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Gatorade Public Relations Campaign
Jeremy Sellmeyer
Maryville University
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Index
Situation Analysis………………………………………………………………………..Pages 3-4
Objective……………………………………………………………………………….........Page 4
Public……………………………………………………………………………………..Pages 4-5
Strategies…………………………………………………………………………………….Page 5
Tactics…………………………………………………………………………………..Pages 5-16
Magazine Advertisement……………………………………………………………………Page 6
Social Media Campaign……………………………………………………………….Pages 10-13
Press Release……………………………………………………………………………….Page 15
Media List………………………………………………………………………………….Page 16
Calendar……………………………………………………………………………………Page 17
Budget…………………………………………………………………………………Pages 17-18
Evaluation……………………………………………………………………………...Pages 18-19
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Situation Analysis
Company Analysis:
Our strengths as Gatorade include our good quality of products, the strong brand name,
scientific proof and backing of physical benefits, our domination of the sports drink market with
owning the sidelines of professional sports leagues as well as professional teams, and our athletic
endorsements. We feel our weaknesses are the limited advertising we do with the low quantity
and bad visibility, the lack of understanding by our publics of the product benefits, the high price
of our products, confusion among the varieties we have, and our lack of an energy drink to
compete with that market. As far as opportunities go, we feel more advertisements would be
beneficial as well as more celebrity and athlete endorsements, additional health benefits, and
going after a younger market for growth. Some threats we’ve assessed are our drink competitors,
the struggling economy and people’s willingness to purchase Gatorade products, and the
negative claims against our products and their health benefits as well as the rising concern of
obesity and over-consumption of our products in that concern.
Marketplace Analysis:
In the non-carbonated drinks market with Gatorade in the sports drink category
competing against water, juice, tea and coffee, and energy drinks, we feel our strengths are the
current market increase in sports drinks, the global distribution we have, and the large audience
we have. Sports drinks are weak in terms of the health benefits being underplayed and the young
target market not necessarily having large sums of money. Some sports drink opportunities are to
add more health benefits like vitamins and proteins to attract more of the market as well as to
consider the addition of an energy drink that coincides closely with our category. The clear
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threats we have are our competitors with energy drinks poaching off some of our market, and
water being the clearest threat to compete with.
Objective
Our objective stated here, “By the end of the next school year, May 31, 2014, to increase
the amount of American high school students that purchase Gatorade products by 20%,” is a
strong, clear objective that we feel is appropriate for the increase of an untapped market for us,
but one that is attainable for the time period of this campaign. Our realistic goal is to create
awareness of our interest in the younger market and to build strategies around targeting what is
important to them but also what is important to reaching those in direct contact with them
including parents, coaches, and administration. These secondary sources are venues for us to
support our objective to expand into the youth market, and we will pursue them as a means to
reaching our objective for this campaign as well. By increasing our relationship with the target
market, our plan is to increase our sales with them also.
Public
Our target demographic for this campaign is high school students, but with an expanded
range of 13-19 years of age to include all teenagers. Both boys and girls will be included in our
public, and the heavy interest will be on sports and refueling to keep consistency with current
Gatorade ideals, but we are pushing the value of our all-around drink line Gatorade Prep and the
benefits it has for non-athletes to not limit ourselves. Our campaign will utilize athletics as
anticipated to get the immediate audience, but with our social media and new drink to support
the growing bodies of the youth market as a whole, our plan is to go after the largest target
audience and build our health initiative to attract athletes and non-athletes alike in the age range.
With that, the support of health charities increases our psychographics to include parents of our
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target audience, which helps us in that they have the funds to purchase our new products for the
health benefits they bring to their children. Also, with a national target in mind, we plan on a
large-scale release of our campaign to go after high school students, and teenagers in general
really, all over the country and can do so with the strategies and tactics we have planned.
Strategies
Our first strategy for this campaign is to increase student-athlete loyalty. What that means
for us is to push the value of motivators for young athletes already, and we will use our programs
and brand to positively place ourselves in front of these young athletes with what they already
