Brand Positioning at Cadbury Chocolate - Case Study Example

Name: Instructor: Course: Date: Cadbury Chocolate Business Report TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Situation Analysis/Current Market Analysis…………………………………………..3 I. Current product………………………………………………………………...3 II. Current pricing…………………………………………………………………4 III. Current Distribution……………………………………………………………5 IV. Current promotion……………………………………………………….…….5 2. Brand Positioning……………………………………………………………………..7 I. Definition and Explanation…………………………………………………...7 II. Perpetual diagram……………………………………………………………..8 3. Target market identification……………………………………………………………9 I. Geographic segmentation……………………………………………………...9 II. Demographic segmentation…………………………………………………...10 III. Psychographic segmentation…………………………………………………..11 IV. Behavioural segmentation………………………………………………………11 4. References……………………………………………………………………………..12 1.1 Current Product The Cadbury dairy milk chocolate has been in the market for over a century now, since it was first manufactured in the United Kingdom in 1905. Its exotic taste and texture has kept it in the market for all this time. Though its advertisements and packaging designs have evolved over the years with technological advances in production, its key ingredients and recipe have not changed since 1955 (Cadbury: our company). This Cadbury product has a unique taste that usually leaves one craving for more. This is because of combination of flavours: fresh milk, cocoa, and sugar. In addition to its exotic taste, the chocolate is affordable, communicable, and pre-emptive. It has a high quality taste and a design logo among other features. The chocolate comes in different sizes and shapes suitable for different occasions as well as for all ages. The small bars weighing 45g-110g, are ideal for small treats, self-indulgence whereas the large ones (120g-3500) are suitable for gifts during different occasions. The design package of the Cadbury milk chocolate is the same worldwide. The packaging comes with an iconic “a glass and a half” image. This image shows a chunk of the chocolate flowing out of a glass that is half-full with cream milk. The image itself is quite appetizing to the consumer. It has served as a successful advertisement for the product. This image is largely aimed at creating an association between the chocolate and dairy milk. Children and the youths mostly consume this product. These consumers benefit from purchasing the product. The chocolate bars are relatively affordable. Cadbury has taken into consideration its customers financial level in addition to their ages (Lanham 36). 1.2 Current Pricing Currently, most consumers have to a realization that they need to be conscious of their health (Sheth at al. 76). Research has also revealed that processed sugars cause many ailments. Perhaps, this is the major challenge Cadbury is facing in marketing of the chocolate. The major competitors of Cadbury are Nestle and Star among others. However, the Cadbury dairy chocolate is cheaper as compared to the chocolates manufactured by its competitors. This is a challenge to the company’s pricing policies. Recently, the two companies had wrangles over the purple colour marketing, which was eventually granted to Cadbury. However, the Cadbury milk chocolate is relatively affordable. Nevertheless, the price of the chocolate has over the years been kept low it make it a long lasting product. Cadbury has maintained a good number of loyal customers. Most people prefer Cadbury for its rich taste. Since Cadbury has seriously taken into account of its consumer’s needs, an increase in the product’s price may not lead into large drop in the demand of the product. Cadbury has paid attention to the consumer’s emotions over the years regarding its products. Consequently, this has bred loyalty and love for the products by its consumers (Wrenn 54). Its consumers for its unique features and affordable prices favour the Cadbury dairy chocolate. The company’s unique efforts to satisfy the consumers’ needs in addition to retaining old customers, has placed it at a good position in comparison to its competitors. Consequently, this has earned Cadbury loyalty from its customers. For example, Cadbury launched a campaign aimed at bringing joy to people in the year 2012. Such a campaign could influence positively on the customer’s feelings towards Cadbury products. 1.3 Current Distribution The Cadbury Company has implemented an extensive market for the milk chocolate. This chocolate is manufactured in 60 countries all over the world but its target audience is global. For instance, one can easily purchase he product from stores in the most third world countries though not all of them have been authorized to manufacture the chocolate. This is perhaps possible due to its affordable price in addition to its variant sizes (Sheth 54). The distribution channel of the chocolate is indirect. Thus, it is not possible for the consumers to purchase the product directly from the business. There, the product passes through wholesalers and retailers before finally reaching the consumer. Various benefits are offered to this product by the different channels. The channels also influence the value of the chocolate. The consumer can thus purchase the chocolate from various places that are convenient to them (Allenby and Peter 15). These places could include outlets such as shops, supermarkets, restaurants, cafeterias, cinemas, on board airlines, buffet cars theme parks, motorway service stations theatres and many more others. 