Advertising Age | January 28, 2008 | 37

The Johnson & Johnson brand family been greenlighted by J&J execu- tives got deep-sixed by Pfizer Though consumer-health and personal-care products make up only 24% of J&J’s $61 billion in annual sales, they account J&J managers last year, according to for about three-quarters of Johnson & Johnson’s $1.3 billion in annual measured U.S. media spending. Pharmaceuticals From Page 1 people familiar with the company. and medical devices, which make up about a third of the company, account for the rest, in categories with little direct-to- more costly this year. A $16.6 bil- “Even with perfect 20-20 hind- consumer advertising traditionally. lion acquisition has brought with it sight,” Mr. Perkins said, J&J a Pfizer culture that hasn’t would have sat out the upfront embraced change as readily as and will again. “For reasons I can’t MEASURED already-conservative incumbent get into, we’re really pleased with MEDIA management. Add in a big restruc- how this is playing out,” he said. SPENDING turing and as many as 4,500 job “We have worked closely with the IN MILLIONS losses amid the impending patent networks. And we really feel that expirations of big pieces of J&J’s we’re delivering the best kinds of prescription-drug and medical- opportunities for our brands by device business, and it’s just the coinciding with our planning BRAND 1 JOHNSON’S BABY sort of environment that sends schedule, not somebody else’s.” & SKIN CARE many revolutionaries scurrying A J&J spokesman said, “We’re back to basics—i.e., the security of delighted with how well the whole JAN.-SEPT. ’07 $ $ $ $ $ tried-if-tired approaches. Pfizer consumer integration is 142.5 100.2 94.9 81.5 53.1 It’s up to the relatively small going, and we’re as pleased with the 2006 $ $ $ $ $ crew in the central marketing people as we are with the products.” 152.0 109.4 166.7 99.5 78.3 group piloting the $61 billion But even some of the seeming behemoth and its $1.3 billion U.S. successes of J&J’s modernization CREATIVE ROBERTS DDB DEUTSCH JWT LOWE media outlay to prove it can keep efforts have faced some doubts. AGENCY & TARLOW the reform movement aloft amid One of the bolder moves growing turbulence—and doubts. pushed by J&J’s central marketing Not often does a company try- group, in this case VP-Global ing to make substantial marketing Advertising and Marketing Joe changes face the host of challenges McCarthy, was naming independ- J&J does, said Rex Briggs, co- ent Mother, New York, to J&J’s author of the book “What Sticks,” roster to handle newly acquired and CEO of Marketing Evolution. oral-care brand Rembrandt. “J&J has some of the smartest peo- Mother got conservative J&J to ple I know in marketing, and I’m go along with some offbeat hoping they’ll continue to be a approaches, including a retro pack- BRAND beacon for others,” he said. “But aging overhaul, a pop-up store in TOPAMAX K-Y SUDAFED CLEAN & CLEAR I’m worried that with all the SoHo and a YouTube video fea- things going on, how much can turing a passionate kiss that’s JAN.-SEPT. ’07 $ $ $ $ $ they continue to dedicate toward drawn more than 200,000 views, 42.1 38.8 32.9 32.3 31.0 innovating and how much do they many of them from behind the 2006 $ $ $ $ $ retrench back toward basics?” site’s “adults-only” curtain. 41.0 60.0 30.3 47.3 36.1 Mr. Perkins, corporate VP-cor- Rembrandt also got more porate affairs, isn’t entertaining measured-media support than CREATIVE JWT ALCHEMY MOTHER JWT DDB such doubts. “We’re really happy ever—$22 million through the AGENCY with the progress we’re making, third quarter of 2007 compared and we’re going to continue to with only $10.5 million for all of forge ahead with innovative pro- 2006. grams and raising the bar on cre- The effort won Mother inter- ativity—full speed ahead.” nal awards from J&J and the big- He points to a long list of ger-spending K-Y “sexual health” accomplishments in the past year brand account last summer. or so, including a global media What it didn’t win was many review, a new communications- consumers. Rembrandt’s whiten- planning system and global spon- ing-product sales plunged 32% sorship of the 2008 Summer last year to $21.7 million, accord- BRAND Olympics in Beijing. ing to Information Resources Inc. ONE TOUCH ACUVUE NEOSPORIN REMBRANDT Meanwhile, Listerine has fared STRIKE-STRICKEN far better with the more-conven- JAN.-SEPT. ’07 $ $ $ $ $ But the writers strike has raised the tional launch of its self-dissolving 29.9 26.8 23.5 22.4 22.0 price of one of J&J’s key marketing whitening strips from the more- 2006 $ $ $ $ $ shifts: VP-Global Media Kim conventional agency brought into 38.2 26.1 34.5 22.4 10.5 Kadlec’s move to sit out the TV the J&J fold via the deal, WPP upfront. The strike has dried up Group’s JWT, New York. CREATIVE DDB MCCANN BBDO JWT MOTHER available ratings points and driven The Listerine strips, launched AGENCY ERICKSON up scatter prices. Companies such in March, racked up $19.1 million as Unilever that mulled a pullback in sales last year and surpassed but ultimately participated in the Rembrandt in its core category in upfront can get make-goods that the fourth quarter. While Listerine J&J doesn’t get. picked up a 7.9% share for 2007 in That, in turn, could make it whitening, Rembrandt gave back harder to deliver on savings hoped 5.7 of those points. for from J&J’s U.S. media-buying J&J reported last week that the consolidation last year. According double-digit sales growth delivered to people familiar with the compa- by Listerine was offset by declines ny, it could also rankle executives in Rembrandt and tooth- BRAND who came in from Pfizer, where brushes. So essentially, the biggest ROC STAYFREE BAND-AID MONISTAT nearly 90% of budgets went into jewel in the Pfizer deal saw its gains TV. Should brands fail to meet mostly wiped out by Rembrandt. JAN.-SEPT. ’07 $ $ $ $ $ sales plans, the media strategy J&J declined to comment on 17.5 17.0 15.8 15.7 14.2 could become an easy scapegoat. Rembrandt, but Mr. Perkins said: 2006 $ $ $ $ $ The incoming Pfizer executives “We really think we’ve moved the 21.7 19.0 16.0 25.7 19.3 already have shown an aversion to needle on innovation and creativi- some of the new approaches J&J ty, and we’re not going to stop. … CREATIVE DDB BBDO JWT JWT BBDO has been trying. At least two non- The world is changing, and we AGENCY traditional campaigns that had need to change with it.” 1. Includes children’s Tylenol Source: TNS Media Intelligence