Principles of Brand Building: P&G

Principles of Brand Building: P&G

                In the Marketplace Live simulation, one of the important concepts learned was the establishment of a brand and building on it. As chronicled in previous posts, Procter & Gamble has a remarkable history of building brands. From Ivory soap to Tide laundry detergent, Proctor & Gamble learned early on that, in the consumer goods industry, it is the brand that makes the company and not the other way around. In over 165 years, Procter & Gamble established ten principles (noted as “tried and tested”) of brand building. I am using this post as a place to summarize and analyze the principles as outlined in the book, Rising Tide: Lessons from 165 Years of Brand Building at Proctor & Gamble.

1.       Do the Right Thing

From the beginning, the company conducted itself in a manner of responsibility and integrity, but it took over 140 years for P&G to put those principles to paper. The company continues to operate with the highest standards. Today, the company’s corporate social responsibility report chronicles such actions.

2.       Cultivate a Passion for Winning

P&G has cultivated a culture of being ‘number one’, especially with the core brands. Should one of the brands fall behind that of a competitor, there arises a determination to not only recapture the lead but have the brand surpass itself.

3.       Sustaining Brands is a Never-Ending Challenge

One of the more popular stories at P&G is with Ivory soap, the product that helped the company gain global notoriety. During the mid-twentieth century, the brand was essentially neglected and became perceived as “old-fashioned”. P&G revitalized the brand, which remains strong today. An important lesson was learned in which the company established an internal promise to never allow such brand erosion to happen again.

4.       The Consumer is Boss

The company’s commitment to market research and test marketing is never-ending. The reason for this is that P&G wants to know what its customers want, and the needs of the consumer are constantly changing and evolving. As with the Marketplace Live simulation, understand what the customer wants, make something to suit the customer’s needs, and then market the product to make the customer aware that you have what they need.

5.       Individuals Make a Difference

A common thread within the book that chronicles the history of P&G is that of a single individual or small team of individuals who remained committed to an idea long after executives had decided to shelve it. More often, those are the ideas that would eventually evolve into one of the company’s ‘billion dollar brands’. Often cliché in today’s world, the motto ‘your people are your most important asset’ has never applied more.

6.       Discipline Counts

In this principle, the term ‘discipline’ has a wide range of application. Discipline must be executed everywhere. In everything from research and development, to marketing, to production, to financial controls, discipline must be present in all the components that make up the company.

7.       Innovate Constantly, Everywhere

Product innovation not only leads to the creation of new brands, but leads to sustainability of existing ones. Innovation is the key to existence. In 165 years, Proctor & Gamble saw many of its competitors simply fall by the wayside just with the passing of time. P&G did more than win a battle of attrition; they ‘innovated’ their way there.

8.       Lead Change

Stagnation is a disease in many organizations. Resistance to change is a pestilence. Alongside lack of innovation, it is a major destroyer of brands and companies. Forward-thinking leadership in an organization should be the largest proponent of change. The concept of change is one that is best communicated from the top down. When leaders embrace change, it soon becomes part of the culture.

9.       Alliances Create Advantage

Procter & Gamble developed many of the brands that have become household names, but getting a brand to that point did not come without some assistance. Such assistance comes in the form of advertising agencies who provide expertise in marketing a product, contract manufacturers who assist in specific phases of production of the product, and distributors who timely deliver the product to the outlets that connect the product with the end user, the consumer. Strong alliances, such as these, are imperative to establishing and sustaining the success of a brand as well as the company as a whole.

10.   Partner with Customers

As a continuation of point #9, P&G’s customers are the retailers and distributors who channel the products to the consumer. Strong alliances/partnerships with these channels are critical. One story chronicled in the book was P&G’s location in Arkansas to work with the mass-merchandiser Wal-Mart. Through experiences gained, P&G has developed many best practices in the arena of supply chain management.

Some of Proctor & Gamble's most popular brands (note: the Pringles brand was sold to Kellogg's in February 2012) source: http://www.pg.com/



While none of the principles listed above are new, they are often overlooked and thus become the reasons why many entities fail to succeed. Time and again, these principles were tested and have passed the test.

Excerpts extracted from:

Dyer, Davis et. al., Rising Tide: Lessons from 165 Years of Brand Building at Procter & Gamble (Harvard Business School Press: Boston) 2004. 405-412.