Adrian Allen
Brand Audit
MKT 3320
Prof. Haworth
1
Brand Inventory
I. Company
A. Location:
1.
Headquarters: Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
B. Organization: General Mills
C. Major activities: global consumer foods company
D. Subsidiaries:
1.
Cascadian Farm
2.
Colombo, Inc.
3.
Gardetto's Bakery, Inc.
4.
General Mills Argentina S.A.General Mills Asia Pacific Limited
5.
General Mills Asia Pte. Ltd. (Singapore)
6.
General Mills Australia Pty Ltd
7.
General Mills Belgium, SNC
8.
General Mills Berwick Limited (U.K.)
9.
General Mills Brasil Ltda. (Brazil)
10.
General Mills Canada Corporation
11.
General Mills China Limited (Hong Kong)
12.
General Mills Continental, Inc.
13.
General Mills de Mexico, S. de R.L. de C.V.
14.
General Mills de Venezuela, C.A.
15.
General Mills Direct Marketing, Inc.
16.
General Mills Finance, Inc.
17.
General Mills Foods, Inc. (Philippines)
18.
General Mills Foundation
19.
General Mills France (SAS)
20.
General Mills GmbH (Germany)
21.
General Mills Hellas S.A. (Greece)
22.
General Mills Holding B.V. (Netherlands)
23.
General Mills Holland B.V. (Netherlands)
24.
General Mills Hong Kong Limited
25.
General Mills ICF SARL (Switzerland)
26.
General Mills India Private Limited
27.
General Mills International Limited
28.
General Mills Israel Ltd.
29.
General Mills Italia SRL (Italy)
30.
General Mills Korea Co., Ltd.
31.
General Mills Lebanon S.A.L.
32.
General Mills Luxembourg S.A. R.L.
33.
General Mills Maghreb SARL (Morocco)
34.
General Mills Malaysia Sdn. Bhd.
35.
General Mills Mauritius, Inc.
36.
General Mills Missouri, Inc.General Mills Netherlands B.V.
37.
General Mills New Zealand Limited
38.
General Mills Operations, Inc.
39.
General Mills Products Corp.
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General Mills Scandinavia AB (Sweden)
General Mills Services, Inc.
General Mills Snacks Holding B.V. (Netherlands)
General Mills South Africa (Proprietary) Limited
General Mills Taiwan Limited
General Mills UK Limited
GM Cereals Holdings, Inc.
Gold Medal Insurance Co.
Green Giant International, Inc.
Häagen-Dazs Arras SNC (France)
Häagen-Dazs Belgium (S.A. N.V.)
Häagen-Dazs International Shoppe Company, Inc.
Häagen-Dazs Nederland B.V. (Netherlands)
Muir Glen
Pet Incorporated
The Pillsbury Company
Popcorn Distributors, Inc.
Progresso Quality Foods Company
Small Planet Foods, Inc.
Yoplait USA, Inc.
3
E. Brand history
1.
1866: Cadwallader Washburn, owner of Minneapolis Milling
Company, opens the first flour mill in Minneapolis.
2.
1877: John Crosby enters into partnership with Washburn, whose
company is then renamed Washburn Crosby Company.
3.
1880: Company wins gold medal at the first International Millers'
Exhibition, leading to the later creation of the Gold Medal brand.
4.
1888: James S. Bell takes over leadership of Washburn Crosby.
5.
1921: The fictional Betty Crocker is created by Washburn Crosby.
6.
1923: Softasilk cake flour was introduced.
7.
1924: Launch of Wheaties ready-to-eat cereal (originally called
Whole Wheat Flakes).
8.
1928: Bell's son, James Ford Bell, leads the creation of General
Mills through the merger of Washburn Crosby with several other
regional millers.
a. Within five months Bell had collected 27 companies operating in
16 states, making General Mills the largest flour-milling company
in the world.
9.
