• by Les Luchter , September 5, 2024

Kimberly-Clark, whose ad spend as a percent of sales rose from 4.5% in 2022 to 5.3% in 2024, will see that figure rise to 6.5% in 2024 – and is ramping up to 7% just in the second half of the year, Chief Financial Officer Nelson Urdaneta told the Barclays 17^th Annual Global Consumer Staples Conference on Wednesday. 

“We have pretty much doubled our dollar spend since 2018,” Urdaneta said.

The investment varies by category, he added, with the figure for the company’s personal care business now in the teens.

The reasons for the ad spend jump, he said, are to support “an increase in science based-innovation being launched into the market,” along with a “very strong first half” providing the “momentum to keep investing.”

Those innovations, as noted by Chairman/Chief Executive Offer Mike Hsu, include a recently launched “two-zone diaper that separates the pee from the poo.” The first half results saw a year-over-year increase of 5% in organic sales, with total sales at $10.2 billion.

Hsu said the marketer of such brands as Huggies, Cottonnelle and Kleenex plans to become get better at “storytelling” as it continues to increase its advertising investment. The aim, he said, is “to talk to consumers in a way that not only lands the trial of our pioneering innovations, but increases affinity for the brands.”

Playing a big role in the storytelling process, Hsu said, will be Patricia Corsi, who recently joined Kimberly-Clark as chief growth officer after a highly visible stint as  global chief marketing and digital officer at Bayer Consumer Health.

Pointing to “the highly targeted nature of our consumers,” Urdaneta said that digital media is the most efficient medium for Kimberly-Clark ad spending. “The key focus in how we're engaging with consumers through advertising and in store merchandising activity is to reach them at the right moments.” The aim is to drive trial retention and “ultimately, lifetime value.” 

As an example of a successful advertising approach, Hsu said the company recently used data analytics to target “light and lapsed” Kleenex users, helping to drive a large second quarter share increase (400 basis points) for the brand.