seek out. Our second strategy is to build a health initiative. We recognize the power of our
products’ health benefits, and while those have been miscommunicated to the greater public, the
high rate of obesity and diabetes in the United States is a prevalent problem we can work against
to get our name out there. Our third strategy is to boost report with high school coaches and
athletic departments. As another way to implement our brand into the view of high school
students, specifically athletes, providing support for their coaches and administration will put a
positive association of Gatorade in their institutions as a trickle down effect to our audience. By
boosting our positive coverage with these authority figures, our plan is to use them to selfpromote our company benefits to their students as a way to get them to purchase our products.
Tactics
For our first strategy, to increase student-athlete loyalty, we will get Andrew Wiggins,
two-time Gatorade Player of Year for Men’s Basketball in West Virginia and the current 20122013 Gatorade Men’s National Player of the Year, to endorse our products as one of the first
student-athletes to represent us. Here is an example of a magazine advertisement we would use
him in to endorse Gatorade:
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Appearing as a full-page advertisement in one of the most popular student-athlete magazines
targeted specifically for high schools, such as ESPN Rise, our plan is to use such a medium to
associate the accomplishment of Wiggins as a symbol and representative for Gatorade’s image.
With a black background and that iconic Gatorade font, we want to portray immediate
association and familiarity to our brand. We also included the Gatorade logo throughout to play
up the creativity of an otherwise straightforward advertisement and to again increase the brand
recognition. The black background also helps to highlight an image of Wiggins in action, so the
eye will be drawn to focus on him as a player of rank and power, characteristics we also want
confirmed with our company. He’s also in an action shot for excitement, and we’d fade the
crowd behind him into white before reaching the black border all around. We want to really draw
attention to the force that Wiggins is and his accomplishments on the court. Similarly, the
message across the top not only reads that he won, but that he continues to win and succeed, and
that his success is equal to the amount Gatorade he has in him or has to use. The point is to
emphasize that he has won our title twice, we support all that he is, and that he is even more us
than a regular athlete because he repeated. The message is we have recognition with him more
than any other high school athlete, and he emulates what Gatorade is all about for our target
audience. We also included his name and the title he won beneath to not only caption the picture
but put a name to a face, as the face for Gatorade high school athletes. He has essentially set the
bar for us and for student-athletes, and if future athletes want to succeed at such a high level as
Wiggins did, they’re going to look to us to help out. That’s the message we want to show them.
At the bottom, we also included a hook for curious readers to learn more about Wiggins and
consequently our programs and us as Gatorade. Before they leave the page, we made sure to put
the Gatorade logo one last time for that last brand association. Additionally, for our first strategy
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we would also further the Gatorade Player of the Year program to include more sports that are
not currently involved along with a team category and school competition. We want more and
more athletes to feel like we care about their accomplishments and branching out to award more
athletes will only increase our reach. Also, we would work to strike up deals to pay for space in
the schools and on the sidelines, essentially grabbing space close to the student-athletes for them
to use and be comfortable with our brand. The earlier we can catch them, the better our exposure
will be to these athletes and the better our relationship with them will be.
For our second strategy, to build a health initiative, we would support charities with
youth-centered focus that support healthy habits such as Play 60. We would pay to sponsor Play
60 for the current year to show we care about the health and activity of young kids that would
lead up into our target audience. The idea is to get our brand out there, and even if the audience
of the charity is a lower age group than we want, the parents will recognize who we are and see
what we’re trying to stand for; they can buy our products. We will also work to get Play 60 to
include our products as a healthy way to hydrate kids and youth to promote the health of our
products. The big tactic we will implement is the creation and launching of the new Gatorade
Prep drink designed specifically for the growing bodies of our target audience. Our formula will
include cutting back half the sugar of regular Gatorade without sacrificing taste, will be fortified
with essential vitamins and increased with proteins, and will also have added energy for fueling
activity. With the formula already safe, proven, and tested for the market, we will launch a social
media campaign through Facebook and Twitter that will begin with what is familiar, the
