Prepared by: Michael Fee & Kelsey Fath Due Date: Feb. 26, 2010 Strategic Message Planner: Ensure High Calcium Client and Product Ensure High Calcium is a supplemental drink that improves bone structure, replaces meals, provides nutrients and aids injuries to the body. Ensure is produced by Abbott Nutrition, founded in 1903, which focused on innovative nutrition products that encompass every state of life for essential growth, development and well-­‐being. Abbott Nutrition focuses their efforts in six main categories: Infant/New Mother, Child Development, Adults, Sports and Active Living, Therapeutic Nutrition, and Medical Devices. Ensure High Calcium is a product mainly falling into the “Adult” product category. Ensure High Calcium is a source of complete, balanced nutrition for supplemental use with or between meals. It may be useful for consumers who are at risk for fractures; need extra nutrients such as protein, calcium, vitamin D or others; are recovering from surgery; or want a convenient way to add calcium to their diets. This particular product is targeted at both men and women who fall into the age range of 45-­‐65. Ensure High Calcium is to be taken orally and comes in both vanilla and chocolate flavors. Bottles can be purchased in bulk (24 bottles) right off the website for $43.08, for both chocolate and vanilla flavors. A variety pack is available for the same price as well as smaller quantity packs (six bottles) for $12.31. Finding it in stores is easy as well as most grocery stores, such as Wal-­‐Mart, will carry the Ensure High Calcium product. The best deal dollar wise, though not instant, would be to order online. 1 Target Audience The target market for Ensure High Calcium is women ages 50-­‐65 in the United States. The demographics of the target market include no particular race, but middle class white women are high consumers of the product. The age range is older because the product is meant to replace meals, help lose weight, increase bone structure and provide vitamins. The income of these individuals is between $30,000 and $80,000 a year. The education level of the target market is an undergraduate degree and sometimes a higher degree such as a master’s. The target market lives in anywhere in the country, but more likely urban areas, where women are more on-­‐the-­‐go or retired to nice suburban homes. This group of women tends to be accomplished or have career goals. Sometimes the women are stay-­‐at-­‐home parents, retired, part-­‐time workers or volunteers. During its free time, the target market spends time eating out at local restaurants, traveling, spending time with family and friends and reading. According to Claritas PRIZM segmentation, this group would fit under the “Big Fish, Small Pond”, “Second City Elite”, “Pools and Patios” and “Traditional Times” categories. For the “Traditional Times” segmentation, it states “Traditional Times is the kind of lifestyle where small-­‐town couples nearing retirement are beginning to enjoy their first empty-­‐
nest years.” These people enjoy traveling in recreational vehicles and reading about the home and living styles. For example, a woman in this demographic might volunteer for the local American Red Cross, be busy with volunteering and house work, go traveling on the weekends to a nearby place and read Country Home. Rationale: This target fits for Ensure High Calcium because the benefits relate to women of an older age. Most women sometimes have a craving, but don’t want to eat much for a meal. 2 The benefit of improving bone structure and obtaining the vitamins needed is a target for the 50-­‐65 age group of women. The product is an easy meal or snack for these women and it’s convenient to have in the refrigerator. Claritas PRIZM helps identify these types of women and who they are. From research, these women tend to be traditional, easy-­‐going, semi-­‐occupied with a social life and dedicated to family. Supporting Benefits Features Benefits -­‐ A supplemental meal -­‐ Healthy alternative to snacking/skipping meals all together -­‐ Excellent source of 24 essential vitamins and -­‐ Boost immune systems and support normal minerals growth -­‐ 500 mg of calcium per 8 fl oz -­‐ Helps with daily calcium intake to build strong bones -­‐ Excellent source of plant-­‐based omega-­‐3 fatty acid ALA -­‐ Supports heart health -­‐ Two flavors to choose from (vanilla and chocolate) -­‐ Ability to choose a flavor based on consumers mood, time of day, etcetera. -­‐ 50% of the DV for vitamin D per 8 fl oz -­‐ Aids in calcium absorption -­‐ 25 % of the DV for phosphorus and magnesium