, aggressively, and creatively all too often trump quality. If you can’t educate consumers about a product’s superior features and benefits, especially in a cyclone market, your item will suffer at the hands of the most skilled salesperson. This is where alternative marketing strategies such as bootstrapping and guerrilla marketing become essential.

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