Situation Analysis for Gatorade

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is the optimal option to help better the consumer.

Evaluation of the Target Market: When considering what type of consumer would be included in Gatorade’s target market there are many different profiles to consider- demographic, geographic, and psychographic. For the demographic profile Gatorade would target someone, either male or female, who is between the ages of 18 up to 38. Also they would target more middle to upper class individuals because those are the types of people who have the most access to workout facilities as well as sporting opportunities. This ties in to the psychographic profile that would be targeted by Gatorade. The target consumer would someone who values their health would participate in activities and hobbies to improve their health by either participating in sports and/or exercising. Someone in this psychographic field may be a member at a gym or another health club. As for the geographic profile, Gatorade would target more suburban areas that would be part of the middle to upper class neighborhoods. They do not target any section of the country specifically. When examining existing users, Gatorade would make sure the benefits being sought, like rehydrating or recovery, are there and meet and exceed expectations. Also Gatorade monitors the usage patterns to see if people are using their products after working out or playing sports or for another reason. Doing lead Gatorade to find that many people were drinking their product not for their intended purpose, but because they liked the taste. This lead to Gatorade releasing G2, the low calorie option, for consumers who liked the taste of their product, but not need all the calories to replenish those burned during exercise.

Marketing Mix: The first part of the marketing mix is the product strategy. Gatorade uses a family branding strategy. On each individual bottle as well as packages of multiple bottle the Gatorade symbol would be very present. Turning to packaging, Gatorade offers a wide variety of options. Consumers can purchase individual bottles in sizes of 12 oz, 24oz, 32oz, or even 64oz. Besides this they can buy use of these sizes in 6, 12, or 24 packs. In the product line itself for the original Gatorade thirst quencher, there are always approximately 15-25 flavors on the market. Some of those are on permanently, such as lemon-lime, fruit punch, grape, orange, etc., where some are being tested to see how they sell and others make occasional appearances coming and going from the market.

The placement strategy makes up another part of the marketing mix. Gatorade uses a couple different types of intermediaries. Because of Gatorade being a convenience product, they must be everywhere. They use some non-traditional channels when dealing with the large box stores like Wal-Mart and Target, but also the traditional channels of selling to a wholesaler, who in turn would sell to retailers, grocery stores, gas stations, etc., throughout the nation. This is beneficial for Gatorade because they do not have to sell individually to each and every retailer which would be impossible for them to do on as large of a scale as the wholesalers do.

Additionally, the promotional strategy make sup a part of the marketing mix. In the past Gatorade has used celebrity endorsements, mainly star athletes, to market their product. This has the objective to make the consumer believe that if a star athlete trusts Gatorade to work for them, than they should to. For the promotional mix Gatorade uses about 50% towards advertising to reach out to large amounts of people. Also they have begun to utilize digital media more, about 25% of the promotional mix, to make instant access to consumers. Another 20% of the promotional mix is spent on public relations to keep Gatorade in high regards as the top of the line sports drink and nutrition brand. Finally about 5% of the promotional strategy is sales promotion to make an immediate impact.

The last part of the marketing mix is the pricing strategy. Since Gatorade is the best sports drink on the market they would be the most expensive of all the sports drinks.

Brand Price per Bottle

Gatorade $3.50

Powerade $2.80

Vitamin Water $3.35

Lucozade $2.65

Gatorade is more expensive than its competitors, just as a BMW is more expensive than a Chevy. Powerade tries to take consumers by being almost a dollar cheaper, but still a good product. Vitamin Water wants to show they also are a top product, so they price themselves close to the top. Finally Lucozade is a lesser known product and makes up a smaller portion of the national market share, so they are priced at the lowest.

Final Comparison:

Brand Sports Drink Other Nutritional Products

Gatorade Yes Yes

Powerade Yes No

Vitamin Water Yes No

Lucozade Yes No (Starting to)

Besides the original Gatorade thirst quencher in all the different flavors, there is all the other products previously mentioned like the protein shakes, energy bars, etc. However, all of Gatorades products simply are competing with them on the sports drink field, and do not have any other nutritional products.

Sources:

http://www.gatorade.com/company/heritage

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=3929315&page=1

http://www.pepsico.com/purpose/our-mission-and-values

http://www.mbaskool.com/brandguide/food-and-beverages/583-gatorade.html

http://www.slideshare.net/allanray/gatorade-marketing-plan

http://www.managementparadise.com/forums/marketing-management/209180-marketing-mix-gatorade.html