Brand Health Check: Winalot

By contrast, Mars' Pedigree brand has capitalised on the fact that consumers are worrying about their dogs' diets as well as their families' with its 'Better by Nature' positioning.

However, Nestle Purina has effected a positive impact on its Gourmet cat-food, playing on the 'foodie' trend with a campaign promising to 'take luxury dining to a whole new level', after which it posted the biggest sales rise (26%) of the top 10 petcare brands for the year.

At the other end of the price scale, Winalot's main competitors are super-markets' own-label petfoods. Consequently, it will have to fight to benefit from consumer belt-tightening.

We asked Andrew Challier, managing partner at Billets Marketing Investment Management, which handles auditing for Mars, and Jez Groom, partner at Edwards-Groom-Saunders, which runs the communications account for Pets at Home, for their thoughts on how Winalot might reverse its fortunes.

Diagnosis   Two industry experts offer advice on how to restore Winalot to vitality

Andrew Challier managing partner, Billets Marketing Investment Management

Petfood is one of a handful of categories that are ostensibly unexpandable in terms of demand. The result is a fight for share and a quest for genuine innovation (for which, read added-value product that sells at a premium).

Many of the brands that still dominate the sector are trusted and well-known names, and the market is one with high levels of emotional investment. Already a nation of cat- and dog-lovers, when it comes to caring for our pets consumers look to brands they can rely on, in much the same way they do in markets such as baby food.

In the competitive world of petfood marketing, rivals have clearly made a dent in the Winalot brand. A sales loss of one-third in the course of five years suggests a brand in long-term - or faster - decline.

Perhaps we should not be surprised. The bulk of adspend in the category is on TV and, in a market where TV spend is 27% up year on year, Winalot's share of voice is precisely zero. Compare this with the multimillion adspends of brands such as Pedigree, or even Butcher's and Baker's - yes, they really do compete side-by-side - and the challenge seems to be fairly obvious.

Remedy

• For Winalot, there does appear to be a genuine TV share-of-voice argument. The brand should lead with TV, then maximise impact by following up with online activity.
• It all hinges on the execution. The message has to match share of voice, and there is no point ploughing money into TV if the story is weak.
• Winalot needs to concentrate on communicating a message that presents an up-to-date and relevant 'take' on an old, familiar brand.

Jez Groom partner, EdwardsGroomSaunders

Complete this sentence. If pet lovers love their pets, then brand managers love their.... ?

It must be tough managing Winalot. Faced with an increasingly powerful multiple sector and an unrelenting churn of young and thrusting category buyers vying to make their mark, what else can you do but ' focus on the fixture'?

'We want NPD, we want new, we want it today! We want BOGOF, we want value, we want it everyday!' cries the consumer. It's no wonder that Winalot has only found £1m to spend outside of the super-markets in the last five years, trying to drive any 'pet-loving' consumer pull.

In such a competitive arena, it is this lack of investment that has inevitably led to a once-ubiquitous brand losing its consumer relevance and becoming more susceptible to erosion of market share.

Clearly, there isn't much room for brand managers who love their brands to tell pet lovers who love their pets to buy their brands.

Remedy

• Build a commercial case for an investment blend, combining trade marketing push and consumer advertising pull in 2009.
• Substantiate the current proposition 'A Taste of the great outdoors' more clearly. Explain to consumers how this benefits their dogs, and tell them how much they love their dogs as a result.
• Take advantage of an incredibly cost-effective TV advertising marketplace and become the second-biggest player in the market with an investment of just £1.2m.
• Invest in some econometrics and prove the value of your contribution in the short-and long-term both to the board and multiple buyers.