P&G, Walmart, Unilever, General Mills Are Major Marketers on a Mission†

From 'We Save You Money' to 'We Nourish Lives,' Giants Make Some Big Statements

Advertising Age, November 16, 2009 — If you haven't touched and improved more lives more completely lately, you probably wouldn't last long as a Procter & Gamble Co. marketer.

The touching-and-improving mantra flows off lips at P&G these days with the eerie ease that "consumer is boss" did nearly a decade ago. The catchphrase rotation has been the most obvious manifestation of the transition to CEO Bob McDonald. He and Global Brand-Building Officer Marc Pritchard frequently answer questions about everything from growth strategy to the role of a brand manager by citing that touching/improving theme.

Walmart 'Impact Store' Program Remains on Track†

Remodeled Stores Will Make Up 32% of Retailer's U.S. Outlets By Mid-November

Advertising Age, October 21, 2009 — Reports by some suppliers and others close to Walmart that the retailer will temporarily halt rollout of its remodeled "Impact Stores" looks to be wishful thinking: The retailer's executives indicated to analysts and investors today that the program remains on track, and that elimination of in-aisle displays will even accelerate.

Mom Accuses Walmart of Going After Girl Scouts†

Says Retailer Rolls Out Private-Label 'Fake' Thin Mints, Tagalongs

Advertising Age, August 3, 2009 — Walmart, which has been going after a lot of brands lately with the restage and expansion of its Great Value private label, now appears to be taking on the Girl Scouts.

At BlogHer Confab, Marketers Show Moms Some Love†

Pepsi, P&G, Walmart, Kodak, Others Look to Learn Lessons of Social Media While Feting Moms With Luncheons, Gift Bags

Advertising Age, July 27, 2009 — If you were wondering where the media budgets have gone, you might have tried looking around Chicago late last Thursday through Saturday, or maybe even check out one of the city's pawn shops this week.

At the BlogHer '09 conference in Chicago marketers were lining up to woo around 1,500 mommy bloggers with swag, celebrity appearances, shopping sprees and lavish entertainment of the sort that seems part of a bygone era to most of the marketing world.

Walmart Browbeats Marketers for Bigger Slice of Their Ad Budgets†

Risk of Losing Shelf Space May Persuade Some to Fork Over Consumer-Media Dollars

Advertising Age, July 20, 2009 — Walmart has launched an aggressive push to have marketers divert their consumer media and marketing budgets into the giant retailer's growing ad budget and in-store marketing programs, using a simultaneous push to clear underperforming brands off its shelves as extra leverage.

Unilever, Walmart, P&G Buck the Short-Term Trend†

As Recession Forces Cuts, Leaders Build for Future With Marketing, R&D

Advertising Age, June 29, 2009 — It's been said over and over: There's no time like recession, when competitors are retreating, to ramp up innovation and marketing to grab share.

So far, the competitors have done their part. U.S. trademark applications through mid-June were down 17% from a year ago; patent application growth stalled last year after more than a decade of high single-digit annual growth; and ad spending plunged 14% last quarter, according to TNS Media Research.

The intrepid share-grabbers have been harder to find. Now, however, as the dust settles from the fourth-quarter financial collapse, a growing number of them appear to be sticking their heads out of the bunkers to lay the groundwork for long-term growth in a short-term-obsessed world.

Why Walmart Is Getting Serious About Marketing†

Giant Attributes Success to Segmentation, Market Research and Advertising

Advertising Age, June 8, 2009 — It's marketing's time at Walmart.

It's easy to become complacent when you are a $401 billion company whose shareholder meeting gets teen idol Miley Cyrus out of bed before 8 a.m. to perform for more than 15,000 employees as a warm-up act for American Idol Kris Allen. But Walmart executives know that if the recession abates, they will face a challenge holding onto shoppers who've been introduced, or reintroduced, to the retailer as they've traded down to save money.

The Shift: Becoming Visionary Marketers Who Control Quest for Growth

By Scott Davis

Prophet, May 1, 2009 — This article, focused on key themes from Scott Davis' upcoming book, "The Shift," outlines a series of profound shifts that have ushered in a new era in marketing. This era is marked by Visionary Marketers who know that no one is better suited to help drive the growth agenda than the head of marketing.

Springsteen Says Walmart Deal Was A 'Mistake'†

But Will Put-down Hurt Retailer's Successful Music Program?

Advertising Age, February 2, 2009 — In the end, Walmart may not have entirely gotten its money's worth for a Bruce Springsteen exclusive. The Boss dissed the giant retailer in a New York Times interview just days before his Super Bowl performance.

Green-Light Specials, Now at Wal-Mart

New York Times, January 25, 2009 — IT was billed the Choice Meeting: a secret two-day conference in Arkansas in 2005 pairing Wal-Mart Stores, a symbol of scorched-earth global capitalism, with some of the nation’s most influential environmentalists. And it began with a zinger.

“Tell me why I should care about an endangered mouse in Arizona?” asked H. Lee Scott Jr., the retail giant’s chief executive, only partly in jest.

At the time, Wal-Mart was the target of a well-orchestrated assault focusing on its labor practices and environmental record. It was also straining to keep its legendary growth on track. Mr. Scott, hungry for ways to protect and transform his company, began to see environmental sustainability as a way to achieve two goals: improve Wal-Mart’s bottom line and... continue reading