L’Oréal aims for one billion new customers

Millennials often like to shop in stores but first, they research products online. That's one of the insights L'Oreal is using to support its global marketing initiatives and ambitious long-term goals.

The beauty company, which owns such well-known brands as Lancome, the Body Shop and NYX, has put more emphasis on e-commerce during the past year--and shoppers are responding. The CEO recently said that total e-commerce sales in 2015 will exceed one billion euros, out of total revenues of more than 22 billion euros.

Shoppers in many nations know and trust L'Oreal brands, in part because the company adjusts its products for the needs and preferences of each consumer segment. In fact, L'Oreal features stories of multicultural innovations on its corporate website. Digital is increasingly important to the company as it seeks to attract 1 billion new customers while differentiating itself from competitors all over the planet.

No brand stays the same forever, because the marketing environment is constantly changing, including customer needs and competition, as well as regulations, environmental concerns, product possibilities and materials.

The CEO walked through a redone Body Shop store not long ago, and then told the fashion publication WWD: "The problem is that we have to represent the brand so that it looks new and it doesn’t look like the old Body Shop. That was The Body Shop of our mothers or the Millennials’ mothers and they [millennials] want their [own] brand." Which is why L'Oreal has revamped Body Shop so it represents its brand values in a way that's relevant to younger shoppers, emphasising ethical sourcing, value for price paid, function as well as fashion, natural ingredients and environmentally-friendly products and processes.

IKEA designs products for today and tomorrow

IKEA's UK FB page has more than 1 million likes, its Instagram account has more than 100k followers, its Pinterest boards have 31k followers, and some of its YouTube videos/adverts have more than 1 million views.

This is a highly social brand that earns the loyalty of customers worldwide through well-designed, reasonably-priced products, delivered with quality service and sourced with sustainability in mind.

The home page of IKEA's UK site tells visitors: 'Welcome to IKEA. We believe everyone deserves to have a beautiful home filled with well-designed furniture. And still have money left over for other things to enjoy in life. That’s why we offer our home furniture at prices so low as many people as possible will be able to afford them.'

To keep IKEA's products both fashionable and affordable, the company develops 2,000 new products every year. It also redesigns 2,000 products every year, refining the style or finding new ways to simplify the construction or cut costs to cut prices. As a result, IKEA must carefully manage inventory and product display within each department and each store, changing 'according to consumer behaviour' based on data analysis from buying patterns and ethnographic research in customers' homes.

Preparing for the products and designs of tomorrow, the company maintains a future living laboratory known as Space10 in Copenhagen. The website explains: 'Space10 investigates the future of urban living through a series of labs. Each lab sets out to tackle a specific challenge, and unfolds through a number of talks, workshops, pitch nights, design residencies, exhibitions, collaborative projects, and other formats.' Space 10 is open to the public and holds workshops for all ages, so visit the next time you're in Copenhagen.

Can banks learn from burger marketing?

ANZ, a major bank in Australia and New Zealand, has a new head of retail distribution--Catriona Noble, a former McDonald's Australia exec who is bringing the lessons of 'burger marketing' to the bank.

Burgers and banking? Success in both requires training staff to have customers' needs in mind in every transaction. Speed and accuracy count in burgers and banking. Of course, the bank, like the burger place, has to evolve the menu of products in the portfolio over time as customers' requirements and preferences change. Technology can add convenience at the till or the cash machine, for burgers and banking alike.

At ANZ, Noble is sprearheading a reimagining of branches to give them a more comfortable ambiance. The idea is to blend in with the community and make customers feel at ease, encouraging repeat visits and positive brand associations. Not so different from burger restaurants, which after all must be refreshed and updated periodically.

"We have to compete on more than just price and more than just product; we have to be part of each local community," Noble says. "It is not like people want banks to be their second-best friend, but you do want to feel like you somewhat matter."

Will bank customers recommend ANZ to their friends? The Net Promoter Score is a key metric to be used in evaluating the bank's progress in satisfying customers. With NPS, customers are asked a single question: How likely is it that you would recommend this brand to a friend or colleague? Noble expects that applying NPS will result in a customer focus that differentiates ANZ from its competitors.


Competition is intense in the world of banking, and ANZ is investing in technology to enable its customers to bank when and where they want, at home or on the go. Still, branches remain a key element because of the opportunity to meet customers face-to-face and gain first-hand knowledge of their preferences, goals and concerns. ANZ is also reaching out via FB, LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube and a news portal.

Coca-Cola and Christmas marketing

Coca-Cola's iconic red-and-white logo is almost as Christmasy as can be. At holiday time, the brand uses special marketing to encourage consumers to try, buy and enjoy its soft drinks for parties and for any occasion.

At right, Coca-Cola's photo of its famous truck criss-crossing the UK during holiday season. The field marketing tour began in Inverness and ends in Leicester Square, London, two days before Christmas.

At each stop, consumers can enjoy free samples of Coke soft drinks amidst a wintery season backdrop, complete with festive lights. To increase anticipation and bring consumers to the lorry stop, Coke used the hashtag #holidaysarecoming and promoted the tour on its website and via publicity. Coke's UK FB page has more than 94m likes and its Twitter account has 126k followers, adding up to a huge audience for social media marketing.

This year, Coke is celebrating another marketing milestone: The 100th anniversary of its instantly recognisable contour bottle, which was introduced in 1915.

Now Coke has launched another packaging innovation: a bottle label that converts to a holiday bow. The idea is to encourage consumers to leave Coke bottles on the table and 'unwrap' the novelty bow as part of their holiday meals.

The strapline for this year's UK holiday campaign is: 'Bring happiness home'.

For more images of Coke's Christmas adverts of the past, see its online gallery here.

Marketing and creativity

Whether you're developing a marketing plan or looking for a new marketing idea, here are a few sites to check for inspiration and information:

• Brand Republic's best digital campaigns - Shown at left, selected mobile, social media and online marketing campaigns.
• Mobile Marketing Magazine's Innovation Lab - A weekly review of some of the week's tech innovations. Recent innovations pictured include cardboard guitars, sweat-powered clothing and invisible keyboards.
• Think with Google's Creative gallery page - Articles and advice about advertising, social media, branding and other creative marketing activities.
• The Drum's creative page - Articles and opinion about advertising, brand creativity and media innovations.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday are changing consumer behaviour

Black Friday is influencing consumer behaviour on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. So is Cyber Monday. And the result is higher demand for bargains online at the expense of in-store shopping.

Originally, Black Friday was a long-time US tradition, widely considered the start of the year-end holiday shopping season. Cyber Monday is a term coined by the US trade group National Retail Federation to describe the prevalence of online shopping on the Monday after Black Friday, a trend it began analysing and promoting a decade ago.

Now Black Friday and Cyber Monday have crossed the pond with the help of US-owned retailers like Asda and Amazon. What's more, both of these shopping 'holidays' are increasingly e-commerce driven, given the ubiquity of mobile devices.

2015 was a record year for UK Black Friday purchases, with shoppers spending an estimated £1.1bn to buy from UK online retailers. John Lewis says Black Friday was its single busiest shopping day ever--with online buying accounting for much of the growth in sales. Amazon UK also had its busiest day ever on Black Friday. Asda, however, wasn't participating in Black Friday bargains due to 'shopper fatigue around flash sales'.

Some UK retail sites had difficulty keeping up with the deluge of orders on Black Friday, as shown by the screen shot at top of this page. How many customers clicked away to buy elsewhere isn't known. But it's clear that both Black Friday and Cyber Monday are shaping consumer behaviour by encouraging shoppers to look for deep discounts on certain days or weeks and focusing attention on price as a key element in the buying decision.