Warc, 6 March 2013
LONDON: A growing number of FMCG companies are launching
ecommerce sites and selling directly to consumers, with Kimberly-Clark becoming
the latest firm to do so via its online Kleenex Shop in the UK.
A six-month trial of the ecommerce site is planned and, if
successful, is expected to be rolled out to other brands in the Kimberly-Clark
portfolio, which could include Andrex and Huggies.
"We're seeing significant growth in the online channel
through our retail partners," Adrian Percival, senior manager of ecommerce
at Kimberly-Clark UK, told Marketing Week, "and we're determined to win in
this channel, so we need to know what influences their behaviour, that's the
goal of this shop."
The company hopes to gain insights that will help with
everything from product and packaging design to retail strategy.
The timing of the move could be ideal, as a recent survey
from the Direct Marketing Association noted that the willingness of British
consumers to share information with brands has risen sharply over the past 18
months.
Diageo, Kellogg, GlaxoSmithKline and Procter & Gamble
are among other leading FMCG companies that have experimented with direct
selling.
A P&G spokesperson said it was an area where they moved
slowly, testing and learning by brand and by online space.
"Our focus is on making sure our brands are present and
effective wherever people look for them and expect them to be," he said.
But Ian Thomas, of shopper marketing agency Arc, said it was
more important for marketers to nurture their brand online than sell products
directly, as there was a risk of "taking their eye off the ball" of
brand management.
Data sourced from Marketing Week; additional content by Warc
staff
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