1930s: General Mills engineer, Thomas R. James, creates the
puffing gun, which inflates or distorts cereal pieces into puffed up
shapes. This new technology was used in 1937 to create Kix cereal
and in 1941 to create Cheerioats.
10.
1931: Bisquick, the first baking mix, is introduced.
11.
1933: the advertising slogan "Wheaties. The Breakfast of
Champions" was used for the first time.
12.
1939:
a. Wheaties brand sponsored the first commercial sports broadcast on
television, a game between the Brooklyn Dodgers and the
Cincinnati Reds.
b. General Mills engineer Helmer Anderson creates the Anderson
sealer. This new device allowed for bags of flour to be sealed with
glue instead of just being tied with a string.
13.
1941: Cheerioats ready-to-eat cereal debuts.
14.
1942: Bullis immediately entered the animal feed industry by
processing soybeans, a venture that ultimately became General
Mills' chemical division.
15.
1947: The company's first ready-to-eat puffed cereal, Kix debuts.
16.
1945: Cheerioats is renamed Cheerios.
17.
1947: The first Betty Crocker cake mix is introduced.
18.
1950: Betty Crocker Cookbook first published.
19.
(Between 1950 and 1986, General Mills made 86 acquisitions in
new industries; 73 percent of those made by 1975 had been
divested within five years.)
20.
1954: Trix, a presweetened cereal, hits the market.
21.
1956: General Mills creates the tear-strip for easily opening
packages.
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22.
23.
24.
a.
b.
25.
26.
27.
a.
b.
c.
28.
a.
b.
c.
d.
29.
30.
31.
a.
b.
32.
33.
34.
35.
36.
37.
1958: Headquarters moved out of downtown Minneapolis and into
suburban Golden Valley.
1961: Edwin W. Rawlings is appointed president and ushers in a
period of wide diversification.
1962:
General Mills' stock value dropped to $1.25 a share, its lowest
point in 12 years.
Awarded a U.S. Navy and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute to
develop a small, deep-diving submarine.
1964: Company enters the snack food sector with the purchase of
Morton Foods.
1965: First of several toy companies, Rainbow Crafts, is acquired.
1968:
Company acquires Gorton's frozen seafood.
General Mills went abroad with the purchase of Smiths Food
Group, Ltd., of England and Belgium.
Also entered the fashion market through the purchase of Monocraft
Products, maker of Monet jewelry.
1969:
Company moves into specialty retailing with purchases of Lacoste
clothing.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a consent order
blocking General Mills from further acquisitions within the snack
food industry.
Board chose James P. McFarland as president, in choosing him
the corporation renewed its commitment to balance and stability.
McFarland introduced General Mills to specialty retailing.
First clothing acquisition was David Crystal, Inc., (Lacoste
clothing)
1970: Red Lobster restaurant chain is acquired;
1971: Hamburger Helper makes its debut.
1977:
Company purchases the U.S. rights to the Yoplait yogurt brand.
Sale of the chemical division, General Mills divided its business
into food processing, restaurants, games and toys, fashion, and
specialty retailing.
1982: The Olive Garden Italian restaurant chain is launched.
1985: Company divests its toy, fashion, and non-apparel retailing
operations; Pop Secret microwave popcorn is introduced.
1988: Forced the company to exit retailing altogether by selling
Eddie Bauer and Talbots.
1989: Cereal Partners Worldwide, a joint venture with Nestlé S.A.,
is formed.
1992: Company establishes Snack Ventures Europe in partnership
with PepsiCo, Inc.
1993:
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a. Green Giant created a new category of prepared meal dinners,
Create a Meal!
b. Purchased the Colombo brand.
38.
1995:
a. The Gorton's brand is sold to Unilever; the restaurant division is
spun off to shareholders as a separate public company, Darden
Restaurants, Inc.
b. Completed its transformation back into a strictly packaged foods
company.
c. Launched Frosted Cheerios, went on to become one of the most
successful new cereals in history.
39.
1997: Acquired the branded ready-to-eat cereal and snack mix
businesses of Ralcorp Holdings, Inc., making this this largest
purchase in history.