per 8 fl oz -­‐ Partners with calcium and other nutrients in healthy bone structure Current Brand Image Ensure has a positive brand image in the supplemental drinks category. Some reviews rave about how good it tastes, that it doesn’t taste that a nasty protein shake. Instead, the taste 3 is that of chocolate milk. Another praise of Ensure High Calcium is the ability to replace a meal with it and still get the same amount of nutrients and protein. It has a positive review for injuries, as one reviewer said it “added protein for muscle, bone and tissue renewal. “One of the complaints of users is the cost of the product. Regardless of the cost, Ensure has a positive image and people relate it to be something for middle-­‐aged women, which is true. The name Ensure itself speaks to consumers, giving them the reliability factor. Overall, Ensure has positioned itself as a reliable supplement, and consumers are willing to pay a higher price for the benefits of the product. Direct Competitors and Brand Images Ensure’s direct competitors will lie within the category of nutrition and supplement drinks. As previously stated, Ensure has a positive brand image in the category. People are willing to pay a slightly higher price for Ensure because of the benefits over the others, and taste is a big one. Body Fortress whey protein powder is popular among people trying to get more protein and calcium. The powder is used by people who work out and exercise, but is mainly used by the younger generation. It has a positive brand image because of taste and quantity. EAS Myoplex is a flavored supplemental drink that can be found at local retail department stores. The drink is targeted to people who exercise as well, and is cheaper than Ensure. It is lower scale than Ensure because of cost and a relatively-­‐new placement in the category. 4 Equate Nutritional Shake is a discount brand in the category. It is cheaper than almost all of the competitors, but reviews say it “lacks on taste” and “probably doesn’t work”. Equate does not provide the benefits that Ensure does. Carnation Instant Breakfast Essentials is a shake that provides nutrients in the morning. It has a positive brand image because the brand Carnation manufactures several products. It is more expensive than Ensure and has a high-­‐quality image. Boost is a similar product to Ensure in price and benefits. Boost promotes that it enhances body movement with high protein and calcium. Boost would be considered near the same in brand image as Ensure. Slim-­‐Fast is a big competitor for Ensure, as people will replace meals with a weight-­‐loss supplement instead of one like Ensure, which helps with bone strength and energy. Slim-­‐Fast has a large market share, as it is endorsed by several celebrites. Overall, Ensure would be near the top of the supplemental drink category. It has a decent price for the benefits it provides, which competes well with others. According to Wal-­‐
Mart stores, Ensure is the best selling supplemental shake. Indirect Competitors and Brand Image The indirect competitors for Ensure would be pills, vitamins, prescriptions, candies or other calcium providers in the nutrition aisle. If people would rather get their calcium by a quick and easy intake, it could mean big competition for the Ensure High Calcium drink. Pills or prescriptions provided by doctors might be a more serious matter compared to the intentions of Ensure. Most consumers of these products do not need a meal or snack 5 replacement but need the extra calcium or protein in their diet. Some brands of pills for this are Spring Valley, Posture-­‐D, Schiff, Oscal, Cosamin, Caltrate and Equate. Most of these over-­‐the-­‐
counter products are cheaper than a pack of Ensure High Calcium, so consumers may purchase the pills instead of the drinks. Vitamins can help replenish the body with its needed amounts of minerals per day. It might be easier for consumers to quickly take a vitamin instead of carrying a drink to work or to have them around the house. Vitamins are a threat to drinks because they are pure nutrition, calcium, protein, etc. The benefit of a vitamin is how quick it can be taken. The downside to vitamins is that it doesn’t replace a meal or specifically enhance bone or overall health. Something new to the calcium supplement category are candies or chews. Viactiv is a popular new multi-­‐vitamin chocolate soft chew that women in the target market use while craving a snack. Viactiv has a calcium-­‐specific product that could compete with supplement drinks. Candies or chews can replace a meal or snack like Ensure and are