Red Flash Brand Integrated Communications - Case Study Example

Red flash brand integrated communications plan Student’s name: Institution: Date: Introduction Red flash brand is among the new drink brands that have been introduced by the coca cola company most recently. Entering the market in the early 2000, Red Flash drink was meant to compete strongly against the Big Red brand that is equally operating within the same market niche (Pope, Louis, & Yazijian, 2011). One of the distinctive features of the Red flash drink is its low protein and fat levels; the protein and the fat levels of these drinks are zero while the carbohydrates and energy levels are 28g and 25 kj. These attributes make the drink to suite the current needs of people within the market system (Media Age, 2010, June 16). The red flash drink is considered a drink that can be taken by friends and colleagues, and in the contemporary world, the drink is taken mostly by the youths and students. It is also considered ideal for people intending to lose extra weight. Moreover, the drink offers a sense of class since it was developed for a certain market profile which mainly consists of people looking for both taste and value. The great and unique flavor is achieved through improvement of taste and proper packaging which reflects the value of the drink. Despite the strong attributes that have been given to this drink, many consumers are still not aware of its existence in the market. Most consumers cannot tell the importance and why it is suitable for people within a given age group. Moreover, the drink has not yet received any global recognition in terms of many people knowing it and its effect (Raman & Naik, 2012). The secondary problem with this drink is that many people still perceive it as an alcoholic drink hence does not permit its use by their children. This makes it not easily accepted in many cultures and religious settings, and as a result, the levels of marketing this drink have become less successful with most people having such negative perception. Situational Analysis Market Analysis Ready to drink refreshments form the largest group of drinks and refreshments for all people across the board; many companies are striving to create brands that will be acceptable to all people within the market segments in terms of taste and class hence making it ideal for consumption at all times. Coca cola holds the greatest percentage in terms of market share and therefore and, therefore, is the number one distributor of drinks and refreshments. However, the company has not had a great success in marketing the new drink which has not received global acceptance and recognition as compared to the others within the same niche. The big red, a major competitor of this drink is doing well and has attained worldwide recognition among the best drinks (Raman & Naik, 2012). The coca cola company, therefore, targets to achieve a large market share that will enable the drink gain its rightful position in the market. Market environment Drinks and refreshments are becoming a fast recognized trend among people within various age groups. With the emergence of new age groups, tastes and preferences are quickly changing hence making it ideal to prepare ground breaking for the Red flash drink. Technological issues are equally affecting the manner in which these drinks will sell in the coming future. Shelf life optimization among other techniques will play a major role in determining the levels of competition for this brand. The market environment is filled with capabilities as well as technological advancement that will be useful in communicating the attractive features and tastes of this drink to the prospective customers. Consumer analysis The red flush drink is ideal for people within all ages due its non alcoholic nature; however, the new packaging targets the youths who were observed to be the greatest consumers in the South American market. The youths in this case are aged between 19- 28 years old and are mostly students and new graduates seeking to find their potential partners. This profiling has made the company improve the taste and quality that will exactly the suite the demands of the group. Competitor analysis The main competitor of the red flash drink is a big red which has also laid down strategies that will make it earn more market share globally. The company offering the big red drink has announced a 4% price increase, a factor that is likely to change the market position of the product. Similarly, other similar drinks like Fantoz have responded to this by producing more products into the market and changing their packaging to attract more consumers. The price increase by the Big Red is already hitting the shelves with many brands being announced and offered to consumers every time. The level of nutrients is equally becoming a factor that will determine the ability of the drink to attract its intended customers. Moreover, Big Red are planning to come up with a brand that will offer customers both taste and nutritional consideration. SWOT Strengths The main strengths of the co cola company towards marketing of their brand is the nature of product positioning, versatility and product extension in the market. The great taste and nutrient levels repositions the product as a drink suitable for people seeking fun and nutritional benefits such as weight loss that has become a major problem I the current social setting. Most youths are still not keen on observing their weight; however, offering them an alternative that will offer this is an attractive package that they will not easily ignore. Another strength is the overall market