CPG Leader on Voice and e-Commerce

Well known manufacturer looking at the marketing future:

Clorox CMO: Voice and e-commerce will grow faster than marketers expect

In a Q&A with Marketing Dive, Eric Reynolds dishes on why he's bullish on a number of digital technology areas other CPGs have either stepped back from or might be considerably underestimating. .... " 

" ... Clorox is focusing on creating "channel-first" messages that meet consumers where they are, said Chief Marketing Officer Eric Reynolds. "[W]e're getting to a point now where digital is not enough; we have to break it down into its various components," he said. ... " 

Clorox Mapping Flu Real Time with Social

This relates to some work we did in the 90s on detecting epidemics and bioterror.  See the tag,

Clorox analyzes social media to predict flu outbreaks 
Clorox is promoting its sanitation products with an online push called Clorox Cold & Flu Pulse, which gives consumers a real-time flu report for their locality based on analysis of social media conversations. Clorox's tool is the first to use social chatter for flu predictions, rather than mapping outbreaks as they happen, said marketing professor Jonah Berger. Consumers can also add their own information using the hashtag #StoptheSpread. MediaPost Communications (10/28)

Clorox Bets on Programmatic Advertising

Another example of automation, widely underway.

" ... Cleaning supply company Clorox is a big believer in programmatic online advertising, despite industry-wide challenges around fraud, viewability and transparency.

This year, Clorox Co. will spend three times as much on digital advertising purchased with automated buying tools than it did during 2014, according to Chief Marketing Officer Eric Reynolds. That means about 50% of its entire digital budget will end up being dedicated to programmatic buying this year. .... " 

Clorox CIO Discusses Challenge of Big Data

Former colleague discusses Big Data value in the enterprise.    And like any analytics application, Big data or not, it is about getting to a real business process solution.  Insight needs to drive real action.   Starting with knowing what the questions are.

" ... Many big companies today do a great job of collecting big data, However, the challenge remains to get insights out of the data. Clorox CIO Manjit Singh suggests taking a more agile approach.

Big data is top of mind for the C-suite and IT executives today, particularly in the realm of marketing data and marketing analytics, says Manjit Singh, CIO of The Clorox Company. While organizations are focused on big data, many are failing to act upon their data because they simply get sidetracked.

Where the data challenge lies

"The challenge is not in collecting the data," Singh says. "We're challenged in how to get insight out of the data — what questions to ask and how to use the data to predict results in the business." ... '

(Read the whole thing .... some very useful thoughts)

Multilingual Promotion Apps

Simple idea.  Useful statistics too. Quite appropriate: " ... Brands including General Mills and Clorox are targeting Hispanic consumers through the bilingual Veo mobile shopping app. The app engages consumers by using their native language to offer free product samples, recipes, promotions and giveaways. Experian data indicated that Hispanic consumers are twice as likely to accept advertisements on their smartphones as non-Hispanics and 58% are more likely to purchase those advertised items. The average Hispanic consumer also spends 18.2 minutes per month visiting shopping sites on their phones .... " 

Mobile Clorox

Clorox meets moms in the aisles with smartphones.  Emarketer article about how the CPG company is using mobile marketing.   ' ...  "We are always asking: Is this really demonstrating a true understanding of who the mom is and what she needs at that moment? And what value are we actually providing?" ... '

Integrated Insights

Clorox and Roundy's develop a collaborative shopping program.  More here.  Identifying gaps between beliefs and behaviors.

Fragrance Interaction at Burt's Bees

Always interested in alternative sensory interaction and engagement.  Here in AdAge's blog, a note about the fragrance Gud,  From Burt's Bees (A Unit of Clorox) , which is using a social and scratch-and-sniff method, distributed via a number of magazines,  to promote its fragrance.   We examined digital aroma delivery, utilizing a plug in device, which ended up failing.  It is too bad a workable Internet aroma delivery system does not exist, it would make things like the Gud approach much more useful.

Clorox and Consumer Product Innovation

An interesting co-creation idea being used at Clorox.  The example in Consumer package goods is interesting because it involves the consumer directly.  I am sure there are many more possibilities here.

Clorox Shares Green Data with an App

The increased focus of Apps is revealing.  Note also the integration of UPC code scanning.  Here Clorox shares their green data on a smartphone App. " .... Clorox last week announced that it had developed a mobile application and website devoted to making it easier to see the chemical makeup of its products -- and what those chemicals do. The app, which will first be made available to iPhone users later this year, allows people to scan a UPC code and quickly be taken to the Ingredients Inside list for the product. The Ingredients Inside information is already available on Clorox's CSR website..... "

This kind of information would have been found by interested people via a search.  This allows Clorox to better control the information, provide science links,  while appearing very transparent.   In general is an App more authoritative than an online site?  Is that authority improved by the mobile and direct application of an in context and in place 'search' via a scan?  Exploring.

Revealing all the Ingredients

More examples of increasingly providing more detailed information about products:
Clorox Reveals Chemicals You've Been Dumping on Your Floors, Counters, Commodes
Cleaning-product companies are notorious for keeping a tight lid on their ingredients. There is no current regulatory requirement that cleaning companies disclose a full list of ingredients, after all, and who wants to stir up consumer worries by revealing the use of potentially toxic compounds? Apparently, Clorox does. In 2009, the company began listing the active ingredients in all of its products, and this week, Clorox revealed all of its preservatives, dyes, and fragrances. Is this corporate transparency at its finest or just a greenwashing stunt? ....

Innovation in Consumer Goods

Good short piece in ConsumerGoods:

Clorox, GSK and More Share Innovation Tactics
In the current economic climate, innovation is power. Top consumer goods executives recently gathered to gain insight into driving innovation and sparking creativity. Watch behind the scenes video coverage of the meeting here ... '