5 ms·

They make soap and toothpaste, I buy these things regardless of their advertising. They could cut cable ads and nothing would change as well (I don't even have

by jbob2000 9y ago

They make soap and toothpaste, I buy these things regardless of their advertising. They could cut cable ads and nothing would change as well (I don't even have cable). To the contrary; they need to advertise on the internet to capture the next generation, who don't watch as much TV. If it turns out that facebook ads were influential, P&G could risk losing billions by giving up on that market.

jessaustin 9y ago
Haven't we learned recently that young people aren't on Facebook? It's not a surprise; everyone who complains about my not being on FB is older than me, and I'm no spring chicken.
- code_duck 9y ago
  Yes, that has been a known trend for years, dating back to the dawn of Instagram and Snapchat.
  - fjsolwmv 9y ago
    Instagram is Facebook
niftich 9y ago
Brand preferences are overwhelmingly set in the youth years and it's been sliding younger and younger [1]. Sure, they make soap and toothpaste and food and a billion other things, but so do their competitors. Every sale of a bottle of shower gel is a competition between P&G, Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, and Henkel; every tube of toothpaste is a competition between P&G, Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, Church & Dwight, Johnson & Johnson, and GlaxoSmithKline... And most white-label generic store brands are the product of an alliance between a retailer and a manufacturer, whereby spare plant capacity is used to run a slightly different product through, whose bulk amount was paid for by the retailer ahead of time. This way, the big brand still gets paid, and retailers make better margins on store brand items than big brands. [1] http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/when-does-brand-loyalty-start-62841/ http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/when-does-brand-loyalt...
chrsstrm 9y ago
>I buy these things regardless of their advertising They are not trying to increase the size of the pie, they are trying to increase their share of it. Yes, (nearly) everyone already buys these household items, but are you brand indifferent? Do you just reach for whatever is closest when you walk down the toothpaste aisle or do you buy the same product over and over? When was the last time you switched brands or even product lines within the same brand? This is why these ads exist; not to coerce you into buying toothpaste, but to convince you to buy _their_ toothpaste (that has the highest profit margin).
shagie 9y ago
Soap and toothpaste are interesting in that they were ubiquitous advertising on television back a few decades ago. I haven't had a television in the past decade... but I still buy soap and toothpaste. The advertising from decades ago still haunts my decisions. I'm more likely to get a brand name toothbrush over a non-name one, even if it costs a few cents more (my preferred flavor of toothpaste is mostly discontinued - its harder to find cinnamon toothpaste than mint... so its Tom's of Maine which is easier to find cinnamon toothpaste for). I'm also more likely to ty a different variation on a major brand soap than an off brand soap (I've found I like irish spring oatmeal soap...). Advertising isn't necessarily a "do this, get money today or tomorrow". I suspect that the advertising from the 70s, 80s, and early 90s; however, is paying off now... at least for my purchase decisions. And so, it could be interesting in another decade or so as these companies find brand awareness of the next up and coming generation "lacking."
- brownbat 9y ago
  Huh. My algorithm for bathroom goods is basically: these are all the same get the cheap one. There's probably a bell curve where we all make some decisions on brand, but some people moreso. I wish they could put where I fall in my advertising ID. Advertisers could spare me jingles and cartoon dogs and just tell me who is selling cheaper toothpaste than I usually buy.
  - Stanish 9y ago
    You seem to misunderstand the point of advertising.
  - deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
  - afarrell 9y ago
    > these are all the same get the cheap one I’m always surprised when people feel this way about toilet paper. I have literally spent two weeks in pain after switching toilet paper brands once. When I later moved countries, I was very wary of the fact that I would have to switch brands.

jessaustin 9y ago

Haven't we learned recently that young people aren't on Facebook? It's not a surprise; everyone who complains about my not being on FB is older than me, and I'm no spring chicken.

code_duck 9y ago
Yes, that has been a known trend for years, dating back to the dawn of Instagram and Snapchat.
- fjsolwmv 9y ago
  Instagram is Facebook

niftich 9y ago

Brand preferences are overwhelmingly set in the youth years and it's been sliding younger and younger [1]. Sure, they make soap and toothpaste and food and a billion other things, but so do their competitors. Every sale of a bottle of shower gel is a competition between P&G, Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, and Henkel; every tube of toothpaste is a competition between P&G, Unilever, Colgate-Palmolive, Church & Dwight, Johnson & Johnson, and GlaxoSmithKline... And most white-label generic store brands are the product of an alliance between a retailer and a manufacturer, whereby spare plant capacity is used to run a slightly different product through, whose bulk amount was paid for by the retailer ahead of time. This way, the big brand still gets paid, and retailers make better margins on store brand items than big brands. [1] http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/when-does-brand-loyalty-start-62841/ http://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/when-does-brand-loyalt...

chrsstrm 9y ago

>I buy these things regardless of their advertising They are not trying to increase the size of the pie, they are trying to increase their share of it. Yes, (nearly) everyone already buys these household items, but are you brand indifferent? Do you just reach for whatever is closest when you walk down the toothpaste aisle or do you buy the same product over and over? When was the last time you switched brands or even product lines within the same brand? This is why these ads exist; not to coerce you into buying toothpaste, but to convince you to buy _their_ toothpaste (that has the highest profit margin).

shagie 9y ago

Soap and toothpaste are interesting in that they were ubiquitous advertising on television back a few decades ago. I haven't had a television in the past decade... but I still buy soap and toothpaste. The advertising from decades ago still haunts my decisions. I'm more likely to get a brand name toothbrush over a non-name one, even if it costs a few cents more (my preferred flavor of toothpaste is mostly discontinued - its harder to find cinnamon toothpaste than mint... so its Tom's of Maine which is easier to find cinnamon toothpaste for). I'm also more likely to ty a different variation on a major brand soap than an off brand soap (I've found I like irish spring oatmeal soap...). Advertising isn't necessarily a "do this, get money today or tomorrow". I suspect that the advertising from the 70s, 80s, and early 90s; however, is paying off now... at least for my purchase decisions. And so, it could be interesting in another decade or so as these companies find brand awareness of the next up and coming generation "lacking."

brownbat 9y ago
Huh. My algorithm for bathroom goods is basically: these are all the same get the cheap one. There's probably a bell curve where we all make some decisions on brand, but some people moreso. I wish they could put where I fall in my advertising ID. Advertisers could spare me jingles and cartoon dogs and just tell me who is selling cheaper toothpaste than I usually buy.
- Stanish 9y ago
  You seem to misunderstand the point of advertising.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- afarrell 9y ago
  > these are all the same get the cheap one I’m always surprised when people feel this way about toilet paper. I have literally spent two weeks in pain after switching toilet paper brands once. When I later moved countries, I was very wary of the fact that I would have to switch brands.