If I think about Philips, the Dutch transnational company which produces, …. yes, that’s indeed the question … Light Bulbs, Phones, CTG Scanners, Coffee Machines, TV Sets …
My very subjective association I still recall related to Philips goes back several years (or is it already more than a decade ;-) when they’ve released a line of toasters, coffee machines, etc. in co-operation with I think Philippe Starck; must have been the days when Alessi and their Memphis Designs have peaked public attention.
For several years now they’ve communicated the term “simplicity” in several iterations to the market. And even though lot has been reported about it I’ve never came across a product from Philips which really attracted my attention due to “simplicity” or let it be a genius combination of form or function (again this is my very subjective experience; Americans seem to have different experiences).
Today however a poll from AdvertisingAge (you get them by email as a registered user) attracted my attention which from my perspective exactly addresses the dilemma Philips is suffering from (at least on a consumer level product side) for a while.
Here’s the quote from their actual email alert:
BACKGROUND: Millions of Americans became more aware of Philips thanks to its media campaign that brought the table of contents closer to the front of magazines, stripped annoying subscription cards from Hearst titles and pared 12 minutes of ad time from “60 Minutes.” Yet the $100 million spent in the U.S. by the Dutch marketer on its “Sense and Simplicity” campaign didn’t familiarize consumers as much with its products. So the brand is trying another experimental marketing approach here a decade after being introduced in the U.S. The marketer is packaging most of its sub-brands, including Norelco, Sonicare, Avent and Magnavox, into a variety of test campaigns that tie back to the mother brand.
THIS WEEK’S POLL QUESTION: Do you think that Philips’ strategy of marketing its products — from shavers to medical products — under a corporate umbrella will matter to consumers?
So if you’d like to participate follow this link which I hope also works for non-subscribers >>>
