C.B. Fleet

When C.B. Fleet, a global manufacturer of personal care and health care products, launched its Pedia-Lax line of children’s digestive products, the company retained CRT/tanaka to develop and implement a communications strategy targeting consumers and key opinion leaders. The agency engaged two health care experts – a pediatrician and a registered dietician – to bring expertise and credibility to the Pedia-Lax campaign and contribute content to its consumer-oriented Web site. To increase awareness of Fleet’s products, the agency coordinated a satellite media tour, desk-side briefings and opportunities for opinion leaders to meet with the company’s medical director. In addition, CRT/tanaka developed a marketing campaign targeting health care professionals, which has grown overall pediatrician awareness of the Pedia-Lax line by 76 percent and has increased the number of pediatrician recommendations of the product by 42 percent.

PEDIA-LAX: LAUNCHING A NEW BRAND

Challenge

CRT/tanaka initially partnered with Fleet Laboratories in 2006 for crisis management work to support its phosphosoda product. This partnership evolved into helping Fleet launch a new brand in 2007, as well as a line extension in 2009.

Solution

To launch Fleet’s Pedia-Lax line of children’s digestive products, CRT/tanaka developed and implemented a communication strategy targeting consumers and key opinion leaders. CRT/tanaka engaged Dr. Belinda Basaca, a pediatrician and mom of two boys, and Liz Weiss, MS, RD and co-author of “The Moms’ Guide to Meal Makeovers,” to serve as experts. The agency also arranged meetings between key opinion leaders and Fleet’s medical director to introduce them to the products.

Because children’s digestive health is not an issue that is regularly covered in the media, CRT/tanaka identified recent research and conducted a study with Weekly Reader on children’s bathroom habits at school that could be leveraged as news hooks. The agency also worked with Dr. Basaca and Liz Weiss to develop consumer Web site content. In addition, media outreach included deskside briefings and a satellite media tour.

In 2008, Fleet engaged CRT/tanaka to evaluate its positioning among health care professionals and develop a marketing program that would improve the effectiveness of its budget. The existing positioning was not creating a differentiated position in the minds of health care professionals.

CRT/tanaka evaluated Fleet’s programs targeting health care professionals, as well as its messaging. The agency developed a new communication strategy that shifted the focus from promoting a variety of laxative choices to the speed of delivery. This approach was based on new research from the University of Michigan supporting quick relief from constipation for improved patient outcomes. The agency developed a professional marketing campaign using the message, “Constipation hurts. That’s why Pedia-Lax works in hours, not days.”  It targeted Pedia-Lax competitor MiraLAX, an adult laxative that is often given to children and takes more than 24 hours to work.

CRT/tanaka developed a professional marketing campaign that helped to maximize the impact of the company’s budget through the use of journal advertising, detailing, conferences and new tools for health care professionals.

Results

• Product sales have been very strong and the introduction of Pedia-Lax has helped grow the laxative category by more than 20 percent.
• Overall, Pedia-Lax has made significant progress in establishing itself as an important option for pediatricians since its launch in early 2008.
• The repositioning among health care professionals was validated in the field through a survey of Pedia-Lax’s detail force. Later, it was validated through ad testing in one of the leading journals as the top winner in three out of five measures.
• Importantly, the new professional marketing approach has grown overall pediatrician awareness (76 percent) and recommendations (42 percent). Awareness and recommendation rates actually exceed the goals set out in the 2009 professional plan (65 percent and 40 percent, respectively). The utilization ratio (MD’s aware and recommending) has also increased, from 42 percent to 55 percent.