Gatorade brand, and direct our audience to the new Gatorade Prep pages on Facebook and
Twitter. Designed specifically with them in mind, the pages will give them a venue to feel at
home with our new brand and help guide them through the creation of the new Gatorade Prep.
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Through our campaign on these sites, we will create a contest for every high school in the U.S. to
come up with their best idea for what the new Gatorade Prep should be. This will all be done on
a separate website, www.GatoradePrep.com, but the social media posts will give out essential
information on how we want our audience to interact. They can follow the links to submit their
ideas for flavor combinations, drink names, bottle designs, and colors that match their school
colors. On Facebook and Twitter, we will keep them updated on the contest progress with the
submissions. After we close submissions at the end of August, we will decide the 16 best ideas
for Gatorade Prep drinks and add a bracket for our audience to vote on our website. We will keep
instructing them and spurring excitement about the contest through social media and continually
update them on how many flavors are left and when to vote. At the end of September, when the
nation has declared which school and Gatorade Prep drink it wants, we will release that the
competition is over and announce the winning school on October 1. The kicker is that not only
will the school feel pride in winning, but they will get a year’s worth of the new Gatorade Prep
that they created for their school. We will shortly after use social media to inform about the
release of our new product and link our audience on how to get it. After all, they are the reason it
exists and will feel excited to see and try the drink they picked as the best. With all this in mind,
the positives of a new drink for any high school student, athletic or not, will remain that it is an
all-around health benefit with the youth’s ideal formula in mind. The drink is healthy, but
through social media, we can target them to say that they have the power to make it what they
want, and so our message is to encourage health but also creativity and independence. The
prospect of a contest with voting also adds competition, which everyone loves, and there will be
positive emotion associated with the new Gatorade Prep if our audience realizes they had a large
part to play in its creation. Here’s an example of the social media campaign we would make:
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Gatorade August 16
High Schools unite! Check out how new Gatorade Prep can fuel you.
Facebook.com/GatoradePrep
@Gatorade August 16
Win from within meets its beginnings. New fuel for high school students to be
released soon. Follow @GatoradePrep for more. #WinAndBegin
Gatorade Prep August 16
Welcome to the new page for high school students. Like our page for updates
on how your school can win Gatorade Prep for a year.
@GatoradePrep August 16
Welcome to the future of Gatorade, and your new home for information on
Gatorade Prep, the new drink that you create. Learn more at
www.GatoradePrep.com
@GatoradePrep August 19
Your drink, your fuel, your way. Your school can create and win the new
Gatorade Prep now at www.GatoradePrep.com. #GPrep
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Gatorade Prep August 19
You decide what the new Gatorade Prep is. Visit our website at
www.GatoradePrep.com to help create your school’s entry.
@GatoradePrep August 24
One week to go, and we’ve already received over 1,000 entries! Keep those
ideas coming for the fuel you want to see in your school. #GPrep
@GatoradePrep August 31
Final day of creation! The New Gatorade Prep idea might still be out there!
Submit your school’s today at www.GatoradePrep.com #LastChance
Gatorade Prep September 2
Let the voting begin! We found the nation’s 16 best Gatorade Prep
ideas. Now it’s your turn to decide at www.GatoradePrep.com
Keep updated with the vote. Follow us @GatoradePrep
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@GatoradePrep September 2
You created, and we found the best of the best. Vote on the top 16 seeds of
Gatorade Prep to see which school wins. www.GatoradePrep.com #G-mocracy
@GatoradePrep September 8
You’ve selected your top 8! Round 2 of voting has begun. See if your school
makes it to the Final 4. #EliteEight #G-gantic
@GatoradePrep September 12
Nearly 1 million votes and (School) is the frontrunner. Keep those votes coming.
www.GatoradePrep.com #Round2
@GatoradePrep September 16
Thousands have entered, 4 remain. You decide which Gatorade Prep will fuel
you. #FinalFour #GPrep
@GatoradePrep September 23
Gatorade Prep goes head-to-head. (School 1’s) vs. (School 2’s). Whose will you
choose? www.GatoradePrep.com #FlavorVsFlavor
@GatoradePrep September 31
You voted, we created. Come back tomorrow to hear the school winner of the
new Gatorade Prep.
Gatorade Prep September 31
It started with your ideas, and now the nation has spoken. The votes
have been counted. Come back tomorrow to find out your winner.
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Gatorade Prep October 1
Congratulations to (Winning School) for creating the new Gatorade
Prep! The nation declared their drink of choice, and now you can
try it in stores and online at www.GatoradePrep.com.
@GatoradePrep October 1
