The Dove Campaign for Real Beauty - Pearson

Part 1 Marketing nowComputer printer makers use a ‘lamp and oil’ pricing strategy adopted by Standard Oil tostimulate oil sales in the nineteenth century. Their Mei Foo, ‘beautiful and trustworthy’,lamp was sold very cheaply or given away with kerosene by the millions. Computer printermakers make their profits on ink cartridges that customers need to make the printer work.Kodak estimates that, as a consequence, consumers pay $4,000 per US gallon (about €800 perlitre) for their ink. Not surprisingly, this high margin has attracted retailers, from local shops tolarge big-box stores, to now offer toner cartridge refill services. However, printer companieswould prefer to sell their cartridges for €50 or more, rather than allow someone to refill one forhalf the price. So they make it hard for refill operations by continually introducing new modelsand tweaking inkjet cartridges and laser toner containers to make refillable ones obsolete. Thisleaves refill parts manufacturers struggling to keep up, jockeying with the printer companies thatare working to thwart them. 12Critics charge that some producers continually change consumer concepts of acceptable stylesin order to encourage more and earlier buying. An obvious example is constantly changingclothing fashions. Other producers are accused of holding back attractive functional features,then introducing them later to make older models obsolete. Critics claim that this practice isfrequently found in the consumer electronics and computer industries. For example, Intel andMicrosoft have been accused in recent years of holding back their next-generation computerchips or software until demand is exhausted for the current generation. Consumers have alsoexpressed annoyance with kitchen appliances, cameras and consumer electronics companies’policy of rapid and frequent model replacement. Rapid obsolescence has created difficulties inobtaining spare parts for old models. Moreover, dealers refuse to repair outdated models andplanned obsolescence rapidly erodes basic product values. Still other producers are accused ofusing materials and components that will break, wear, rust or rot sooner than they should.Marketers respond that consumers like style changes; they get tired of the old goods and want anew look in fashion or a new design in cars. No one has to buy the new look, and if too few peoplelike it, it will simply fail. For most technical products, customers want the latest innovations, even ifolder models still work. Companies that withhold new features run the risk that competitors willintroduce the new feature first and steal the market. For example, consider personal computers.Some consumers grumble that the consumer electronics industry’s constant push to produce‘faster, smaller, cheaper’ models means that they must continually buy new machines just to keepup. Others, however, can hardly wait for the latest model to arrive.Thus, companies rarely design their products to break down earlier, because they do not wantto lose their customers to other brands. Instead, they seek constant improvement to ensure thatproducts will consistently meet or exceed customer expectations. Much of so-called plannedobsolescence is the working of the competitive and technological forces in a free society – forcesthat lead to ever-improving goods and services.In addition, if exploited to excess consumers rebel and market opportunities arise. Miele, the topof-the-rangeGerman kitchen appliance manufacturer, now offers a free 10-year warranty with itswashing machines, and Kodak is launching computer printers that use inexpensive ink cartridges.Poor service to disadvantaged consumersFinally, marketing has been accused of serving disadvantaged consumers poorly. Critics claimthat the urban poor often have to shop in smaller stores that carry inferior goods and chargehigher prices. Others, particularly those in the countryside, are in retail deserts without access to78