1.4 Current Promotion Recently, a new Cadbury chocolate was launched. This message reached consumers via the social media. The new chocolate bars were let out to the consumers as free samples. The company has already run a series of tweets on the bars, urging its tweeter followers to check out its page and find how they could win the chocolate bars. The image of the appetizing chocolate bars were also posted on its pages both face book and tweeter (Rafee 43). The Cadbury also revealed a few days ago that its social media followers have added up to 2.5 million. Jerry Daykin, Cadbury’s social media manager admits that the medium is of great significance as far as reaching the customers are concerned. He thus acknowledges that social media has proved effective in getting into contact with its audience. Among the kids, the names laddoos and shots have been used. One of the recent TV adverts highlighted the joy of savouring chocolate bars. This was captured in the tagline ‘Have you Felt Silk lately. The campaign consisted of three protagonists enjoying the Cadbury milk chocolate. They appeared innocent, beautiful, overjoyed and unmindful of their surroundings. Lauterborn shows that these promotions have touched the hearts of many who unceasingly remain to royal consumers (26). The promotion through the social media has reached many young because the young people use this network mostly. The younger generation uses the social media more than the older generation. This is a good strategy by the company to reach its target audience. The emotions that usually come with advertisements have greatly led to the development of an emotional attachment between the consumer and the chocolate. This consequently led to loyalty on the side of the consumer. This has improved the brand position of the dairy chocolate, as the customers attach it with such values as family togetherness and joy. The company is aimed at reaching its target audience, retention of consumers, and keeping in touch with the consumers of its products and getting to identify the needs of its customers. Collectively, this aimed at positioning the brand effectively and winning competitors. 2.0 Brand Positioning Theory 2.1 Brand Positioning According to Blythe, brand positioning has been defined differently by different scholars (284). However, it can be generally identified as the process of forming a mental identity in the minds of the target market audience by a business company. This mental identity determines how the consumers perceive the company’s products, services and even its immediate competitors. Thus, brand positioning creates an impression in the mind of the consumers. Brand positioning makes use of marketing placement strategies such as promotion of price, distribution, competition and packaging. Any company’s product must have a positioning in order for it to supplant others in the current competitive markets. Thus, if positioning is strategically applied, it leads to an improvement in the competitive advantage of a business. Thus in a successful business, it is important to locate the product easily to meet the needs of its customers (Klein 43). One way of positioning a brand is through the use of a perceptual market map. There are various positions a product can take, based on two of its magnitudes which are important to the consumer. These various dimensions could include low vs. high prices, basic quality vs. high quality, low vs. high volume, and necessity vs. luxury among others. The market map can be used to spot gaps in the market; for instance, a chocolate company (Star) found that most consumers were ready to a high price for a high quality chocolate made by Fair-trade. It thus exploited this chance by availing an organic premium chocolate. This resulted in the movement of both brand into the high quality/price quadrant (Bradley and Nigel 17). However a thorough research has to be conducted to ensure that the market has a demand gap. In most cases, consumers avoid buying products with demand gaps. 2.2 A Perceptual Diagram 3.0 Target Market Identification 3.1 Geographic Segmentation Cadbury has successfully succeeded in implementing the concept of segmentation in marketing the dairy chocolate among other products. For instance the company operates in only 60 countries worldwide. The Cadbury milk chocolate is thus consumed globally today. In 2003, Cadbury expanded into the US market. The company has reached its target audience globally. The chocolate is manufactured in industries that are mostly located in urban centres; for instance, in the united, there is one in New York City. This is because most urban centres have a high population density. Therefore, many adverts are targeted at the urban population. The Cadbury is very strong in Europe as compared to other countries globally. The demand for the Cadbury milk chocolate is increasing globally. Thus, the biggest challenge is a how to achieve a low cost supply chain. The cost is due to energy, packaging, transport and raw materials. Cadogan notes that geographical factor such as climate, population density and urban vs. rural set up are usually taken into consideration when identifying market (43). The Cadbury gives priority to urban areas, highly populated and areas with favourable climatic conditions. The natural environment plays a great role in the availability of resources. 