Brainwave Winner:  Laura Klauberg

April 6, 2009

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For Laura Klauberg, difficult times help spur innovation. In a challenging media climate, she sees fresh opportunities to differentiate Unilever’s brand icons, including Flora, Knorr, Lipton, Dove and Lux. “Stretch yourself and follow your passion,” says Klauberg. “There has never been a more exciting time to be in marketing. The pace of change is enormous – it’s hard to imagine that YouTube, Facebook, Flickr, Technorati and MySpace didn’t even exist just six years ago.”

Since becoming Unilever’s senior vice president of global media in 2007 – the first woman and first American to hold that position – Klauberg has built intriguing and effective digital components that invite engagement. “We are a consumer-driven business, so it’s imperative that we understand how our consumers want to have a voice and interact with media,” she says. “Fortunately, we are in the business of selling everyday products that people need everywhere around the world.” 

Klauberg’s recent brainwaves include “In the Motherhood,” an original web program created by moms for Suave that was picked up for national network broadcast. Another success was “Fresh Takes,” a micro-series for Dove Go Fresh Body Wash aimed at women in their 20s, created in partnership with MTV and aired during The Hills. In the three-minute episodes, Grammy-winning artist Alicia Keys played one of three girlfriends juggling the pressures of careers, relationships, beauty, family and friends. Other campaign elements included an engaging co-branded microsite and mobile site with additional content distributed through peer-to-peer networks. The result: Dove’s market share grew by more than 1 point.

Reflecting on her 25 years in media, Klauberg says “I think it’s remarkable that I am learning more now than ever before in my career – from one of my people, a network programmer, a search engineer, an agency partner, a Facebook friend, a gaming software developer, a content producer or one of my three daughters. I think we’re in an era where if you can imagine it, you can do it.

For more Changing the Game Awards Winners:

Brainwave Winner: Pamela K. El
Brainwave Winner: Becky Saeger
Brainwave Winner: Sue Bostrom
Quantum Leap Winner: Nancy Smith
Paradigm Shift Winner: Esther "E.T" Franklin
No Apologies Winner: Dr. Jane McGonigal