Own-brand labels prosper while green claims are all the rage

MEDIA & MARKETING:Retailer branding takes greater market share while ads make spurious environmental claims, writes SIOBHAN O'CONNELL

MOST PEOPLE are familiar with Siucra, Ribena, Maxwell House, Mars, Ballyfree and Kerry Spring bottled water. But these consumer brands are not the force they once were and have dropped out of the annual listing of Ireland’s Top 100 brands compiled by grocery trade magazine Checkout and Nielsen.

The listing is based on sales through grocery outlets across Republic of Ireland outlets and is a useful benchmark for retailers when they decide which products to stock.

However, the listing does not include private label goods. These are products packaged and labelled with the retailer’s own branding.

In the past four years, private label goods have increased their market share from 9 per cent to 19 per cent.

According to Checkout editor John Ruddy: “In our view a brand is an Avonmore or a Cadbury. It is not an own label with Dunnes or Tesco packaging. But brands are under huge pressure now. Categories such as energy drinks, which up to now have been private label resistant, now face private label competition. These are very difficult times for brands, much more so than in the past.”

In the latest survey, Coca-Cola retained its position as the country’s biggest-selling brand for the third year in a row. Among the top brands, there is very little movement year to year and four Irish brands retained their positions in the top 10 – Avonmore, Brennans, Tayto and Denny.

One notable feature of the annual listing is the progress being made by the bread brands Irish Pride and Pat The Baker, which have improved their ranking by 27 and 11 places respectively over the past two years.

Another bread brand doing well is McCambridges, which debuts in the list for the first time.

New entrants to this year’s Top 100 list include Flahavans porridge, but Kerrygold butter has dropped six places to 48 in the Checkout ranking.

To rev up sales, the butter brand has launched a new TV campaign this week which plays on a familiar brand theme of life, roots and family. Reflecting present-day economic circumstances, the ad produced by Irish International/BBDO has an emigration theme, featuring an Irish son who returns home to visit his mother accompanied by his pregnant German wife.

CONCERNS REGARDINGclimate change and global warming influence the purchase decisions that some consumers and businesses make. So it's not surprising that an increasing number of products and services wrap themselves in a green hue – what the cynics call "green washing".

But advertisers need to be careful about the veracity of their claims.

The Consumer Protection Act 2007 prohibits misleading advertisements and the making of false claims about goods or services to consumers.

In addition, there are EU regulations which apply in Ireland that prohibit traders from issuing marketing communications that are misleading. These regulations give powers to a competitor to apply to the courts to require any offending marketing communication to be withdrawn or amended.

Bord Gáis Energy (BGE) didn’t go down the legal route when it took issue with green-tinted advertising from rival electricity supplier Airtricity.

Instead, BGE turned to the Advertising Standards Authority of Ireland (ASAI). If the ASAI nixes an ad, then that’s the end of it and it’s a speedier and less costly process than going to court.

Airtricity ran a campaign which described its electricity as “green electricity” and compared the offering to ESB and Bord Gáis in environmental terms.

Bord Gáis successfully argued that this claim was misleading, as one-fifth of Airtricity electricity is generated from non-renewable sources.

The ASAI also decided that Airtricity’s claim that its power is five times “more environmentally friendly” than its rivals was not sustainable.

The upshot is that Airtricity now offers “greener electricity” and advertises the fact that it is the “greenest” electricity supplier in the consumer retail market.

According to Deirdre Kilroy, a solicitor with law firm LK Shields: “The differing views on the merits of various fuel types and the effects of goods and services on the environment make ‘green’ advertising a challenge for any advertiser.

“If done well, it can be very successful in assisting a company to increase market share.

“However, as with any advertising, those highlighting their green credentials need to be very aware of the legal rules and restrictions that apply to these assertions.”