3.2 Demographic Segmentation The primary target audience for the Cadbury milk chocolate is aged between 1 to 50 years. Mostly, the concentration is on the youth and young children. This has influenced on the marketing strategies; for instance, the use of social media. Young people are usually in a good state of healthy. Therefore, they can comfortably consume the chocolate as opposed to old people who in most cases suffer from old age related illnesses. Generally, people like consuming junk food, as they associate with the current trends. Most young people get a feeling of belonging into a higher social class when they consume the Cadbury milk chocolate. Thus, demand among the younger generation is high as opposed to the old generation. The Cadbury dairy chocolate market targets people across all age group though (Kinnear and Root 43). Financially well-off individuals consume more chocolate as compared to the ones who are financially challenged since they readily have the money. These hints for those with low incomes level the chocolate could be considered as a laxity rather than a basic. Consequently, the demand of chocolate by people with low living standards is relatively low. An educated population would definitely consume more chocolate because their living standards are better. Again, these groups easily access the product information; for example, on the Internet and are likely to try it. 3.3 Psychographic Segmentation The people who are sociable consume the chocolate more than those who are introverts in nature. Those leading lavish lifestyles are more likely to purchase the Cadbury dairy chocolate as well. People who are used to the rural life tend to dismiss the Cadbury dairy chocolate as a high end product. This has greatly hindered penetration into the rural area. Those leading a health conscious life are likely to check on the chocolate’s ingredients before buying it (Brown 50). 3.4 Behavioural Segmentation Burns and Bush note that customers play an important in decision making (27). Children will for instance decide for themselves when to buy the Cadbury milk chocolate. There is no specific occasion as to when one has to purchase the chocolate or not. So one can decide to present it as a gift during a birthday party or just eat a chocolate like a snuck. Most people who consume the product are loyal. This means that one can walk into a shopping mall pick a Cadbury chocolate pay and leave without necessarily having to compare it with other brands. Thus, we, most consumers of the Cadbury dairy chocolate are regular consumers. We also have those who buy the product once in a while. The supply chain is quality, conscious, and highly reliable. Culture also plays an important role on the consumption of the chocolate; for instance, if the product is not in accordance with people’s culture, the company will suffer a loss. Most consumers are sensitive but the chocolate is affordable, as the company has already taken affordability into consideration Works Cited Allenby, Greg, and Peter Rossi. Quality Perceptions and Asymmetric Switching Between Brands and Marketing Science. Marketing Science Summer, 10.3 (1991): 185-204. Print Blythe, Jim. Essentials of Marketing. Pearson Education Limited, 2004. Print Bradley, Nigel. Marketing Research: Tools and Techniques. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007. Print Brown, Kozinets, and Sherry John. Teaching Old Brands New Tricks: Retro Branding And the Revival of Brand Meaning. Journal of Marketing, 67 (2003): 19-33. Print Burns, Alvin, and Bush Ronald. Marketing Research, 6th edition. New Jersey, USA: Pearson, 2010. Print Cadogan, John. ‘Marketing Strategy Vol. 1, Marketing Strategy's Foundations: Market Orientation,’ the Cornerstone of Strategic MarketingThought. Marketing Strategy. Los Angeles [Etc.], Sage, 2010. Print Cadbury: our company. 2010 . Web. 28th Nov 2012 . Kinnear, Thomas, and Root Anne. Survey of Marketing Research. Chicago: American Marketing Association, 1988. Print Klein, Andreas. Strategic Financial Management- Analyzed Company. Adidas AG. GRIN Verlag, 2007. Print Lanham, James. Managing Marketing. Grenoble Graduate School of Business, 2012. Print Lauterborn, Bob. New Marketing Litany: Four Ps Passé: C-Words Take Over. Advertising Age, 61.4 (1990): 26. Print Rafee, Azhar. The key to targeting lies in users’ real behavior. New Media and Age, 2004. Print Sheth, Jagdish, Mittal, Banwari. and Bruce Newman. Customer Behavior: Consumer Behavior and Beyond. NY: Harcourt Brace, 1999. Print Wrenn, Loudon, and Stevens Robert. Marketing Research: Text and Cases. Second Edition. Binghamton, New York: Haworth press, 2007. Print Read More