Brands should be "agents for change," says Unilever cmo - Warc News

News: May 18, 2009

Brands should be "agents for change," says Unilever cmo

LONDON: Brands should aim to be become a "positive agent for change" that engage with consumers' aspirations and anxieties, according to Unilever's chief marketing officer, Simon Clift.

The Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant has been involved in a long-term restructuring programme aiming to revolutionise its approach to brand management and innovation, and its cmo has also encouraged advertisers to focus on social media.

Speaking at Media Week's Media360 conference, Clift argued that for "brand custodians" such as Unilever, "the speed of change has genuinely outpaced our ability to meet it."

As such, he stated that marketers are "just beginning to seize the opportunities," but also warned that "there's such inertia in the old model, we risk as marketers behaving as if it's still here."

One example of a brand successfully adapting to changing realities, Clift argued, was Ben & Jerry's, the ice cream manufacturer Unilever purchased for just over £200m (€147m; £131m) in 2000.

Clift said Ben & Jerry's had been "particularly brilliant" at using social media like Facebook, where it signed up 450,000 "friends" within two months of establishing an official presence on the site.

Dove has also harnessed the power of viral video in promoting its Campaign for Real Beauty, and launched a variety of different executions via this medium, as discussed in more detail here.

These examples show, Clift suggested, that "great creative can deliver a disproportionate return on investment" when employed in the right way.

Data sourced from Brand Republic; additional content by WARC staff, 18 May 2009

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