• In 1992 , Colgate Palmolive (CP) was poised to launch a new

toothbrush in the United States , tentatively named Colgate

precision .
• Susan Steinberg , Precision product manager , was weighing the
option of introducing a new toothbrush to the niche market to a
main stream market , both the options have their own potential
benefits and challenges .
 Analysing consumer behaviour
• The consumer research indicated that the people were more concerned
about the health of their gums and are willing to pay more for premium
and new products addressing these problems .
• Some believed that toothbrushes were as important as tooth paste for
an effective oral hygiene .
• Few believed that the primary role of toothbrush is to remove food
particles and gum stimulations were considered secondary .
The top competitors are :-
As the pace of new product introduction quickened in the
late 1980s , the advertising media expenditure needed to
launch a new toothbrush rose .

Growing competition increased the frequency and value of

consumer promotion events .

The CP toothbrush line held 25% to 40% of the category

shelf space in most stores .
In 1992 , 22% of all the toothbrushes were expected to be distributed to consumers
by dentists .

Manufacturer margins on toothbrush sales through dentists were less than half
those achieved through normal retail distribution .

Toothbrushes provided retailers with an average margin between 25% to 35% ,

twice of that of a toothpaste .
Niche positioning strategy
Mainstream positioning strategy
CP should peruse the mainstream positioning strategy for the Precision .

Also, perusing a mainstream strategy takes advantage of the rapid growth in the
retail outlets (mass merchandisers and club stores ) that would purchase these new
products .
Analysis of the Pro forma income statements shows that the
mainstream positioning strategy will lose almost $6.7MM in the
first year but earns $16MM in the second year whereas in the
niche strategy the losses in the first year is $1.4MM but gains
$7.4MM in the second year .

Therefore it could be concluded that the mainstream positioning

strategy will help CP in the long run .
Steinberg should adopt and
maintain positioning strategy for
the precision because it would lead
to the increase of performance as
well as helps the company in the
long run .

It also enables Colgate Palmolive to

expand its market through mass
 DISCLAIMER
Created by Aditya Thakur , IIT Bombay , During an internship
on Marketing under the guidance of professor Sameer Mathur