Emissions Heroes: Roisin Donnelly
Roisin Donnelly is a marketer who can be credited with bringing sustainability to the masses.
Procter & Gamble's (P&G) corporate marketing director for UK and Ireland has been the driving force behind Ariel's high-profile low temperature washing activity.
Within laundry, taking the heat out of the weekly wash is the single most important action that consumers can do to cut carbon emissions. It is this insight that Donnelly, who has headed up marketing at the FMCG giant for 10 years, has placed at the heart of the brand in recent years.
This story begins in 2006 with the Ariel 'Turn to 30' campaign which encouraged consumers to do just that. In a smart move, P&G sought out a credible third party and partnered with the Energy Savings Trust for a heavyweight campaign encompassing everything from on-pack, direct marketing and instore through to TV.
At the time this message was a brave one; the received wisdom had always been that to get clothes really clean they had to be washed at high temperatures. But turning to 30 did chime with consumers: a survey by IPSOS found that by 2007 17% of UK households were washing at 30 degrees, a massive increase of 15% from 2002. What is more, the vast majority of the public stated that it was Ariel's campaign that had persuaded them to wash at lower temperatures. 'We know the majority of consumers are interested in the environment,' comments Donnelly. 'They want to reduce the environmental impact of their family's household activities, but we also know they do not want to compromise on price or performance.'
In 2008 Donnelly went even further in her crusade to get the nation's washing machines' dials stuck on cool with the roll-out of Ariel Excel Gel. The product, which launched by boldly proclaiming in its advertising that 'Cold is the new hot', is designed to clean brilliantly at 15 degrees and in the world of detergents caused something of a stir.
And so it should, as according to P&G before it settled on a final formulation its research and development boffins tested a dizzying 5m formulations. Donnelly says: 'Our investment in innovation allows us to produce breakthrough products like Ariel Excel Gel.’
Marketers are always eager to talk up their product but in this case the praise Donnelly heaps on Ariel Excel Gel – she describes it as 'supeCorporate social responsibilityr' – appears to be justified. The consumer group Which? has awarded it 'Best Buy' status, after tests showed it outperformed every other product in the detergent category. For Donnelly, her work on the Ariel brand over recent years has been about 'educating and inspiring change'.
She adds: 'We provide the right product and the right message and, together with our consumers, we can make a real difference.'
