Conversation with Safeguard Users by Josiah Go

Posted by: Josiah GoMay 9, 2017Conversation SeriesLeave a comment-->

Last May 5-6, 2017, Rex Book Store organized a seminar allowing me to help a group of marketing
professors from 5 schools improve their mastery on marketing strategy. In our session on assembling
value proposition, I used Safeguard, the dominant brand of germicidal soap in the Philippines, as an
example and asked users of Safeguard to comment about their usage experience. I am sharing their
comments below:
Dislikes:
When asked what they did not like about Safeguard, they shared the following openly:
1. ‘Dries your skin’
2. ‘Di mabango, specially ‘pag tumatagal’ (doesn’t smell good, especially when used for a long time)
3. ‘Matapang’ (chemicals are too strong)
4. ‘Madaling matunaw yun white variant’ (the white variant melts easily)
5. ‘Tumitigas pag di nagagamit’ (hardens when not continuously used)
Wish list:
When asked about their wish list on Safeguard, they shared the following:
1. ‘Mabango’ (better scent)
2. ‘Moisturizing’
3. ‘Mild’
4. ‘Matagal malusaw’ (won’t melt easily)
5. ‘May whitening’
6. ‘3 variants in 1 pack’
I asked the participants to note the two additional wish list not found in dislikes:
1. ‘May whitening’
2. ‘3 variants in 1 pack’
Overkill:
When asked if there is anything Safeguard is doing that they should not be doing, the participants did not
mention anything.
Likes:
When asked what they like about the leading brand. They enumerated many:
1. ‘Mura’ (affordable)
2. ‘Safe to use’
3. ‘Easy to hold’
4. ‘Many variants’
5. ‘Germ protection’
6. ”Laging Available’ (always available)
7. ‘For everyone in the family’
Dislikes and wish list are opportunities for firms to improve their offering. It is also opportunity for
competitors to attack. In fact, sometime in 2010, Green Cross, the leader in rubbing alcohol, launched a
germicidal soap with moisturizer and positioned their soap as ‘dual skincare that protects without drying
your skin’.
Unilever’s Lifebouy, the world’s leading germicidal soap, launched an offensive against Safeguard way
back in 1986 by offering a similar health soap positioning but highlighting several new perfumes. Edwin
Bautista, then Safeguard brand manager (now president of Union Bank) recalled that while Safeguard
scored high in germ protection, it did not do well in smell as consumers described it as ‘mediciny smell …
Lysol scent’. The advertisement of Lifebuoy implied that the entire family actually liked it and attacked
Safeguard’s perceived disadvantage in scent.
P&G management debated about introducing a more citrus-floral perfume and a gold color when its
market shares dropped from some 30% to just 10%. With excellent preference test and Safeguard’s skin-
germ protection image unchanged with this new variant, P&G launched this defensive campaign and saw
the market share trend reversed and climbed to 20% in just 6 months. The citrus-floral smell was
followed up with a White version then a Green one, with market shares continuously climbing up north.
About 25 years later, Unilever again launched an offensive against Safeguard with their Vaseline’s ‘germs
out, nutrients in’ positioning, offering more than the germ protection of Safeguard. Chad Sotelo, then
brand manager of Safeguard (now chief marketing officer of Samsung Philippines) recalled that they
decided to use ‘portfolio innovation’, which is to simultaneously defend using Safeguard and to counter
attack using the Olay beauty brand of P&G, forcing Vaseline to choose which business it wanted to
defend. Safeguard won that one again.
Q1: If you are the brand manager of Safeguard,
A) what can you do to further improve customer satisfaction?
B) what competitive threats should you anticipate and which do you think will competition be
highlighting?
Q2: If you are a competitor of Safeguard,
A) what opportunity can you see from the dislikes and wish list for Safeguard?
B) why do you think despite product superiority claim versus Safeguard, it has been able to defend and
hold on to market leadership?

