Night & Day

Positioning a Brand for Technological and Consumer Leadership


Core Skills

  • Strategic Brand Management
  • Marketing to Consumers through Healthcare Practitioners

Problem
CIBA Vision is an innovator in providing technologically advanced products that enhance an individual’s life by helping people see better. However they are continuously competing with an established industry and market share leader in Johnson & Johnson. The problem was not that J&J offered superior products (Acuvue in this case), the issue was that CIBA Vision had neglected their investment in the education and marketing to Eye Care Practitioners (ECP).
 
The Opportunity
The opportunity was to take CIBA Vision’s technological advantage and communicate the product attributes in a way that spoke to the science while eliciting the emotional payoff of allowing users to experience the freedom of perfect vision (i.e., the ability to wear contact lens for 30-days straight given the properties of silicone hydrogel). As the first brand in a new category, the NIGHT & DAY franchise was positioned to strengthen CIBA Vision’s leadership position in the next generation of contact lens.
 
Actions
New to the OTC healthcare industry and not a contact lens wear myself, my first step was to meet with internal functional experts and learn their thoughts regarding CIBA Vision’s opportunity and specifically how they say NIGHT & DAY. This step quickly led to partnering with the Professional / Eye Care Practitioner Sales team to understand the obstacles and opportunities of selling a brand through both direct to consumer communications while also recognizing the importance of the Practitioner. Next was a Deep Dive analysis in both the Consumer Case for Action and the Business Case for Action.

  • The question was, “Who is the consumer in this scenario? Is it the ultimate user or the Eye Care Practitioner (ECP) who holds the most influence over brand awareness, adoption and frequency of purchase?”
  • Ultimately the answer to that is “both” but how do you accomplish that plus compete for market share against J&J?

Working with the Global Brand Manager of NIGHT & DAY and a close partnership with marketing research, I was able to segment the market by consumer and practioner and ultimately producing a shared communication strategy that proved powerful results to all stakeholders. This lead to the drafting of a Professional Communication Strategy and the integration of this platform into the 2004 planning cycle for agreement and funding. The stage was set success – for the ultimate user, the Eye Care Practitioner industry and CIBA Vision
 
Results
I authored and gained approval for the 2003 Professional Communication Strategy that elevated NIGHT & DAY to a profitable business solution for Eye Care Practitioners. This brand architecture drove record revenues of $90MM (+130%) and gross margins of $76MM (+167%) through a TV, Print and Web campaign that emphasized the “Breathability” and “Freedom” attributes of Night & Day contact lens. Long-term the plan was to build a Mega-Brand strategy around the Night & Day franchise in collaboration with Eye Care Practitioners and consumers.

Protecting a Brand for Technological and Consumer Leadership


Problem
CIBA Vision is an innovator in providing technologically advanced products that enhance an individual’s life by helping people see better. However they are competing with an established industry and market share leader in Johnson & Johnson.

In 2004 Johnson & Johnson (the Vistakon division) was expected to launch a new product, Acuvue Advance. Targeting the same consumer base as NIGHT & DAY with a “Better Comfort and Health” message and claiming to be “#1 Brand of Contact Lens You Trust.” This launch was a significant threat to the newly introduced Night & Day franchise – the fastest growing and priority brand at CIBA Vision.

The Opportunity
The opportunity was to preemptively evaluate the competitive threat and propose an offensive plan to minimize any negative economic or equity impact on the NIGHT & DAY franchise.

Actions
My first step was to establish and lead a cross-functional Competitive S.W.A.T. Team to promote continuous communication and ensure a common vision from Corporate headquarters to individual Field Sales Teams. I then produced and presented a comprehensive North American plan to (1) Continue Building and Strengthening the Night & Day business, (2) Maximize NIGHT & DAY growth while thwarting any attempt by Acuvue Advance to re-position NIGHT & DAY as a niche business while (3) Minimizing any inroads into NIGHT & DAY’s future consumer base or its growing mindshare among Eye Care Practitioners.

Results
My Competitive Plan led to an incremental $18MM in media and production to fund a new TV and Print creative campaign that would debut prior to the launch of Acuvue Advance. Additional messaging was approved to target the Eye Care Practitioners in trade magazines, sales materials, conferences and sales education. And, I was charged with maintaining category leadership within Chain and National Accounts (Wal-Mart and LensCrafters) while working on a 2004 NIGHT & DAY line extension.
 

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