A global chemical company was looking to expand the sale of its easy-to-clean paint ingredient to paint manufacturers. To do so successfully, the company was committed to improving its customer-centric marketing and messaging approach.
The company’s growth strategy for the easy-to-clean ingredient was to license partners across the globe. The challenge was to determine if one message could work in all countries, or if separate ones needed to be developed by region or country. At the core of the issue was to determine what easy clean meant to people, and the degree of technical detail they needed in the messaging.
A multi-phased immersive approach was designed that combined four in-depth focus groups in the U.S. and India, followed by two-day global online bulletin boards in four other markets. Participants were probed on their notion of easy-to-clean, the types of stains needing most attention, and what emotional and technical messages were most relevant and compelling.
The focus groups and bulletin boards provided strong direction for the creation of a global customer-centric messaging approach. Across all countries and groups, the easy-to-clean proposition resonated most strongly when connected to a specific type of paint experience, especially when dealing with tough stains. From these insights, the company felt confident in moving forward with messaging that would drive partner and customer engagement.
