With Sense & Plenty of Sensitivity: GSK Cosumer Health Care’s G Venkataramani & Rahul Bibuthi Made Sensodyne a Brand to Be Reckoned with
Synopsis
The case flyer assists in analysing product categories, how the categories are created, sustained and extended? It specifically assists in analysing the entry of Sensodyne toothpaste into the sensitive oral care product category. While Colgate occupies more than half of the market share in the oral care segment in India, players like Dabur, GSKCH looked at innovative product opportunities to extend/enter, thus creating new categories.
About one-tenth of the oral care market was comprised of the sensitive toothpaste category. Oral care market was one of the fastest growing markets and the sensitive toothpaste category was growing at about double the rate within it. Given the growth rate and the market share, what marketing strategies can accelerate the growth of the product to reach a category leadership position? Will advertising alone be a major contributor towards the growth rate results? If the product’s success was attributed to a large extent to advertising and ‘advocates’ of the product, in this case the dentists, will the product continue to sell on the older prescriptions of the (family) dentists?
Expected Learning Outcomes
- • Understanding the concept of product categories and discuss on how new product categories can be nurtured
- • Understanding Sensodyne’s distinct strategies to introduce and popularise a new category within oral care market, i.e., sensitive oral care
- • Comprehending the concept of category killers and to debate on how category killers can be grown with specific reference to their points of differentiation
Positioning and Setting
This case flyer can be ideally positioned for:
- a) General Marketing Course – for discussing one of the 4Ps, i.e., Place – Sales and Distribution
- b) Retailing/Retail Management Course – Category Management Module
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Exhibits
Exhibit (TN)-I: FMCG Industry – Categories & Sub-categories
Exhibit (TN)-II: ANSOFF – Product Market Matrix
Exhibit (TN)-III: Oral Care Market in India
Exhibit (TN)-IV: Posters from a Reputed Dental Hospital based at Hyderabad