40.
1999: The first time in its history, General Mills passed Kellogg to
claim the top spot in the U.S. cereal sector.
41.
2000: Organic food maker Small Planet Foods, Inc. is acquired.
42.
2001:
a. General Mills acquires The Pillsbury Company for $10.4 billion.
b. Nestlé paid General Mills $641 million to gain full ownership of a
U.S. joint venture with Pillsbury that included the Häagen-Dazs
brand. General Mills, however, retained the Häagen-Dazs business
outside North America.
c. General Mills entered into a joint venture with E.I. du Pont de
Nemours & Company to create the 8th Continent brand of soy
foods and beverages.
43.
2004: General Mills announced plans to eliminate 20 percent of its
overall product line, eliminating about 400 of its smaller and less
profitable items.
44.
2005: Company sells stake in Snack Venture Europe to PepsiCo;
the entire Big G cereal line is converted to whole grain.
F. Financial Data
1.
General Mills Reports Fiscal 2013 Results
Worldwide Net Sales Increased to $17.8 Billion
Adjusted Diluted EPS Grew to $2.69
Company Sees Innovation-fueled Growth in Fiscal 2014
Fiscal 2013 Results Summary
a. Net sales grew 7 percent to $17.8 billion. New businesses
contributed 6 points of net sales growth. Excluding new
businesses, net sales grew 1 percent.
b. Segment operating profit grew 6 percent to $3.2 billion.
c. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) totaled $2.79, up 19
percent from $2.35 a year ago.
d. Adjusted diluted EPS, which excludes certain items
affecting comparability of results, totaled $2.69compared
to $2.56 a year ago.
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e. Revenues grew from $16.7 billion to $17.8 billion.
f. Reduced the percentage of sales devoted to selling, general
and administrative costs from 20.29% to 19.99%.
g. Bottom line growth from $1.6 billion to $1.9 billion.
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G. Annual Report1
1.
Financial Highlights
1
To see the whole annual report go to www.generalmills.com
8
2.
Letter to the Shareholders
…
3.
Narrative Text, Graphics and Photos
9
4.
Management's Discussion and Analysis
a. Executive Summary
We are a global consumer foods company. We work continuously
to improve our established products and to create new products
that meet consumers’ evolving needs and preferences. In addition,
we build the equity of our brands over time with strong consumerdirected marketing and innovative new products and effective
merchandising. We believe our brand-building strategy is the key
to winning and sustaining leading share positions in markets
around the globe. Our fundamental business goal is to generate
superior returns for our stockholders over the long term. We
believe that increases in net sales, segment operating profit,
earnings per share (EPS), and return on average total capital are the
key measures of financial performance for our business. Our
specific growth objectives are to consistently deliver:
• low single-digit annual growth in net sales;
• mid single-digit annual growth in total segment operating
• high single-digit annual growth in diluted EPS excluding certain
items affecting comparability; and
• improvement in return on average total capital.
We achieved the following related to our key operating objectives
for fiscal 2013:
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5.
• We increased our worldwide sales base and strengthened our
portfolio by making key strategic acquisitions that expanded our
participation in fast-growing food categories and emerging
markets, and grew net sales by 7 percent.
• We sustained a high level of new product activity, and executed
effective marketing and merchandising actions in support of our
leading brands and global platforms around the world.
• We achieved a 6 percent increase in total segment operating
profit driven by our ongoing HMM program, the effect of our
restructuring plan announced in May 2012, volume growth from
existing businesses, and contributions from new businesses.
• Our strong cash flows allowed us to fund the acquisition of new
businesses in fiscal 2013 and also repurchase sufficient shares of
company stock to more than offset stock option exercises during
the year. In fiscal 2014, we expect to generate growth consistent
with our long-term model:
• We have a strong line-up of consumer marketing, merchandising,
and innovation planned to support our leading brands. We will
continue to build our global platforms in markets around the world,
accelerating our efforts in rapidly growing emerging markets
• We are targeting low single-digit growth in net sales driven by
volume growth, with incremental contributions from new
businesses added in fiscal 2013.
