Dirt cheap prices arent enough
When it comes to sales of store brand household cleaners, \"improvement\" is the word of the day. According to an October 2012 report by global market research firm Mintel, \"Private Label Trends in Household Cleaning Products – US,\" in most household cleaner categories, consumers are considerably more likely to purchase name brands the majority of the time. Why? Mintel explains that one reason is the failure of retailers to create a presence within the household cleaner aisles. Nearly half of the shoppers polled by Mintel agreed that they rarely see store brands advertised or promoted, and one in four said they would buy store brands more often if they were displayed more prominently within the store.
Promote! Promote! Promote!
Tim McAvoy, vice president of Olds Products and Fitzpatrick Bros., based in Pleasant Prairie, Wis., and Quincy, Ill., respectively, is a strong proponent of in-store promotion. First and foremost, he advises retailers to create a display or an end cap that will grab the consumers attention with five or six related household cleaning items on it. For example, store brand scrubbing sponges, paper towels, scrub brushes, plastic gloves and two or three different private label household cleaners can create an impactful and memorable display.
Mintel states that nearly six in 10 household product purchasers report that they decide whether to buy store brand or name brand products while they are in the store all or most of the time, underscoring the need for retailers to attract the consumers attention with something such as an end cap display.
Do
use end caps and social media to effectively promote store brand cleaners.
Dont
sell a product that cant deliver on its promise.
\"With any store brand household cleaning product, the biggest challenge is getting the consumers initial purchase,\" McAvoy says. \"At a national dollar store chain, we did an end cap and the impact on sales was amazing, not just during the promotional time period, but there was also an increase in sales volume with those products for the rest of the year. So retailers should leverage their store brand presence and put their own items on the end caps they typically create for national brands every week.\"
Not to be overlooked in promoting store brand cleaners is social media, says Eric Hanks, Southwest regional sales manager, Earth Friendly Products, Garden Grove, Calif.
\"Social media is becoming one of the most important cost-effective ways to reach massive amounts of consumers,\" Hanks says. \"Consumers can fall in love with your brand simply by the way it is marketed.\"
Consumers love to share photos, tips and ideas via social websites; if a brand can offer something that is \"share-worthy,\" consumers will begin to not only recognize your brand, but also associate positive thoughts with it, he adds.
Overcome quality bias
Another reason Mintel gives in its report for why consumers are hesitant to try store brand cleaners is the perception of inferior quality, combined with a lack of selection or variety when it comes to sizes and fragrances, leading nearly half of category shoppers to agree that it is worth it to pay more for name brand products.
Grant Greene, vice president of sales and marketing for Mountain Green, Tempe, Ariz., agrees that consumers want products that work and work well.
\"Long gone are the days of generic and settling for inferior efficacy just to save a few cents. The wise consumer realizes that it is very possible to manufacture items that work similarly to the national brands, and theyre demanding such products,\" he says.
How then can retailers convince shoppers to overcome their initial bias?
To combat the belief of inferiority, Greene believes that retailers should call out the fact that the store brand cleaner can be compared to Brand XYZ. He reasons that the consumer is looking for direction, and when she sees it, she is more willing to trust the store brand. However, he cautions, after achieving the sale, the product better deliver, or the consumer will purchase a different product the next time.
Besides a \"compare to\" statement on the bottle, featuring independent testing results showing that the store brand performs as well as or better than the national brand could be a great way to attract consumers, says Rishi Raj, an independent retail consultant working with Merenberg, Germany-based ana Aqualine.
Offer variety
However, not everyone agrees that a compare to statement will win shoppers over. Steve Berry, founder and CEO of Auburn Hills, Mich.-based Greenblendz, believes that individuality and authenticity are more important to the consumer.
Do
create value for consumers by offering a variety of store brand household cleaners.
Dont
use questionable ingredients in product formulations.
\"The product should be a brand with a cohesive message, not a knockoff look with the message of compare to,\" he says.
One way to differentiate and offer the consumer variety is through full ingredient disclosure that features cleaner, healthier ingredients, Berry adds. Partnering with the vendor community and having a conversation about the market and consumer safety concerns will go a long way toward attracting a loyal base rather than just creating a cheap version of the national brand with a questionable list of ingredients, he advises. One example he gives of a retailer that has done this well is Walgreens with its Ology product line.
\"When you walk in the store, you can tell immediately in which aisle the products are and that they stand for healthier products,\" he notes.
And know your consumer base, McAvoy advises. If shoppers respond well to citrus scents, then create cleaners with those scents and prominently feature on the label the lemon or orange to call their attention to that fact. He also recommends broadening the store brand cleaner program.
\"A single item can easily get lost on the shelf, so create a billboard of store brand offerings as consumers walk down the aisle,\" McAvoy says.
But perhaps most important is the need for retailers to commit to the products on the shelf, Raj says. Store brand cleaners need focus and attention to garner success – including attention to details such as pricing. They need to be competitively priced, especially when the national brand goes on sale, he adds, to prevent their demise.
Another aspect of that commitment is flexibility, Hanks says. New technologies and developments constantly become available, so retailers should be ready and willing to make any necessary changes that will enhance the brand and bring added value to the customer, he says.
\"Be patient with your brand,\" Hanks advises. \"Even with great marketing and retail placement, it still needs time to build. Remember, private label isnt a way to be cheap – its a way to be different.\"
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| Look whats new |
| up&up Biodegradable All-Purpose Cleaner from Target Corp., Minneapolis, is said to be great to use on grime and grease and is nontoxic to people and pets. It features a biodegradable formula made from naturally derived cleaning ingredients that breaks down safely in nature. The product cleans and deodorizes most household surfaces, removes stains and is suitable for the kitchen, bath and utility rooms, tile, grout, fiberglass and hard plastics, bathmats, basement walls and floors, garbage cans and diaper pails. It retails in a 32-fl.-oz. bottle. |
| Now available from Bentonville, Ark.-based Walmart are Great Value Automatic Bowl Cleaner Bleach Tablets. Said to clean and deodorize without harming the color of the toilet bowl and to last up to three months, the tablets are designed to be dropped into the right rear of the tank. They retail in a 7-oz. pack containing two 3.5-oz. individually wrapped tablets. |
| Source: Mintels Global New Products Database |