Congrats to (Winning School) as the creators of the new Gatorade Prep. They
get fuel for the year, and so can you in stores and online at
www.GatoradePrep.com
@GatoradePrep October 2
Fortified with vitamins, protein, flavor-packed, and only half the sugar, new
Gatorade Prep is perfect for the growing body. #SavorTheFlavor
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For our third strategy, to boost report with high school coaches and athletic departments,
we will begin distributing free samples of our new Gatorade products to high school athletics
programs across the country to show we support them. We will also offer bulk deals of our
products as a way to establish a line of connection but also to show an understanding that they
can’t perform like the pros if they don’t have the tools the pros do. We can’t give them
everything we own at Gatorade, but if we soften the blow so to speak on our prices, then athletic
directors and coaches will feel more trusting of us and will be more willing to look to us to
supply what they need to train and fuel their athletes. It’s also important that we get our name out
there as many ways as we can, and these programs will obviously put the products we send them
into the hands of their student-athletes. That’s who we’re after, of course, so as middle men we
can get Gatorade in front of students, even if they don’t have to pay for it themselves. It’s also
opening up positive reinforcement of our brand for these kids, who might also become loyal to
the support we provide them and their programs and schools and who might also have the funds
to purchase our products in the future as they continue growing. The tactic we’d like to focus on
even more is to use the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI) to send out representatives to
the high schools all across the nation to develop new methods of research and training for these
programs. Never has such an opportunity been presented to these high schools, so we can use the
knowledge and training we have to teach and assist high school athletics as best we can to further
those relationships with the higher ups and the student-athletes. Once again, we’ll have a way to
get our name out there. To inform the athletic programs about the option to receive the benefits
of the GSSI, we have created a press release to be sent out on August 1, leading up to the start of
the school year. We have included a media list that is quite large, but realistically, this offer is a
huge undertaking and is newsworthy across the nation. Here’s what it will look like:
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Contact: Jeremy Sellmeyer
FOR RELEASE ON AUGUST 1, 2013
Tel: 314-892-9648
Cell: 314-825-8123
Email: jsellmeyer1@live.maryville.edu
Gatorade Sports Science Institute to Support High Schools
ST. LOUIS, Aug 1, 2013 – Offering its services for the first time to high school athletic
programs, the Gatorade Sports Science Institute (GSSI) is sending its team all over the United
States to provide research and develop training methods to these academic establishments.
Traveling to all 50 states, with representatives being available year-round, GSSI is offering on
the field research as well as lab testing individual to each program and will additionally work
with athletic directors and coaches to maximize the fitness and endurance levels of their athletes.
Lead by Asker Jeukendrup, PhD, Senior Global Director, the GSSI is excited to dive deeper into
the up and coming generation of athletes at their early stage in physical development to see what
adjustments can be made in their training. Additionally, this 10-month endeavor will be one of
the GSSI’s greatest in terms of breadth and development in new research.
“We are anticipating quite a turnout for these efforts, and our focus is around the high school
athletes themselves but also the coaches and athletic directors as well,” said Jeukendrup. “It is
our mission to provide as many of our resources as possible in order to better equip and prepare
not only the players but those administrators also to continue the education over the long haul.
Preparation is the key, and the more knowledge we can get and conversely give out, the stronger
and healthier our athletes will be in the future.”
About Gatorade
The Gatorade Company, a division of PepsiCo (NYSE: PEP), provides sports performance
innovations designed to meet the needs of athletes at all competitive levels and across a broad
range of sports. Gatorade Thirst Quencher® is backed by more than 40 years of research and is
scientifically formulated and athletically proven to quench thirst, replace fluids and electrolytes,
and provide carbohydrate energy to enhance athletic performance. The company's product
portfolio is built around the G Series™, a 1-2-3 approach to athlete nutrition and hydration
before (Gatorade Prime 01™), during (Gatorade® Perform 02 and G2® Perform 02), and after
(Gatorade Recover 03™) training or competition. For more information, please visit
www.gatorade.com.
###
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Media List
1. All high school athletic directors/coaches
2. Our websites - Gatorade.com, GSSI.com, Gatorade.com/poy
3. Our social media sites - Facebook and Twitter
4. Every newspaper in the U.S.
5. Sports and Fitness blogs
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Calendar

