Cow & Gate, Baby Kingdom launch digital “Careline” for HK mothers

HONG KONG - Infant milk-powder producer Cow & Gate (a brand of Danone Nutricia Early Life Nutrition),Baby Kingdom, a Hong Kong-based online parenting portal, and digital agency X Social recently launched a digital platform called Careline in a bid to enhance Cow & Gate's image surrounding nutrition and infants' absorption of nutrients.

The platform aims to provide comprehensive service and parenting advice to concerned parents, who "often find themselves in need of help," she said. Winnie Fan, marketing manager of Danone Nutricia, told Campaign Asia-Pacific that the effort is not sales-oriented.

The system is based on the activity of visitors to the brand's website: When users browse a page that contains specific keywords, or input those keywords in a forum, they trigger a popup that invites them to chat with online experts.

Wilson Wong, group account director of X Social, explained the move as a customer-oriented marketing strategy, an attempt to make consultation services more accessible, instantaneous and interactive for parents—an upgrade from existing hotline services.

The “Careline” is live for seven hours a day, five days a week. The experts give general advice on not only nutrition but all baby issues, and do not promote the brand's products unless asked specific questions.  

Campaign Asia-Pacific comments: The contextual targeting is noteworthy as a tech-enabled marketing tactic. The brand reports that around 400 people accessed the service in the first month, and that 94 percent of those claimed they were satisfied.

We found the information on the credentials of the three experts somewhat lacking; the brand asks us to trust that they're experts in diet and nutrition without providing specifics about their experience. We hope to see that improved.

But we applaud the effort to apply interesting tech to the worthy goal of supporting parents, who often need all the help they can get.

CREDITS

Client: Danone Nutricia Early Life Nutrition
Brand: Cow & Gate (牛欄牌)
Category: Infant Milk Formula
Media Partner: Baby Kingdom (#1 Parenting Portal & Online Community in HK)