Unilever Ramps Up Its E-Commerce Strategy

Unilever has accepted the reality – and potential benefits – of e-commerce. It is putting greater emphasis this year on targeted, and cheaper, digital marketing strategies to reach consumers directly and gain insights about their buying preferences. To some extent the new strategy bypasses retailers, who have traditionally had the closer relationship with shoppers. The strategy – whose basic goal is forty percent growth in online sales in 2015 -- includes both desktop and mobile formats, and not just to sell products. The company wants to understand how customers move between virtual and physical channels.