• We are targeting mid single-digit growth in total segment
operating profit in fiscal 2014 including incremental contributions
from new businesses. We expect our HMM discipline of cost
savings and mix management to more than offset expected input
cost inflation
• We are targeting high single-digit growth in diluted
• We expect to deliver increased cash returns to shareholders in
fiscal 2014, including a 15 percent dividend increase and share
repurchases that are expected to result in a 2 percent net reduction
in shares outstanding.
Our fiscal 2014 plans call for approximately $700 million of
expenditures for capital projects.
Financial Statements
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6.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.
m.
n.
o.
Notes to Financial Statements
Note 1: Basis of Presentation and Reclassifications
Note 2: Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Note 3: Acquisitions
Note 4: Restructuring, Impairment, and Other Exit Costs
Note 5: Investments in Joint Ventures
Note 6: Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
Note 7: Financial Instruments, Risk Management Activities, and
Fair Values
Note 8: Debt
Note 9: Redeemable and Noncontrolling Interests
Note 10: Stockholders’ Equity
Note 11. Stock Plans
Note 12. Earnings Per Share
Note 13: Retirement Benefits and Postemployment Benefits
Note 14: Income Taxes
Note 15: Leases, Other Commitments, and Contingencies
12
7.
8.
p. Note 16: Business Segment and Geographic Information
q. Note 17: Supplemental Information
r. Note 18: Quarterly Data (Unaudited)
Auditor's Report
Summary Financial Data
13
9.
Corporate Information
H. Key personnel
1.
Chairman of the board, CEO
Kendall J. Powell
2.
Senior V.P., CMO
Mark W. Addicks
3.
Executive V.P., Global Strategy,
Growth and Marketing Innovation
Y. Marc Belton
4.
V.P., Treasurer
Kofi Bruce
5.
Senior V.P.; President, Greater China
Gary Chu
6.
Senior V.P.; President, Meals
Juliana L. Chugg
7.
Executive V.P., Supply Chain
John Church
8.
V.P.; President, Häagen-Dazs International David Clark
9.
Executive V.P., Global HR
Michael L. Davis
10.
Senior V.P. President, Stores & Foodservice David E. Dudick Sr.
11.
Executive V.P., Innovation, Tech. & Quality Peter C. Erickson
12.
V.P.; President, Yoplait International
Olivier Faujour
13.
Executive V.P.; COO, U.S. Retail
Ian R. Friendly
14.
Senior V.P.; CEO, Cereal Partners WW
Jeffery L. Harmening
15.
Senior V.P.; President G.M. Canada
David P. Homer
16.
V.P.; President, Asia, Middle East and
African region
Christina Law
17.
Senior V.P.; President, Europe,
Australia and New Zealand
Luis G. Merizalde
18.
V.P.; President, Small Planet Foods
Michele S. Meyer
19.
Executive V.P., CFO
Donal L. Mulligan
20.
Senior V.P., President Big G Cereals
James H. Murphy
21.
Senior V.P., External Relations,
President, General Mills Foundation
Kimberly A. Nelson
22.
V.P.; President, Snacks
Jonathan J. Nudi
23.
V.P.; President, Yoplait USA
Rebecca L. O’Crady
24.
Senior V.P., President, Sales and
Channel Development
Shawn P. O’Crady
25.
Executive V.P.; COO, International
Chris D. O’Leary
26.
Executive V.P.; General Counsel,
27.
CC&RMO, and Secretary
Roderick A. Palmore
14
28.
29.
30.
31.
32.
I. Recent news
1.
2.
3.
