Fiji Water Case Study - Marketing Analysis

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Option 1: The first option to continue the current “Every Drop is Green” campaign and meet the promises FIJI Water has made about going carbon negative has already faced a lot of negative criticism from various stakeholders. With regards to execution, it’s not realistic for FIJI Water to implement the claims it has made for going carbon negative. Heidi Siegelbaum’s article “FIJI Water by the numbers” summarizes the environmental impact made by FIJI Water: 5,500 miles per trip to Los Angeles, 46 million gallons of fossil fuel, 1.3 billion gallons of water and 216,000,000 pounds of greenhouse gases. Considering the staggering impact these numbers have on the environment, FIJI Water’s claims of reducing its packaging by 20%, supplying at least 50% of the energy used at its bottling plant with renewable energy, optimizing logistics and using more carbon-efficient transportation modes, restoring degrading grasslands in Yaqara Valley by planting native tree species and supporting recycling programs for plastic PET bottles, would still not be sufficient in the company becoming carbon negative – their operations and geographical location doesn’t permit them to do so. By making such an unrealistic claim, the company will undoubtedly decrease its Brand Reputation due to false declarations of “every bottle of FIJI Water results in a net reduction of carbon in the atmosphere”. As for the other criterions of time, loss and price, FIJI Water will spend enormous amounts of money to even try and successfully achieve these claims, which will result in waste of precious time, capital, profit and opportunities to invest that time and money elsewhere.

Option 2: The second option of seizing operations in the United States and other distant countries by selling locally in Fiji and to nearby countries will allow the company to drastically lower its carbon footprint through the savings from transportation and distribution to markets located far away – such as Los Angeles, which is just shy of 9,000 miles. Though FIJI Water can implement this option from an execution perspective, it fails to meet all other decision criteria. Let alone the time it’d take for the company to relocate its distribution network, it’ll be very costly and deprive the company in meeting its growth and profitability goals. Leaving its main market, the US, FIJI Water will incur substantial revenue losses – and based on the demand in Fiji, along with nearby countries, the demand for its product will not be enough to turnover a profit. There is no country within a 5,000 mile distance of Fiji that’s even in the top 10 or top 20 for bottled water market or consumption per capita, respectively. Though this will showcase the willingness of the company to go green and position it as eco-friendly, the opportunity cost of doing so is not sensible from an economic and sustainable perspective.

Option 3: The third option of discontinuing the “Every drop is green” campaign and adopting a more realistic one allows FIJI Water to still engage in its current CSR related initiatives without boasting its claims about going carbon negative. In terms of execution, the company will face a moderate level of hassle to launch a new campaign. The campaign isn’t changing the actions being performed by the company, but rather presenting its CSR engagements in a more realistic and truthful manner. The campaign will take approximately three to six months to effectively launch, with minimal costs incurred because it’s mainly based on a change to their public relations strategy. Though the company loses the bold touch associated with their “every drop is green” campaign, the benefits from an increased brand reputation from consumers, environmentalists and conversationalists will allow for long-term success.

Recommendation:

From the three options mentioned above, it’s clear that the third option of discontinuing the current “Every drop is green” campaign and adopting a new one is the most attractive option to for FIJI Water to gain environmental credibility. The main reason FIJI Water is facing so much criticism is because its message of “every drop is green”, claiming every bottle of FIJI Water results in a net reduction of carbon in the atmosphere, is over-exaggerated and not realistic, thus why the company has been accused of greenwashing. It’s important to note that FIJI Water is involved in various CSR initiatives that most water bottling companies aren’t. Through helping its community prosper through funding, creating well-paying jobs for local citizens, saving Yaqara Valley from deforestation, among many others, the company has always engagement in beneficial CSR movements to spark a positive change in the world. However, due to its remote location, it was forced to act fast on an amplified Green movement, which led them to launch their “Every drop is green” campaign. By changing the perception of that message to something more realistic, it’ll save the company from greenwashing labels. Therefore, the company should launch a new campaign focused on “Continuing to Green”. While this message showcases the company’s engagements in Green activities, it doesn’t boast any claims about being carbon negative – it shows a genuine desire for the company to continually increase its CSR initiatives. After all, it is a water bottling company that is transporting its products to sites thousands of miles away – this can’t be changed because of the unique location of their bottling plant, so it must portray itself in the eco-friendliest manner while being honest and realistic with its message.

Implementation Plan (Refer to Appendix B):

- Changing brand perception: IMC Tool #1: Public Relations - Addressing concerns of public accusing FIJI Water of greenwashing.

- Enticing purchase: IMC Tool #2: Advertising - Documentary-like / light-hearted commercials reflecting the new campaign of: “Continuing to Green”

- Enticing purchase: IMC Tool #3: Sales promotion - Product samples, brand trials and mini water bottles

- Forming Brand Loyalty: IMC Tool #4: Maintaining brand presence - Getting feedback and adjusting the Marketing Communications strategy accordingly

Budget:

The new campaign of “Continuing to Green” for FIJI Water will initially require a large investment because it requires immediate aggressive marketing to get the message across before more greenwashing claims are made on its current campaign, “Every Drop is Green.” After an initial IMC push to build awareness towards this campaign, the company