Procter & Gamble (P&G), a multinational consumer goods company, recently announced its partnership with Lazada, one of Southeast Asia’s major e-commerce platforms, to launch #HairDNA, a consumer haircare microsite in the region. The initiative aims to tap the growing demand from young consumers for personalised haircare solutions in Southeast Asia, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.
Raviteja Neralla, Consumer Analyst at GlobalData, said that P&G had been working on expanding its consumer base in Asia. Investment in technology to create better solutions for consumers is a key focus area for the company. In November 2022, the company announced a technology fund worth INR2 billion ($24 million) to invest in solutions powered by technology in India.
Tim Hill, Key Account Director at GlobalData Singapore, added that the microsite was first launched in Indonesia and then planned for the Philippines before its expansion to other ASEAN markets. The company chose these markets for its initial launch, as consumers in these markets are more specific about the suitability of their health & beauty products to their needs.
According to GlobalData’s 2023 first-quarter consumer survey for Asia & Australasia, 38 percent of respondents from Indonesia stated that how well a product and service is tailored to their needs and personality always influences their product choice; in the Philippines, this percentage stood at 42 percent.
“With the #HairDNA microsite focusing on the same aspect of consumers’ demands, the company’s investments align with consumers’ needs in these countries,” said Hill.
P&G has planned to analyse consumer data on different parameters to offer them better haircare solutions through #HairDNA, targeting Gen-Z and millennial consumers who wish to buy products that reflect their personality and see their purchase decisions as self-expression. The #HairDNA microsite creates a hair profile for each consumer, with information from them on different parameters, including their current hair condition, hair goals, their hair-related problems. The interactive platform analyses their responses on all these parameters and provides personalised advice. The platform’s recommendations include an advisory on the product regimen and customised haircare tips.
Neralla concluded that the initiative underlined P&G’s aim to create a perception among discerning Gen-Z and millennial consumers that the brands they consume understand them and enhance consumer trust.
“As the product recommendations include conditioners, shampoos, and treatments from brands under the P&G umbrella, the microsite also serves as a marketing tool for the company,” said Nerella.