Conversation with a Spa Therapist by Josiah Go

Posted by: Josiah GoMay 2, 2017Conversation SeriesLeave a comment-->

I started a new section in my blog, ‘Conversation’ series where I interview on-the-street people regarding
their work and personal thoughts. There are reflection questions at the end of each article for the readers
to chew on for individual learning.
For my first interview, I talked to an Uber driver-entrepreneur on my way to the airport in Boston last
April 6, 2017. In this second conversation series, I was inspired to Interview a spa therapist after I
watched a few episodes of the Netflix series ‘The Client List’ which featured actress Jessica Love Hewitt
as a masseur who kept her tip money in a plastic container inside the refrigerator.
I visit different spas to get foot massage quite often, usually immediately after a training session where I
get some rest and relaxation after standing the whole day as a speaker or facilitator. In my last visit to a
spa, I decided to interview my therapist.
There are several types of spa. The five-star types are located inside 5-star hotels. Some in class AB
malls where an hour’s charge would normally be in the range of P800 to P3000. I try those occasionally
and even bought some gift certificates for my wife, daughter and sisters a few times.
On the other side of the spectrum are massage centers that provide reflex massage, typically priced in
the range of P250 (the Thai massage type) to P500 (the Chinese massage type) minimum per hour.
There are many types in between. In fact, Dr. Nol Montalbo’s Mont Albo offers a P55 express massage
for 10 minutes
Strictly speaking, A spa must have wet facilities (showers, jacuzzi, sauna) in contrast to most of the
massage centers that do not provide these.
The day spa in Quezon City where I interviewed my therapist has wet facilities and has a range of
services from foot massage in a public room, shared with 3 others, priced surprisingly low at P250, to an
exclusive couple’s room with shower at P850 an hour. They also have other ‘salon’ type services like
manicure, pedicure and facial. My therapist (let’s call her Ms. N) was kind enough to share information
while giving me a massage. I found her to be quite intelligent, as it turned out she has recently finished a
caregiver course and hopes to land a job abroad.
Dislikes:
I asked Ms. N what she did not like about her job as spa therapist and she gave the following answers:
1. No fixed salary (unlike those in 5-star) as she is on commission basis making P70 to P80 per client
regardless if client availed of P250 or P850 services. In fact, their commission used to be P100 per client
but was reduced by her outlet manager due to bad business conditions.
2. Their outlet manager does not allow cash advance, which is needed as she sometimes has less than 3
clients a day. Their daily guaranteed allowance of P80 is given only twice a month in case they have no
client for a day.
3. Sexual harassment of some of their male clients who tend to touch them without permission.
4. Hard to have a love relationship because the partner may not understand her job.
5. The social status of a massage therapist is not high.
Wish list:
I asked what her wish list would be and she shared the following:
1. More clients. The only way to earn a decent amount is if their spa is also attracting new customers, not
just relying on returning customers as some of them have already transferred or probably found a more
convenient location. Having more clients also helps since about 25% do not give tips so a bigger base
would help.
1. Renovation or at least repainting of their outlet. One client even complained of seeing cockroaches
before their pest control recently. If there won’t be new customers, at least this will help maintain
existing customers.
2. Appreciation for good work like annual groceries during Christmas time.
3. Bonding activities like an outing so there are faster ways to patch up miscommunication with fellow
workers.
4. A way to help control her expenses to save money from tips.
5. A more equitable commission depending on the value of services availed.
Likes:
On her likes, she cited the following:
1. Good tips from appreciating customers.
2. Good relationship with most of her co-workers.
Overkill:
I asked if there is any overkill or situations or practices that she think should be stopped. She paused and
shared two but cited that they have already gotten used to it.
1. Time card
2. Penalty for tardiness (an amount is deducted, given they are on commission basis)
Q1: If you are the owner/outlet manager,
A) what can you do to attract new customers?
B) what can you do for existing customers to keep returning?
C) How can you make the situation equitable for the company and for the therapists?
Q2: If you are a banker,
A) what innovative product can you launch to help the spa therapist save money?

