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Procter & Gamble’s CMO Has New Mantra of Dialogue-Driven Communications

One of the world’s largest marketers, Procter & Gamble, is leading a major cultural shift away from “telling and selling” type of marketing to building relationship with customers.

At the Association of American Advertising Agencies’ Media Conference, Jim Stengel, Procter & Gamble’s Chief Marketing Officer, talked about the future of marketing being about a two way dialogue. “It’s about engaging with people in a two way relationship and seeking to understand the other person rather than control them”.Jim Stengel's session lived up to its billing as one of the must-see presentations with plenty of examples to describe the two-way community-oriented strategy. One such example was the "human" approach taken by Procter & Gamble to getting the Folgers factory in operation after the devastating Hurricane Katrina. The stories told by the factory's employees were used in Folgers' advertising. What was the result for the brand? It recovered its market share and exceeded it past the pre-hurricane mark.

However, Jim Stengel did give words of caution to marketers taking on this cultural shift. "It takes stepping outside of your comfort zone and eliminating barriers that separate you from your consumers". [One way to get closer to your customers is with Vision Critical's Panel + software.] "It's not going to happen overnight but if we make one big bet on the future, the smart money is on building relationships".

The Association of American Advertising Agencies' Media Conference was held in Las Vegas from February 28 to March 2. Read Jim Stengel's full transcript here.

Posted on March 12, 2007
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