Introduction
Colgate was found in 1806 by a man named William Colgate. At the time his main goal was to produce starch, soap and candles. This all started in a small shop that he owned in New York City. Around 1820 as Colgate’s products started to expand, his main products at the time were soap and starch. In 1857 when William Coalgate passed away, his shop became Colgate and Company. At this time Samuel Colgate ran his business and added more products to the company such as perfume and perfumed soap (Pederson, 2005). As time went on Colgate finally produced toothpaste in a jar in the year of 1873. A long 23 years after their toothpaste was produced, they introduced their toothpaste as Colgate Ribbon Dental Care (Pederson, 2005). Around this time they partnered up with many other companies and produced many different products to add to their companies. As they got bigger they moved their main headquarters to Jersey City in 1910 (Pederson, 2005). Colgate and Company wanted to expand their products around the world instead of just in the United States. In the early 1920s they expanded around the world with their products quite fast with a good result and partnering up with many different companies around the world to increase their rate of success (Pederson, 2005). In the early 1980s Colgate made a huge success with their toothpaste. They did research and found products to put in their toothpaste to prevent cavities, bad breath, whiter teeth results, and gum from bleeding (Pederson, 2005). This new toothpaste that they named Total was a huge success and made great sales all over the world. This product was a great success all over the world but it was held back in the United States for further observations in case of any harmful chemicals that may be in the toothpaste (Pederson, 2005). It was observed in the United States for an estimate of 5 years and finally in December of 1997 it made to the shelves of many stores around the United States (Pederson, 2005). This was a huge success for them and Colgate didn’t expect to be the leader of the U.S. toothpaste market. With this great response from their product, they anticipated to make their product of toothpaste much better and more reliable. As being the number company with the best toothpaste, Colgate continued to expand their toothpaste and came out with the first white strips for teeth and also made battery powered tooth brushes (Pederson, 2005).
Colgate and Company has many targets and many different products for a variety of different ages. Colgate offers a complete product line including items for children which helps expand their target market (“Procter & gamble:” 2007). The audience that Colgate is targeting towards men and women ages 18-34 who is currently married with children, six years old or younger. Colgate has so many products that it is hard to aim at one certain target. The target consumer that Colgate falls under is “younger bustling family” living within the mid-scale suburban mix community (“Procter & gamble:” 2007). Colgate is sold over almost all the retail outlets, supermarkets, medical shops, and cooperative stores. Most of Colgate’s advertising products are done through television commercials (“Procter & gamble:” 2007). Some other advertisements include magazine ads, the radio, ads that are placed in dentist offices, billboards, and on the side of buses. With the success of Colgate, it has been voted the “Most Trusted Brand” in the country for over many years (“Procter & gamble:” 2007). As they have a major range for their target market, they also have many competitors around the world that are trying to be better and more consistent with their products as well. The top three competitors for Colgate and Company would be The Clorox Company, The Procter and Gamble Company, and Church and Dwight co (“Colgate-palmolive company competition,” 2012). Next to Colgate, these three companies are also very well-known. They not only want to make their products better but to also to wipe out Colgate and Company (“Colgate-palmolive company competition,” 2012).
Every product has a possibility of one top competitor. Colgate’s top competitor is Procter and Gamble Company. Procter introduced Crest Pro-Health which claims to carry in one tube everything a consumer could possibly want in toothpaste. Pro-Health is a direct challenge to Colgate Total. Colgate was the first toothpaste to claim that it fights gingivitis, an advantage that let Colgate ahead of Crest for the first time in decades (“Procter & gamble:” 2007). Procter is now claiming that Pro-Health is the only toothpaste that protects against gingivitis, cavities, sensitivity and stains. With the two brands fighting about having the best product, it all comes down to who can advertise and get their name out more. For example, advertisements from Crest Pro-Health feature real people who have tried and liked the product. Rather than focus on science, Colgate uses glamour and emotion to advertise its germ fighting toothpaste (“Procter & gamble:” 2007). The theme for Pro-Health is “Healthy, beautiful smiles for life.”, whereas Colgate carried the theme “Look, mom, no cavities.” Crest Pro-Health was ranked sixth among top selling toothpaste brands in the United States with sales of $13.7 million (“Procter & gamble:” 2007).
There are many things that Colgate could do and change to set them apart from Crest Pro-health. For example, they could offer special coupons and rebates through their other products to draw more people into buying their products. Since they carry other products such as detergent, they could attach additional coupons to get as low as fifty cents off a tube of toothpaste. Another example is that Colgate commercials could air more at night due to the fact that more adults watch television during that time. Just by changing the time of the day for the commercials could make a huge difference. Colgate’s top promotion strategy should be to differentiate their design and packaging from others. All toothpastes come in different sizes, but many of them come in one shape only. Changing the design and the package of the design could draw in more costumers into buying their product simply because it looks different from the rest.
Colgate and Company does a great job with their products and to satisfy their customers as best as they can. They don’t only have great products but they also have tremendous and useful programs all around the world to families and kids that are in need. Colgate has a program called “Colgate Bright Smiles, Bright Future”. In this program they help families that are in need with free dental examinations and free dental education (“Colgate reaches children,” 2012). Colgate has helped many people around the world and is expanding every day. This program not only attracts more people to buy their products but it also helps them have a better name with the act of kindness that they do. Currently they are giving their free service of dental education and examinations in more than 80 countries around the world (“Colgate reaches children,” 2012). “Colgate Bright Smiles, Bright Future” also have a mobile van that they travel around the world to villages and small cities that don’t have transportation to help them out. They currently help over 1 million kids a year with this mobile van (“Colgate reaches children,” 2012). Even with the cost of traveling and products, they are willing and are nice enough to charge nothing to their customers that are in need. This may be one of the most helpful and useful programs around the United States. “Colgate Bright Smiles, Bright Future” not only think about people in the United States but people all around the world to make them have a better living (“Colgate reaches children,” 2012).
Colgate doesn’t only have a great history of how they started but also great success stories of helping others throughout the world. It’s amazing how Colgate started over 200 years ago from nothing but starch and soaps to being the number one best seller for toothpaste. They protect your teeth from decaying and having gum diseases, it is also one of the top products in the world, but they should always be aware of their competitors because toothpaste can be one of the most competitive products. Colgate reaching out to thousands of communities shows how much they care for others who are in need of not only dental care but with oral health education. These are the reasons why I choose Colgate over other brands because of their promising results in using their toothpaste and the thoughtfulness organizations that they have to offer. With myself being a loyal customer to Colgate, I feel like with every purchase I make, I am helping a child or a family that are in need of something so important, and I am proud to be one of these helpers.
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