For two days in a row my Boston Globe was wrapped in a plastic bag containing a sample and coupon for Advil Congestion Relief Formula. And once again I’m reminded of Mo Udall.
The Arizona Congressman, also pro basketball player and two-time Presidential candidate, once quipped about his Congressional colleagues:
“Everything has been said, but not everyone has said it.”
The same is true of products far too often. Everything has pretty much been said about cold- and congestion-formula analgesics, wouldn’t you think? But apparently Advil hasn’t said it all yet.
Mind you, I really like Advil. We use it regularly in our house, and I just bought a big bottle of the plain variety. (But it took a while: tablets, caplets, gel-caplets, liqui-gels? Not to mention: what size bottle? Real Advil or house-brand generic?)
Advil may be genuinely adding something unique to the aisle, but how would I ever know? Especially when they already have a Cold and Sinus formula.
The line extension arms race for the War of Inches on shelf space makes left-brain sense. As Advil, Tylenol, Aleve, Excedrin, or private label, you want that marginal purchase, and you don’t want it to go to your competitor. This happens in categories all the time, and I proudly launched many a line extension as a brand manager myself (though I like to think Unscented Dove was a small gift to the world in its day).
From a right-brain perspective, though, the on-shelf clutter becomes a mind-numbing chatter of things you’ve already heard a million times. Like the floor of the House and Senate, with an endless parade of wordy folk eagerly reading their points into the record. And how do we feel about them? Do you want people to feel that way about you?
I’ll have more to say about product proliferation, and in the e-newsletter later this month I’ll say it in verse! So please sign up for the e-newsletter. Meanwhile, I’d like to hear your thoughts, so feel free to share your comments below.
Your article is helping me reframe how I approach facilitating a discussion with a client about its mission.
Karen–Thanks so much for your comment. I’m honored! So often I’ve found organizations have blinders that limit their world view in a couple of ways: either it’s purely insular (they drink their own Kool-Aid) or an inside-baseball game within their category. Understandable, when you’re marinating in a highly specialized environment, but it’s easy to lose touch. Best of luck with your client discussion. I’d love to hear how it goes!