Unilever invests £13m in deo marketing

The FMCG company has developed a new way to compress the product using less gas which means that the pack is half the size of traditional cans, but contains the same amount of product for the same price.

The development is in line with Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan that aims to find ways to reduce the environmental impact of its products across both manufacturing and consumer use.

It will be first introduced across its Sure, Dove and Vaseline women’s deodorants this month.

The launch will be supported with a £12.8m marketing investment, including major point of sale presence in stores to educate consumers on the environmental improvements and reassure them they are not paying for less product. Activity will include TV, digital, print and outdoor advertising.

Unilever claims the “game changing” move uses 28 per cent less packaging than previous products.

James Griffin, marketing manager for Unilever’s Sure Women and Dove deodorant, says: “The aerosol format makes up 80 per cent of the total deodorant category and we are the biggest manufacturer in this market. It is therefore our responsibility to take action to improve the environmental impact of this hugely popular format. The Compressed range will make a real difference, driving positive change for both the environment and the retail sector.”

“Aisle theatre is crucial to helping shoppers make the switch and understand the benefits of the new Compressed format. Unilever is working closely with retailers to ensure that consumers truly appreciate the benefits of this new format and ultimately change their shopping behaviour.”

Unilever is currently rolling out the second phase of its sustainability initiative that aims to help households find ways to reduce the environmental impact of personal, home and laundry care brands such as Persil, Radox and Domestos.

The firm plans to use the insights gleaned from the social experiment to inform future behaviour change marketing and product design.