Senior V.P.; President Baking Products
V.P.; President, Frozen Foods
Senior V.P.; President, Latin America
Senior V.P., Investor Relations
Senior V.P., Financial Operations
Ann W.H. Simonds
Anton Vincent
Sean N. Walker
Kristen S. Wenker
Keith A. Woodward
September 17, 2013: General Mills makes Top 10 of Working
Mother’s “100 best companies” list
September 20, 2013: Nature Valley protein bars named “Most
Innovative Product” of 2013
September 25, 2013: General Mills commits to sustainability
source 10 priority ingredients by 2020.
Category
A. Category definition- Ready-to-eat cereal, marketing Cheerios, the category’s largest
brand franchise, and other longtime consumer favorites.
B. Size of category
a. Four billion in net sales
b. 21% of the total General Mills net sales
c. Eleven different brands.
C. History of category
a. “Big G” first used in 1960, featured a new design built around “Goodness”
b. 1941 Cheerios came along.
c. 1937 Chex introduced, 1953 the original Chex Party Mix recipe showed up on the
box.
d. Cinnamon Toast Crunch introduced in 1984.
e. Kix introduced as the second General Mills cereal in 1937.
f. 1964, Lucky Charms
g. 1971, Count Chocula and Franken Berry. 1972, Boo Berry, the first cereal to taste
like blueberries.
h. 1961 Total
i. 1954 Trix
j. 1924 Wheaties
D. Methods of distribution
a. Trucks
b. Stores- grocery, convenience
E. Major players
a. Cheerios
b. Chex
c. Cinnamon Toast Crunch
d. Kix
e. Lucky Charms
f. Monsters
g. Total
h. Trix
i. Wheaties
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F. Regional factors
a. Demographics
b. Health concerns
c. Pricing
G. Legal considerations
a. Natural labeling
b. Different countries’ customs
c. Pesticides
H. Major trade publications
a. Cooking Light
b. Food Network Magazine
c. Southern Living
d. Food & Wine
e. Bon Appetit
I. Major trade organizations in category
a. The Food Institute
b. National Association of Convenience Stores
c. National Restaurant Association
Products within Category
A. Share of category by product
a. Retail sales of Lucky Charms are up 6% in the fiscal year to date. Big G cereals
are in General Mills’ U.S. retail segment. General Mills increased U.S. dollar
market share of cereals to 31.5% in fiscal year 2012 from 29.7% in fiscal year
2008, but that market share dropped 0.7 percentage points in the first half of fiscal
year 2013.
B. Product-form description
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a. Cheerios- Made from whole grain oats, Cheerios has no artificial colors or
flavors, gram of sugar, low in fat, have no saturated fat and are naturally
cholesterol free, excellent source of folic acid and a good source of fiber.
b. Chex- Chex name reflects the "checkerboard square"
c. Cinnamon Toast Crunch- fortified with vitamins and minerals and is considered
to be a good source of calcium.
d. Kix- first ready-to-eat puffed corn is made with a batch puffing gun
e. Lucky Charms- fortified with 12 vitamins and minerals, features frosted oats and
colored marshmallows.
f. Monsters- Count Chocula (the first chocolate flavored cereal with chocolate
marshmallows), Franken Berry (only strawberry flavored on the market), Boo
Berry (first blueberry flavored)
g. Total- Benchmark for healthy cereal when it debuted
h. Trix- First fruit flavored cereal in the U.S. market.
i. Wheaties- 100% whole grain flakes
C. New product introductions
a. General Mills unveil global innovation lineup of 200 products being launched.
Such as:
1. Vanilla Chex
2. Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Crunch
3. Hershey’s Cookies’n’crème cereal
4. Fiber One 80 Calories
5. Peanut Butter Toast Crunch
D. Benefits and appeals of new product
a. New audience
b. New advertising, that could draw in new and more people
c. Possible new partnerships
d. New flavors could reach the old and new consumers
E. new packages
a. Whole grain change
b. Star Wars promotion
F. Innovations
a. Reaffirming this product is not just for kids
b. Changing all the cereals to whole grain.
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c. New campaign is reminding consumers anout the simple goodness of the iconic
Cheerios.
