Colgate Stakes Oral Care Platform On “Incremental Cavity Protection”
This article was originally published in The Tan Sheet
Executive Summary
“The benefit of this incremental cavity protection … is something that we will build upon,” says CMO Nigel Burton. The firm seeks to build the Colgate Maximum Cavity Protection brand in emerging markets, where consumers struggle with cavities due to a lack of fluoride in water.
Colgate Maximum Cavity Protection with Neturazucar is a “long-term innovation platform” for the brand to provide products that deliver “incremental cavity protection,” says Colgate-Palmolive Co. executive Nigel Burton.
At the UBS Global Consumer Conference in Boston on March 13, Burton said the arginine-containing toothpaste rolled out in late 2013 has delivered strong results in a limited number of emerging markets.
“This is unique in the global marketplace,” Burton, Colgate’s chief marketing officer, said of the acid-neutralizing toothpaste, touted as reducing early tooth decay by 32%. “The benefit of this incremental cavity protection, this is something that we will build upon,” he added.
Already available in Brazil, Malaysia and Turkey, the toothpaste will soon roll out in the U.K. as an entry point for the European market, Burton said.
For its October 2013 launch in Brazil, Maximum Cavity Protection was touted as a “breakthrough” in fighting cavities because it contains a combination of arginine and fluoride that reduces cavities better than toothpastes containing the maximum amount of fluoride (Also see "Colgate Leads Oral Care Pack Through “Relentless” Innovation " - Pink Sheet, 10 Feb, 2014.).
Although arginine already is found effective in reducing tooth sensitivity, a two-year clinical study funded by Colgate-Palmolive and published online by the Caries Research journal in March 2013, found that a combination of 1.5% arginine, 1,450 ppm fluoride and an insoluble calcium compound of either di-calcium phosphate or calcium carbonate provide “significantly greater” protection against caries in low-to-moderate risk populations than dentifrices containing 1,450 ppm fluoride alone.
While the Maximum Cavity Protection rollout will continue, Burton suggested a U.S. launch is not on the firm’s short-term radar screen. Asked whether Colgate will try again for FDA approval of the formula, he said, “We'll see how to go about that.”
The firm will seek to build the brand in emerging markets, where consumers struggle with cavities due to a lack of fluoride in water, he noted.
Colgate failed previously to gain FDA approval to use arginine in its Colgate Sensitive Pro-Relief with Argin toothpaste, a tooth sensitivity-fighting formula. Already marketed outside the U.S., the toothpaste is used only in dentists' offices in the U.S. (Also see "Colgate Bids To Expand U.S. Toothpaste Lineup Through FDA Rulemaking" - Pink Sheet, 28 May, 2012.).
Colgate’s Sensitive Pro-Relief formula available in the U.S. mass market does not contain arginine.
TV Still Focal In Advertising
Burton also noted firm’s current advertising strategy, saying it is looking closely at the return-on-investment for its traditional versus digital advertising efforts. Digital advertising currently represents 15% of the firm's marketing, and will grow in coming years, he said.
However, he asserted that television ads are a “fundamental underpinning of our business just in the consumer reach it gives you.”
“Where digital comes into play, is with the frequency with which we engage with consumers, and the depth with which we are able to use digital media to give a richer message.”