Play 60 events starting in June 2013 and running for one year up to May 31, 2014

Develop and further Gatorade Player of the Year with added Gatorade Team of the Year
in August 2013

Gatorade Player of the Year/Team of the Year announced at end of seasons as usual

Purchase space in high schools and on sidelines of athletic teams on August 1, 2013

GSSI press release sent out for release on August 1, 2013

GSSI support, research, and training from August 19, 2013-May 31, 2014

Gatorade Prep social media campaign from August 16, 2013-October 1, 2013 but will
continue updates on the new products

Gatorade Prep to the winning school from October 2, 2013-May 31, 2014

Gatorade Prep sales and distribution to begin on October 2, 2013

Andrew Wiggins magazine advertisement for ESPN rise on September 1, 2013

Send new product samples to coaches and athletic programs at the start of their Fall
seasons on September 1, 2013

Bulk deals of Gatorade product also available at start of seasons on September 1, 2013
Budget

$1 million for one-year endorsement deal with Andrew Wiggins

$250,000 for full-page, color magazine advertisement for max circulation in ESPN Rise

$2 million for exclusive, one-year sideline sponsorships at high schools

$50,000 for one-year sponsorship with Play 60 and the NFL

$10 million for all-inclusive launch of new Gatorade Prep drink
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
$2 million for trending tweet and sponsored advertisement on Facebook for 2 months

$1 million for bulk deals and samples of new products to high school administration

$500,000 for Gatorade Sports Science Institute support for the year

Writer’s fee for press release
Total: ~$16,800,000
Evaluation
We will evaluate each method of our campaign as best we can to ensure its success. With
the Gatorade Play of the Year/Team of the Year, we can look at past year’s outcomes in terms of
clicks on our website as well as high school websites linking to our press releases to see
comparably if our additions to the program have encouraged more clicks and views with added
interest or not. After the fall seasons, we can determine if changes need to be made for the spring
if we expect a large outcome. With buying space in schools and on the sidelines, we can compare
sales, even discounted sales, by looking at the units sold versus past year’s sales with high school
administration or for regions specifically. If our loyalty has gone up, we should see more of our
product being bought near high schools or from the schools directly compared to our sales in
these areas in the past. We can also measure the same way with our bulk deals and new product
samples to administration. With our support for Play 60, our loyalty and brand recognition
should increase our sales as well with the parents directly. We are planning to educate them on
the benefits of Gatorade drinks, and our sales should go up with this age group as a result. With
our Gatorade Prep social media campaign, we can look for an increase in the number of hits on
the Gatorade fan pages on Facebook and Twitter as well as the number of hits on the Gatorade
Prep Facebook and Twitter pages to see if the contest is increasing buzz about our new product.
If we are not attracting enough of the market to see us and participate, we can open up new
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tactics in social media as well as tap into television and radio to increase exposure for Gatorade
Prep. Conversely, we can also expect to see sales for our target audience to increase as a result of
the social media campaign compared to their overall sports drinks sales purchases in the past.
With the GSSI press release, we can measure the number of newspapers that release it as well as
blogs and websites while taking into account their readership. We can also measure the number
of hits on our websites to see how many people are interested and whether the press release is
enough to create the buzz we want for our support of high school athletics. After 2 weeks, we
can re-evaluate if enough of our audience knows what we’re doing and how we can possibly get
this information out if not. Overall, our sales needs to be driving up almost immediately at the
start of the school year in the fall when we begin the heavy portion of our campaign, and that
will be a good indicator of what adjustments we need to make to make this as successful as
possible. If we can also maintain an increase of sales, that means for us that we’re reaching our
target audience and that our expected 20% increase in high school student sales will be met.