Andrew Saum
November 8, 2012
Marketing In the News Write Up 3: Old Spice
Old Spice, America’s number one company for men’s grooming products, has
once again launched a social media and traditional media blitz on America. With the
beginning of football, Old Spice has increased marketing to its target segment, young
adult men between the ages of 18-24. Old Spice has a past of creating wacky yet “manly”
commercials and interactive videos that capture the consumer and go viral throughout the
market. Now with a new spokes person in Greg Jennings of the Green Bay Packers, we
can expect them to continue to reach their market through traditional and social media.
However, over time, comes change in the market, one in which Old Spice will have to
prepare for.
Strengths
Old Spice has many good qualities going for it as a company, one strength is
that of reputation. Owned by Procter and Gamble, Old Spice has been around for 70
years and is an American Icon. With a strong following, holding on to a key share in
the market allows them to continue to be a successful company. Another strength is
their quality of product. Old Spice is often associated with the top brand of mens
grooming products.
Weakness
Although Old Spice is a very profitable company, they also have flaws. The
first noticeable flaw is their size of market share. Although they target the male
population, they only truly target the age range of 18-24. This weakness brings in
other threats such as Axe or Gillette. Another weakness is their lack of innovation in
expanding their types of products. Old Spice is typically known as a body
wash/spray and deodorant manufactuer. This limits them furthermore as other
brands can become more popular by providing other grooming essentials, thus
lowering Old Spice’s popularity.
Opportunities
With many of Old Spice’s weaknesses comes many opportunities. First comes
the chance for them to expand their target market segment. Old Spice is currently
working on creating new products for men’s grooming as well as bringing back
classics for an “older” segment. However they still have many opportunities to
expand their profitability. They could create a whole new market all together by
creating a woman’s collection, thus entering a new market altogether.
Threats
A big threat to the men’s grooming industry is the threats of new entrants.
The biggest example of this was the introduction of Axe into the industry. Once Axe
gained access to the market, they easily created a stronghold and following that
rivals Old Spice.
Works Cited
http://www.inc.com/articles/201108/5-marketing-lessons-from-old-spice.html
http://pawade0484.hubpages.com/hub/Old-Spice-Market-Overview