Target market
The non-alcoholic beverage market is one of the most saturated markets globally. Apart from the global players like coca cola and Pepsi, there are numerous other manufacturers in the industry. Non-alcoholic beverages range from carbonated drinks, to energy drinks such as Gatorade and red bull and can also include other beverages such as coffee. Our target market is the young consumer interested in a lifestyle energy drink. Our product is an energy drink that is targeted at the young person to be able to support their active lifestyle which demands a lot of energy quickly. America has a population of over 300 million people (United States Census Bureau, 2015). The country experiences an annual population growth of roughly 1.3% a large percentage of this can be attributed to immigrants. The age structure shows that 20% of the population is below 15 years while 66% of the population is between the ages of 15 and 64. The remaining 14% consists of people above the age of 64 years (United States Census Bureau, 2015).
Our drink is targeted at the young active individual, between the ages of eleven and fifty years old who makes up roughly half of the United States population. This is a very large market to exploit. The target market ranges from people active in sports who spend a lot of energy in their activities as well as the professional who needs energy conveniently for their activities. An active lifestyle is something enjoyed by many achievements and our product aims at providing a solution for the energy needs of the individual as well as a lifestyle product that can be associated with this kind of market.
When starting, the product will target the local market. This is a small area and differentiation will help the company to gain market share. As mentioned, the non-alcoholic beverages market is saturated with little differentiation. Marketing will therefore play an important part in meeting the sales targets. The local area has a population of approximately three million residents. Of these, approximately half fall within the target market for the product. Because of the limited geographical area needed to be covered, marketing costs should not prove to be a big problem.
Competition
This segment of the market is very saturated with hundreds of products aimed at the market. The key players in this market include Gatorade, Lucozade and red bull. These are all established brands that are supported by multi-nationals. However, the market is still underserved and an opportunity was seen by our company to offer a product. What these companies offer are basically drinks boasting a lot of energy content but contain ingredients that may not be very healthy for users. For example, caffeine is a major ingredient in the products as well as synthetic sweeteners and sugars. Our company aims at providing a healthier alternative to the products already available in the market. Our drink will be made entirely of natural and healthy ingredients to provide the energy needed.
Company message
The company message in its marketing campaign will be providing a healthy energy drink fit for the American active lifestyle. The company message can clearly be illustrated using the five F's of marketing.
Focus (focus of the business)
The focus of the business will be to provide a healthy natural energy drink to support the active lifestyle of Americans. This will enable the company to differentiate itself from the products already available in the market. The product will be promoted as a healthy drink that can be easily associated with the average American. It will be portrayed as part of the American culture. The company will therefore focus on producing a product that is able to meet these expectations for the market.
Follow through (effective implementation)
In order to meet these expectations, there will need to be effective implementation of the marketing plan. This is very important in gaining the market share targeted by the company. Many good ideas turn out to be failures as a result of poor implementation. The company will need to identify the best means to ensure the product is able to reach its target market and achieve set sales targets.
Feedback
Feedback from the market is very important. The market is responsible for the sales of the product. It is important to know what the market wants so that the company can work towards meeting these expectations. Effective feedback channels will have to be established in order to ensure that the right information is received. This will allow the company to serve its market better. Because of the limited coverage initially, it will be possible to get feedback directly to the manufacturer. Feedback can also be gotten from chosen retailers of the product. Technology can also be used, for example, social media can be a very important tool in collecting feedback from the market.
Flexibility
The company should be robust in its plans but also retain a degree of flexibility. A robust plan enables the company to be aware of what it wants to achieve and have the means to achieve the goal. This allows the company to focus on meeting its objectives. However, it is also important that the plan is flexible this allows the company to adapt easily to the changing needs of the market.
Fun
This product is targeted at the young American with an active lifestyle. This product is therefore seen as a healthy but fun. This is very important as many products that are seen as fun are seen as unhealthy while healthy products are seen as boring. This product is therefore able to bridge this gap by creating a healthy and fun product at the same time.
Marketing vehicles
The marketing vehicles chosen by the company should be able to place the product strategically in the market. The product should be made visible without losing its unique selling points. A number of marketing vehicles will be used to market this product.
Social media
More and more people are increasingly using social media. There are many sites ranging from the major known ones like Facebook, twitter, Google+ and many other specialized products. More and more people are spending their time online and most of this time is spent visiting social media sites. It is therefore a very important marketing vehicle as it has the potential to reach a large market while remaining relatively inexpensive. Social media marketing will be done mainly by use of advertisements as well as the company’s pages on these websites. The company pages will also provide an important avenue for receiving feedback from the market (Mooij, 2014).
Sponsorships
The product is aimed at promoting a healthy lifestyle. Sponsorship of sports events will also act as a very important marketing vehicle. Americans love sports and getting to sponsor an event provides visibility for the company. The company will target school and college sports events so as to make an impression on the younger generation who are likely to remain loyal to the brand for a long time.
Advertisements over traditional media
Finally, advertisements through traditional media will also play an important part. Billboards will be strategically located in the area so as to give the product visibility in the local area. Print, radio, and television advertisements will also be used in the local area (Mooij, 2014).
References
Mooij, M. K. (2014). Global marketing and advertising: Understanding cultural paradoxes. Los Angeles: SAGE.
United States Census Bureau. (2015). County Business Patterns. Retrieved 22/7/2015 from http://www.census.gov/econ/cbp/