share held by the coca cola company, which is the leading refreshment distributor in the world. The nutritional benefits of low fat and proteins make this drink ideal for elderly persons wishing to observe their weight. The trend has been observed in many regions and is forming the basis for the creation of another market segment. The versatility of red flash as both refreshment and nutritional drink makes it become among the top preference of people seeking taste and quality. The new packaging is equally attractive and depicts a transformed product that is capable of fulfilling all the needs of its consumers. Moreover, the new packaging comprises of strawberry fruit drawing a depiction of healthy non-alcoholic drink. Weakness The main weakness of this drink is that many people in the market do not yet know it. As compared to its main competitor, the Big Red, this drink is only known in regions such as South America. It is thus imperative to create awareness of its existence to various markets that will enable it known to many people within the industry. Moreover, the product has been previously perceived by many people in the market panorama as an alcoholic drink hence reducing the number of people preferring it as their main drink. These negative perceptions have led to the poor performance of the brand with most overlooking the benefits attributed to it. Another weakness is its lack of appeal to children; most children did not enjoy the taste that came with the drink hence making it not their preference. Opportunities The coca cola company is the leading refreshment company globally; using this perspective, the company can launch a campaign that will help market the existence of this drink to potential market and reveal its benefits. Since weight loss is a major social problem, the company can use that as a major competitive advantage against their competitors to achieve a large market share. The coca cola company equally interacts with many customers in the social media hence giving them the upper hand in finding a potential market for the product (Belch & Belch, 2008). As well, with a worldwide market, Coca Cola Company has the capacity to launch this product in many countries and successfully market it based on the values attached to it. Facebook, twitter, television adverts and the entire internet has provided a perfect platform through which the product can be easily advertised to potential customers. Through these social media means, market segments can be created and then product is developed in regards to the desired taste and preferences. The company also finds it easy to profile various customers since communication is enhanced and every customer has the capability to express their levels of satisfaction and proposal to the product levels of satisfaction. Threats One of the biggest threats to the Red Flash brand is the emergence f new drink brands that are likely to attract customers hence shifting their attention. The refreshment industry is highly competitive and offers a wide range of drinks; this leads to the provision of options to the customers hence no consistency in the buying pattern of customers. Due to this, the brand and the new features may go unnoticed by many people in the market (Raman & Naik, 2012). Moreover, there are also the perceptions that the drink is alcoholic which may make it automatically rejected in other social and religious settings where alcoholic substances are not accepted. These threats are likely to affect the marketability of the Red Flash drink if not well handled and considered during the product marketing. Integrated marketing communications plan As previously indicated the major objective of marketing the Red Flash product is to increase its awareness in the market as well as increasing its appeal to the potential customers globally (Clow & Baack, 2010). In order to attain the main objective of versatility awareness, the strategies that will be employed will include the use of social Medias, mobile communication, and online advertisements and in store advertising among others. In order to achieve this effect of appealing to people, another website will be designed for a product that will be easy for people to use and maneuver through. Social media pages such as facebook and twitters will also be created for the brand, with new attractive pictures depicting brand quality and designs that will attract the concentration of many people targeted within the market. This campaign will target youths in schools as well as couples seeking drinks that will offer them great taste as well as quality for their drinks. The greatest consumers of this product include the youths who are constantly taking such drinks in parties and groups. Therefore, the drink would be suitable for people yearning to quench their thirsts for the drinks. It also offers a sign of prestige and class for the youthful consumers hence making it their number one choice. Moreover, many teens attend clubs and parties and do not wish to take alcoholic drinks; the Red Flash will offer them with ideal refreshment that is classy, no alcohol content, and offering a perfect taste for their intended needs. In order to increase the levels of awareness of the product, Red Flash will not only be positioned as a refreshment drink, but also as a prestigious nutritional drink that offers people intending to lose weight with great taste as well as additional value for their tastes. Using this strategy in positioning will offer solid grounds for achieving the main communication objective of increasing the product awareness. Creative execution The creative strategies put forth to