Procter & Gamble is mainly known for its heavy and persistent investment within its marketing department, however many consumers argue that they have not established mutual communication and feedback with certain brands under the conglomerate’s branch.
I read a particular blog representing the dysfunctional community Procter & Gamble are offering to its customers. This case was mainly based on Asacol, an anti-inflammatory drug used to treat inflammation of the digestive tract ulcerative colitis Crohn’s disease. John Mack, the blog writer, criticizes the fact that Asacol’s website does not give the consumer’s the chance to post constructive feedback and that the few of the product’s reviews in the website are suspected to be written by Procter & Gamble’s own employees. “All these stories, whether actually submitted by real people or not, contribute to a feeling of community on the site, but it is a faux and dysfunctional community at best”. This has certainly created major controversy, not only for Asacol, but for other brands owned by Procter & Gamble.
Probably, the most important aspect I learned from my marketing class, is that a brand has to achieve customer value in order to attract and retain their customers. It is obviously that Procter & Gamble are not encouraging their brands to establish strong relationships with their customers. Instead, they invest more money and put more attention to advertisements, promotions, pricing, and sales. Nowadays, companies have to start investing more on consumer behavior in order to better understand what the consumer wants and open more room for their products’ improvements.
http://pharmamkting.blogspot.com/2009/06/proctor-and-gambles-dysfunctional.html