P&G and Vocalpoint Want Your Voice

February 23rd, 2009 in News, by Head Honcho

Tide, Head and Shoulders, Pampers, Charmin, Crest, Pantene, Covergirl. These are but a few well-known products by Proctor and Gamble. It has managed to introduce and maintain products such as not by accident, but by deliberate planning - from research and development to product marketing.

Normally, you’d hardly be surprised if a large conglomerate would just bask in the success of its diverse line of products. But this is Proctor and Gamble we are talking about, and it has not reached the top if it is not always on its toes. As stated in the company’ss ite: “Our brands are built not only on strong science, but also, and importantly, on deep consumer understanding.” Case in point:  Proctor and Gamble has especially created a website called Vocalpoint to gather insights straight from women.

Vocalpoint is a place where moms can find useful news about all kinds of different things – including snacks, home appliances, TV shows, beverages, cleaning products, new websites, and events. There are many information that can be useful to anyone, like which foods are associated with less wrinkling. Occasionally, samples and coupons are given away to some lucky members. And as expected, Proctor and Gamble products are also given extra mileage by being prominently displayed on Vocalpoint.

Vocalpoint presents itself as a website which fosters a community. But it also serves as a tool to gather information from its members that the organization can use. The site has a page in which anyone can answer various surveys. You can take the one asking about your cleaning methods in the winter or the one asking you about the Oscars. Surveys like this are seemingly innocuous, but Proctor and Gamble surely has a reason why answers to the questions are significant, whether they can be used for product development or marketing purposes. By creating a crowdsourcing site like Vocalpoint, Proctor and Gamble gets information straight from its customers.

Vocalpoint’s activities are not limited to the site. It is also used to facilitate focus groups around the U.S. for the company to gain insights on a variety of products and services.

Vocalpoint also allows an avenue where its members can interact with one another. Join the discussion in the message board. Share your insights and experiences on topics generated by users themselves. Got tips on how to pamper yourself? Care to share what’s on your bucket list? This is the place to do so.

As gleaned from Vocalpoint’s experience, an innovative idea like crowdsourcing can be utilized even by “traditional” multi-national conglomerates. It can help a company learn more about its customers and its own products, if executed well.

Here is a an interview with A.G. Lafley, Proctor and Gamble CEO/Chairman, talking about how innovation is practiced in their organization.