achieve the primary marketing objectives include facebook, twitter, mobile communications, online advertising and in store advertising. These strategies will be executed through a facebook page, Direct promotions, facebook ads, banner ads and sales promotion (Clow & Baack, 2010). Facebook Facebook has been considered one of the major effective means through which the target audience can be reached. The facebook platform offers an interaction point for many people hence making it easy for products to be easily marketed to them. Moreover, creating a facebook page for the product would help in ease of sharing the product page. The facebook like button is equally viral and can generate thousands of like within a very short period of time. Creating a facebook page and ten letting people like the page, can lead to million people following the product (Belch & Belch, 2008). This group can then be separated into segments depending on their tastes and preferences; the company can also be well positioned to know the customer opinions regarding the product and may offer them opportunities to propose necessary improvements to the products. The created facebook page will then be linked to the website of the product where prospective buyers can make orders for their desired quantities. The use of facebook in the marketing communication was ideal because it shows all the features of the product and the various improvements that have been made to make it better. The facebook platform makes it easy for a company to engage the customers in product development and in discussions regarding the new improvements that have been made relative to the product existence. The interactive process of facebook makes it easy for the fans to share their ideas and these techniques can be used to access various parts of the world. Facebook is used nearly by everyone around the globe and the introduction of mobile handsets has spread the use of facebook among people. Youth between the age of 19 – 28 form the largest number of facebook users hence making it ideal to find and attract the desired customers. One of the key ways of having many facebook fans is developing a page whose contents are filled with corporate contents, most of which are highly demanded by the consumers. By keeping consumers informed of the new product brand and improvements, facebook can effectively help in the establishment of the product brand. Many markets can be easily penetrated and assessed using the facebook platform. The system should also be made in which purchase can be made online to increase the levels of revenues for the products. The testimonials left forth by satisfied customers would attract others towards liking the product. Facebook ads are also another way of reaching the consumers. The ads are normally used in promoting the product website and making it appear on the online pages. Using this method helps the organization in deciding whether or not to engage its consumers by exposing them to the product or allowing the customers to make selection f their preferred brands. The ability to target specific consumers is a great advantage in the use of facebook ads, and can benefit the company in terms of attracting the desired customers. Market segmentation is also made easy with the use of facebook ads a factor that largely facilitates communications with customers. Online advertising Online advertising is another way of promoting the brand versatility. This can e achieved through the use of the current coca cola website. The coca cola website is appealing in a number of ways and often attracts a large number of people. Posting information regarding this product on the page would help create awareness of the product and other latest advancements. This strategy is perfectly in the same line with the overall objective of creating awareness of the product through communications. Banner ads will be placed on the website to attract more people into knowing the product existence. The banner ads will use attractive messages to draw people into clicking on the product page and checking on its qualities, as well as prices on offer. The engaging nature of the advertisements will help in facilitating the communication levels with the customers and the product developers a factor that will work towards making better the overall performance of the product in the market (Belch & Belch, 2008). As the company strives to market the Red Flash brand, more options for online advertising would be used in ensuring that the customers are reached appropriately. The website contents regarding Red Flash would be based on attracting the attention of youths and people intending to enjoy great tastes from their drinks as ell as class. The snapshots that would be used in the adverts will also depict a target of young people who form the highest number of consumers. This helps in aligning even other new consumers from different market segments to understand the benefits attached to the product use. With over 100,000 page visitors per day, the online advertising will offer very viable options towards ensuring that the targeted segment is achieved and the product communication is done perfectly in a way that will make it better. Direct marketing This marketing system involves the use of daily activities to engage customers in the creation of awareness. As a tradition in the coca cola company, the company can host road shows as well as sponsorship of events that aim to create awareness of the product brand. The events can be organized courtesy of the red flash brand and should be aimed at creating awareness of the newly improved features. Such events should