Sebamed: Comparative Advertising to Attack the Leader Brand Unilever
Sebamed, a German soap brand, is in India since 2007. But no one knew it except a few parents for its soap for babies.
Sebamed greeted audience via full page newspaper ads, directly attacking the top Unilever soap brands like Lux, Dove, and Pears – comparing to a detergent soap RIN. The campaign theme started with the idea of do not trust celebrities but science. Videos were launched on social media, followed by print and outdoor media. The simple POD (point of differentiation) was the Ph balance, a scientific measure of acidic nature. Popular media covered this bold move extensively. Some questioned the move, and some praised the bold advertisements.
The whole saga is an excellent textbook example of comparative advertising and how a small brand can challenge a well established market leader brand.
Questioning the Ph of Dove. The milk does not matter!
Ok, so should we bath with RIN now. I am sure it can make us shining white, much better than Fair and Lovely (or Glow?)
Unilever, the market leader, immediately sprang to action, as usual taking a legal rout and an automated response to consumers baffling about quality and trust. But no word about the claim of Ph against its brands like Pears, Dove, and Lux. Well, the ugly face of consumerism was in open, as the critical information is always hidden from consumers. Recently, the issue of honey and corn syrup brought similar responses from top brands. But, a silver lining is that conscious consumers are talking about these cases on social media and which is creating awareness among others.
An excellent outdoor ad. Outdoor does matter.
Nice take on celebrity enforced poisonous cocktail of beauty and the beasts/soaps.
The Court has put a temporary band on Sebamed ads and a final order is awaited on 19 Januray. In between, Sebamed has decided to ride the free wave of media and increased consumer awareness. They continued with their blitzkrieg and posted another full page ads. This ad did not take any names but cleverly asked users to check Ph of their soaps by offering a free Ph test kits. An ingenious move! Let the power be with consumers. Many of us would have used these paper strips in our schools to differential acid with base. Looks like someone still remember their chemistry lessons and periodic table.
PS: A 100 gram bar of Sebamed is priced at Rs.199. Dove, Lux and Pears are priced at Rs. 45, 28, 40, respectively. So, Sebamed costs almost 4 times than these regular soaps. However, the article is not about pricing. Many Indian consumers can afford Sebamed. The critical question remains answered. Will Unilever accept the Ph value of their celebrity brands which have ruled Indian markets sicne ages? A simple question of Ethical Marketing!