Conversation with an Uber Entrepreneur By Josiah

Go
Posted by: Josiah GoApril 10, 2017Conversation Series1 Comment-->

I attended various courses at MIT Sloan and Harvard in Boston last March 22-April 6, 2017. My sister-in-
law Wally, who lives in North Quincy, was generous to host me again while I was there.
I would take the red line subway daily from North Quincy to Kendal for MIT and the Harvard stop as well.
In between Wally’s house and the MBTA subway station, I would take Uber. Years before, when I was
completing my executive certificate series at MIT, I would walk one mile from Wally’s house to the
subway station and back. Since the weather was freezing cold, even raining on some days, Uber became
a very convenient choice, hence, a change in my routine.
On my way home, McDonald’s and Panera are both near the subway, and I would reserve Uber rides
through the free wifi of these outlets. Of course, on most days, I would order a drink or soup to
acknowledge the wifi service they are offering.
Many of the Uber drivers who picked me up at night were part-timers or in-between jobs. Most of them
are in the 20’s, trying to have more money during their discretionary time instead of doing nothing at
home.
I enjoyed the long conversation with my Uber driver on my way from Harvard to the airport, a good 35-
minute ride during afternoon peak time. My Uber driver, let’s call him Mr. M, is of Palestinian descent. He
was quite friendly and helpful in loading and unloading my two luggages. I learned that he has been an
Uber driver for 3.5 years and has two grown up daughters. He was happy that he sold his taxi at its peak
market value as the taxi business volume went down dramatically after Uber entered.
Mr. M told me that it takes about 10 days to start an Uber business because of the need for background
check by both Uber and the State of Massachussets.
Since he started, more people have joined Uber but his Uber business is not affected because the
demand is still there, while many of the part-time newbies don’t actually last long.
I learned that Uber drivers don’t get to know the destination of their passengers until passengers are
picked up. This discourages Uber drivers from being choosy of their passengers as farther destinations
would be normally preferred for higher fare. This, however, does not bother Mr. M as this method is the
same as when he was driving a taxi.
Dislikes:
I asked Mr. M what he doesn’t like about the Uber business. His response was instantaneous.
1. No rest because of non-stop customers.
2. 20% commission to Uber (25% for newer Uber drivers) is rather high.
3. Fare rates keep going down to the advantage of consumers but to the disadvantage of the drivers.
4. Fare rates may go down further with the entry of a new competition, Lyft.
Mr. M shared he makes about US$40,000 a year as a full time Uber driver but aside from the commission
paid to Uber, he allocates 15% for his social security, 17% for tax (10% for state tax and 7% federal
tax), netting him less than half of what he charged passengers. He also spends about US$5,000 a year
for gas (US$100 a week).
Likes:
The following are what Mr. M likes about the Uber business:
1. Assistance to get car lease (but according to Mr. M, this will cost US$1000 a month returnable with a
simple two-week notice).
2. Flexible time. Mr. M works 5-6 days a week, typically from 1-9pm.
3. Sales Promotions — Uber has an ongoing promotion of US$80 weekly incentive if a driver makes at
least 75 trips a week. This encourages drivers to accept UberPool to meet the number of pick ups
required.
4. Prompt payment every Wednesday via bank deposit.
5. Accurate reporting of trips.
Wish List
Mr. M has one single-minded wish list — Health insurance. He wonders what will happen to him if he will
suddenly suffer a disease, has to pay out medical
bills out of his own pocket and cannot work at the same time.
Overkill
I asked Mr. M if there is something Uber is doing that should be stopped, his immediate answer –
UberPool. While this feature benefits passengers, this does not benefit Uber drivers as they do not get
the fares in between UberPool trips. I sensed this may be correct from his perspective. I took UberX on
my first trip but subsequently used UberPool as I do not mind sharing my ride with others. Instead of
paying US$6-7 for UberX, I paid closer to US$3 for UberPool where I was just alone in most of these one
mile trips.
On my part as a passenger, I like that I know the waiting time as well as the name and location of the
driver who will pick me up. I love the receipt record sent to me after my ride, detailing the cost and
distance travelled. I also get to rate my driver if I choose to do so.
Uber is still ‘illegal’ in many places with regular taxi operators fighting them. One of my Harvard
professors, Dr. Mark Esposito, shared that in some places in the U.S, an Uber driver when caught can be
penalized with US$500. ‘But their presence is being tolerated!’ apparently referring to government
regulators knowing the convenience it offers the riding public. No wonder, Uber is valued even more than
other companies like General Motors, Ford, and Honda.
Q1: If you are Uber,
A) what will you do with the negative feedback of Uber Drivers about UberPool?
B) what can you do for riders not to shift to Lyft?
Q2: If you are Lyft,
A) what unmet needs can you exploit to effectively compete with Uber?
B) What will you do for riders to try and stay with Lyft?