improvise strategies such as entry to the event venue should be a can of the red flash drink. This will not only encourage everyone to have a taste of the new brand, but also will increase the sales volume of the product. This method may also take the form of offering sponsorship and help to the needy in the society through corporate social responsibility. This strategy will make people put the Red Flash drink on their preference list and develop loyalty for the same. Direct marketing may also involve the use of banner and other forms of advertisements to create awareness of the product existence. Such banners may include posters portraying the drink and illustration the benefits attached to its use. Publicity In this case, the general public can be informed of the existence of the product. This can be done by running g promotions where people compete to win. The promotions may include the competition in which the audience is expected to answer certain questions regarding the product. Such a question may include: What are the basic nutritional components of the Red flash drink? Such a question may help in the creation of a public awareness since most people will be compelled to participate by giving the correct answer. At the end of the promotion period, the company shall have achieved its overall objective of letting people know the components and the existence of the Red Flash drink (Elmore, 2013). This technique is ideal for markets that the drink has just been introduced into, and most people still not aware of the product existence. Sales promotion This is equally another effective means of marketing the products. Sales promotion helps in increasing awareness of the product through people. In this case, the company would train a group of people and then engage a road show promotion in which these trained people inform the public about the new products and the benefits attached to them. During this time, the people are often given a chance of tasting the brand and may also compete to win a drink. Engaging the public through such occasions helps in promoting the product quality as well as increasing the sales level of the products. Sales promotion may be used in accessing regions that cannot be effectively accessed by other means such as the social media. Sales promotion is also important in reaching out to the native audience who may not understand the standard language used globally. In this case, the trained persons are often from the neighboring community or social setting hence making it easy and simple for them to communicate with each other. The greatest advantage of using the above indicated Medias is that they are cheap and can be used to reach a wide variety of people within the marketing niche. Moreover, most of these strategies have not been fully used by the existing companies in the market hence will offer unique ways of creating product brand awareness in the market setting. Plan assessment and evaluation The integrated marketing communications plan is viable since the current consumer trends are being followed in reaching out to the consumers. The selected methods are the most current and effective means of marketing through which the targeted markets can be reached as fast as possible. More so, these methods seek to find a solution to the problem of product versatility and also the lack of awareness among people within various product niches. To ensure successful implementations of the plan, all the marketing objectives will be followed and observed keenly. The people put in charge of the entire process would also be professionals who posses skills in marketing products and services to the customers. The plan will also engage the establishment of website traffic to check on the progress of the marketing technique. This will help the company in establishing relevant interventions in cases where the product promotion process seems to be lagging behind (Belch & Belch, 2008). The effectiveness of the campaign process should also be measured using the levels of sales volume achieved in a given region. For instance, the levels of marketing can be analyzed after the event through the number of bottles purchased during the event. The overall variance in the traffic flow will help in establishing the levels of success of the communication's campaign. Looking at the above strategies, it is quite obvious that the Red Flash brand will perform well and achieve great market coverage. Implementation of the integrated marketing communications plan would ensure that the coca cola Red flash, brand performs well and increases its market performance. This will also help in making the brand perform well and preventing the competitors from taking over their market products. References Belch, G. E., & Belch, M. A. (2008). Advertising and promotion: an integrated marketing communications perspective (4th ed.). Boston, Mass: Irwin/McGraw-Hill. Clow, K. E., & Baack, D. (2010). Integrated advertising, promotion & marketing communications (2nd ed.). Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. Elmore, B. J. (2013). Citizen Coke: An Environmental and Political History of the Coca-Cola Company. Enterprise and Society, 14(4), 717-731. Media Age. (2010, June 16). News Analysis: Big brands see potential of in-game ads.. New Media Age, 3, 8. Pope, D., Louis, J. C., & Yazijian, H. Z. (2011). The Cola Wars: The Story of the Global Corporate Battle between the Coca-Cola Company and Pepsico, Inc.. The Business History Review, 55(4), 588. Raman, K., & Naik, P. A. (2012). Long-term Profit Impact Of Integrated Marketing Communications Program. Review of Marketing Science, 2(1), 6. Read More