How Mondelez Changed Promotions to Drive Incrementality

Mondelez International drove incremental earnings over the past year by rethinking its promotional tactics and accelerating growth in specific retail channels and product innovation.

Mondelez COO Luca Zaramella outlined four notable shifts for the organization during the Barclays Global Consumer Staples Conference last month. The first was adjusting its promotional strategy.

"We came to terms last year that investing more in promotions was not necessarily resulting in incrementality, and it was depleting the value of the category," Zaramella said. "So, we decided to restage our promotional activities, both in terms of depth and frequency and be more intentional on what we do to drive incrementality. And the strategy is paying off."

The second shift was accelerating growth in specific channels such as convenience with different product formats and price points.

Increased reinvestment this year compared to last year was another notable change for Mondelez. There is currently exceptional media around all the company's core brands, Zaramella said.

Innovation is the final area making a difference for the organization. Oreo Minis and Ritz crackers have moved toward more casual consumption occasions with different pack sizes, which resulted in share gains, according to Zaramella.