Customer Reviews

Winning With the P&G 99

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Over five billion people around the world purchase products made by Proctor & Gamble, including 98 percent of all households in the United States. Proctor & Gamble is best known for its brands, including Bold, Spic and Span, Crisco, Crest, Cover Girl, and Ivory Soap. P&G has been so successful with marketing their brands that Harvard Business School teaches P&G's brand management system. What are the secrets to their success?

In this book, Charles L. Decker, a former brand manager at Proctor & Gamble, outlines the policies, ethics, and strategies that are the bedrock of P&G's success.

· Rigorous testing. P&G using panels of regular people to test their products, providing a "reality check" for the product development team. Every product undergoes blind testing against its competition. If P&G's brand doesn't win the test, its product doesn't go to market.

· Adapt products to local markets. When P&G enters a new market it works hard to express a commitment to its host country, by talking to the press and meeting with local opinion leaders. It also adapts products to meet the needs of consumers in host countries by using focus groups, and incorporating nationals into brand management.

· Maintain high ethical standards. P&G boasts that it makes no unethical political contributions, pays no bribes and does not deal under the table with customers or suppliers.

· Marketing. Here are some of the rules for P&G Marketing:
o Pick a simple, distinctive name.
o Design for shelf impact.
o Find the consumer insight.
o Start the commercial with a good "Hey you!"
o Emphasize the solution, not the problem.
o Show the package in the first 8 seconds.
o Let the viewer see the benefit.

That's right. None of the books that I recommend for the reader can help them unless they absolutely make the decision that they are going to apply the principles and the methodology that the writer is trying to communicate. I have tried the advice that Charles Decker gives and you know what? It Works!

I learned so much from the guiding principles of this book that buying it helped improve my understanding of:

*Developing consumer trust

*Building relationships with the customer

*Understanding culture and how to create culture

His section on thinking Globally versus acting with a local mentality were also helpful areas of his book. Pg 187 begins with a ripping section on Going To Market and using the concepts of transforming your product into a brand.

The book ends with lessons for effective print advertising including an area it seems a lot of start-ups struggle with ...Tag lines.

Again it worked for me I just hope you apply what you're reading and Flip the Switch...the lights do come on in this book.

Your Servant, Deremiah, *CPE (Customer Passion Evangelist)

in my opinion, the views of this books are quite up-dated but not very special when it is compared with other books which talk about management it is good for those who don't know marketing and management but for marketing specialist, it is a summary of some views

An excellent, well organized primer on the P&G system and culture - a great demonstration of how best to build brands and people in an organization. Can apply many of these principles to other organizations, large or small.