cheaper in price. Desired Brand Image Ensure has a positive brand image and is doing well in the category of supplemental drinks. In terms of position, Ensure is already established as one of the leaders. People are willing to pay a higher price for the benefits of the product and rely on it to provide them with the calcium and nutrients they need. A position this product might want to look into is comparing the calcium intake cwith direct and indirect competitors. Ensure should also look to target its audience better to increase sales and positive word-­‐of-­‐mouth. Ensure should keep its current image in the category. If other supplemental drinks start to come out with calcium 6 drinks, it’s important to position it as better than the others. Ensure can promise that it will show results through taste, reliability, nutrition and health. Selected Benefits with Features and Benefits Columns Ensure’s excellent source of calcium makes this drink ideal for consumers who want an extra boost of calcium throughout their day to help support strong bones. The product’s appeal to the older generation stems from the 500 mg of calcium per bottle to help not only prevent bone loss, but to aid in the repair of bone loss/damage. Ensure High Calcium not only provides an excellent source of calcium but other essential vitamins and minerals. Ensure High Calcium is a great meal substitute that is easy to take on-­‐the-­‐go. Its small 8 oz. bottle is easy to throw in a purse or gym bag, yet is large enough to adequately leave the user satisfied after consumption. Ensure High Calcium comes in appropriate size containers for portion control, as well as a nutrition fact sheet that won’t leave consumers feeling guilty after drinking a vanilla or chocolate shake. This product makes taking charge of one’s health an easy step. Advertising Goal With the multiple products Ensure has to offer, it would be smart to focus in on promotion of a specific product brand. Ensure High Calcium typically targets an older generation, where to promote this brand takes some careful consideration. Advertisements on billboards, where the motorists needs to be paying attention to the road instead of large signs for instance, wouldn’t be as effective as an ad in the daily newspaper where it can been seen for a great length of time. Advertisement placement is very critical. Ads in doctors’ offices and health magazine will be viewed by the target audience more than ads that find themselves in 7 social media or in other younger age publications. Focusing on the target audience and the benefits they will receive from the features needs to be pushed into the public so it doesn’t get lost in the sea of competitors. Ensure should focus on the fact their products will help prevent bone and health decay before it starts to happen. Consumers will see it as having no choice but to “need” the product. Strategic Message You, women concerned with bone health, should buy Ensure High Calcium because we understand maintaining bone health is key to sustaining an overall happy and healthy life. Ensure guarantees products to help strengthen the immune system and can help you reach your personal health goals. It is Ensure’s promise to continue to produce products to help with consumers’ immune systems and overall health in a tasty way. Ensure’s products are made with natural substances and can be worked easily into daily diets. Ensure High Calcium is a tasty source of calcium and key bone-­‐health nutrients. Plus, they have 24 essential vitamins and minerals to start most anyone off on the healthy track. Bibliography Abbott | www.abbottnutrition.com •
Parent company website that shows statistics and nutrition facts Business & Company | Database for businesses •
Great database used to determine market share and company information Claritas PRIZM | http://www.claritas.com/MyBestSegments/Default.jsp?ID=30&id1=1027 •
Determined target audience segmentation 8 Ensure | www.ensure.com •
Brand information about Ensure’s products, as well as a background of history and product information Epinions | www.epinions.com •
Reviews and ideas about the product from consumers Hoovers | http://www.hoovers.com/company/Abbott_Laboratories/rffyif-­‐1.html •
Company information and background Mintel | Database for product segmentation •
Shows the product category and list of brands National Library for Medicine | http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vitamins.html •
Government medicine site for nutrition facts and benefits Wal-­‐Mart | www.walmart.com •
Retail department store used for pricing and competitors 9