An analysis of HUL's Surf Excel - Marketing Mix, STP

1. Analysis of HUL’s
Surf Excel
Presented by:
Group 11
Manvi Bolia
Mohdmahir Shaikh
Nancy Gupta
Nehal Jain
Nishita Arora
Piyush Hirwani

2. Introduction to HUL & Surf Excel
Type: Public Ltd. company
Industry: FMCG
Founded: Mumbai, Maharashtra in 1933
Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Products: Soaps, detergents, shampoos, skin care,
toothpastes, deodorants, cosmetics, tea, coffee,
packaged foods, ice cream, and water purifiers, etc.
Revenue: ₹ 38,273 crores (the financial year 2019-20)
• It has 35 brands spanning over 20 distinct product
categories.
• Initially it was named Hindustan Vanaspati
Manufacturing Co. and was renamed to HUL in June
2007.
• Surf excel was launched in 1959 as Surf, and was
renamed to its current name in 1996.
• It recorded sales of ₹ 5,375 crores in FY 2019-20.
• It’s name is largely synonymous to detergent
powder in the country as it was the first brand to
replace soap bars.
• It was also the first detergent brand to advertise its
products on TV.

3. Market Size and Market Share of Surf Excel
20.1
17.1
14.4
8.6
6.9 6.6
2.4 2.1
1.2 0.9 0.8
18.9
0
5
10
15
20
25
Surf
Excel
Ghari Wheel Rin Tide Nirma Ujala
Supreme
Fena Ariel Vanish Henko Others
Market Share
Market Share

4. Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning
Segmentation: Geographic, Demographic, Psychographic, Behavioural
Targeting:
 Upper Middle to Higher income groups.
 B2B Models: hotel industry, laundry parlours, etc.
 Homemakers: somebody who does budget allocation, mostly women.
 Households with kids.
 Targeting quality driven customers.
Positioning: Surf Excel positions itself as a high quality, medium priced brand
which is a necessity in day to day household activities. It has an emotional
connect with people as it uses children in its advertisements which has positioned
itself as clearing any stains in the clothes and always came up with product which
is reliable.

5. Marketing Mix of Surf Excel
Product Mix
• Surf Excel has constantly upgraded its products.
• Main categorisation of products:- 1) Hand wash 2) Machine
wash.
• Surf excel includes wide range of products like Surf Excel
Detergent Powder, Surf Excel Quickwash, Surf Excel Easywash,
Surf Excel Blue, Surf Excel Bar, Surf Excel Liquid Detergent, Surf
Excel Matic Liquid front load and top load, Surf Excel Matic -
Liquid and Powder Detergent (Front & Top Load).
• Surf Excel comes in different sizes-60g, 200g, 500g, 1kg, 2 kg,
and 5kg packs.
• With the aim to fulfill the needs of the lower-income group
they produced a 60g pack.

6. Price Mix
• Skimming pricing policy at start
changed it to medium pricing policy.
• Maximum market share pricing
strategy.
• Product bundling pricing strategy.
• Quantity and seasonal discounts.
• Launched sachets of different sizes
to target every household.
Product Name Quantity Price (Rs.)
Surf excel Matic Liquid Top
Load
1.02 Lt 199
Surf excel Matic Liquid
Front Load
1.02 Lt 202
Surf excel Quickwash 1.O kg 180
Surf excel Matic Top Load 1.0 kg 225
Surf excel Matic Front
Load
500 gm 125
Surf excel Easy Wash 1.0 kg 165
Surf excel Bar 100 gm 10

7. Place Mix
• In 2014: tie up with more than 1 million retailers,
a network of 7000 Stockists, 2000+ suppliers and
associates.
• Now: decentralised stocking locations, depots
and warehouses all over country.
• Finished goods in these warehouses also act as
buffer stock in case of surge in demand.
Factory
↓
Depots & Warehouses
↓
Retailers
↓
Consumers

8. • 360° promotion for its product.
• All promotion based on tagline ‘Dirt is good’.
• Adopted both ‘Above the line’ and ‘Below the line’ promotional
strategies with help of TV ads and competitions.
• Used social media to build customer relationships.
Promotion Mix

9. 23%
32%
39%
6%
18-24 25-30 31-45 46 and above
Surf Excel
69%
Tide
17%
Ariel
6%
Ghadi
2%
Others
6%
Surf Excel Tide Ariel Ghadi Others
54%
26%
17%
3%
5 KG 2 KG 1 KG 500 Gms or less
Q: What is your age? Q: How much quantity do you prefer
to buy at one time?
Q: Which detergent brand do you
use?
Survey Analysis

10. 28%
30%
25%
17%
Price Variants Advertisements
Fragrance Packaging
66.8
26.3
6.9
Yes No Maybe
Q: If you use Surf Excel, what attracts you the most about it?
Q: If you do not use Surf Excel, would you be willing to switch
over if it met your requirements?

11. SWOT Analysis

12. • Willing to venture out with new variants.
• Innovative advertising approach.
• Competitive advantage, well laid distribution, and retail
network.
• Emotional and social connect.
• Moment Marketing as an advantage.
Conclusions
• Minimizing the toxic effects of the chemicals that the
detergent has on the environment.
• Better packaging for being more sustainable.
• Better reach to the rural and semi-rural areas.
• Being more price sensitive to cater the mass audience.
Recommendations