G. Recent news about product category
a. Reported 2% decline in 2013
b. Cheerios is the largest franchise in the U.S. cereal market with 13% of the sales.
c. Chex is one of the fastest-growing brands
d. Cascadian Farm organic cereal is growing at a double digit rate.
Brand Analysis
A. Top brands by dollar or unit sales,
a. Pillsbury 7.4 Billion
b. Cheerios 4.4 Billion
c. Betty Crocker 1.9 billion
B. Growth trends of top brands
a. Pillsbury 161.8 million decrease for deferred tax assets
b. Cheerios 8% growth in net sales.
c. Betty Crocker is growing and moving toward the gluten free movement with its
new products.
C. Category share by country and by region
D. Pricing trends
18
E. Recent news about brand
a. Pillsbury- voluntary recall of limited quantity of cinnamon rolls with icing.
b. Cheerios- expanding Spoonfuls of Stories® to reach older kids for the first time.
c. Betty Crocker- releasing gluten free line.
Consumer Profile
A. Demographic of users
a. Since this company provides all different kinds of food. The demographics are
generally any household. There is not one set group that exclusively uses General
Mills products. Though it is more common among households with children and
General Mills is purchased more in the U.S. than internationally.
B. Frequency of purchase/usage
C. Place of purchase
a. Online
b. Convenience/grocery stores
D. Heavy-user profile
a. A mother who needs fast meals and desserts for her kids, guest and kids activities.
E. Awareness and attitude
a. General Mills has a high awareness factor for their products. Their brands such as
Cheerios and Pillsbury have become almost iconic in households.
b. The amount of brands and products General Mills owns it is almost impossible to
not pick their product when reaching for a random one.
c. Higher brand awareness resulting in brand loyalty.
d. General Mills has been a part of this nation for over a century and they are still
thriving. People are more comfortable with this brand because they know they can
trust it.
F. Decision makers vs. purchaser
a. Generally for this company’s product they are the same. It will either be the
parent or a kid with money that wants food.
G. Normal purchase cycle
a. The need for food, either for a meal or just to bake.
b. Decide what product while satisfy the need.
c. Go to the store or online to pick it out.
d. Purchase it.
e. Enjoy your purchase.
H. Brand loyalty/switching
a. The recession actually helped General Mills certain products gained a lot of new
and old customers while others were losing them.
Advertising/Marketing Communications
A. Creative strategies of top brands
a. Pillsbury
i. The doughboy is the iconic staple of this brand everyone know who he is
and loves his charm.
b. Cheerios
i. Commercial: Grandfather and grandson talking about how cheerios was
going to lower their cholesterol.
c. Betty Crocker
19
B.
C.
D.
E.
i. Betty Crocker’s What is Love? was originally created as a Valentine’s Day
gift. It involved two days of interviewing children about their notions of
love, with Betty Crocker desserts as their reward, and experienced a very
successful run on YouTube with very little publicity.
Specific promises
a. Reduce the sugar content in its cereals marketed to children to single-digit grams
per serving
Appeals
a. Gluten free
b. Organic
c. Natural labeling
d. Reducing GMO
e. Lower sugar
f. Iconic
Claims
a. Being green “Green is more than part of our name (Green Giant). It’s how we
think about everything we plant, produce and package.”
b. Cheerios can lower your cholesterol.
Examples of past and current executions
a. Most of their brands have an icon that executes their advertising. Such as:
i. Pillsbury Doughboy
ii. Buzzbee
iii. Betty Crocker
iv. Oven mitt for Hamburger Helper
v. Twix the rabbit
vi. Exc.
Media
A. Category and brand spending
a. 33% jump in advertising and media spending
b. Big G Cereal division, which includes the various Cheerios flavors, Fiber One,
Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Lucky Charms, saw a 6% sales increase during the
last quarter. Honey Nut Cheerios takes the top slot at grocery, according to
Symphony IRI, with sales up 2% in the last year to $339 million. (The data
doesn't include Walmart and club stores.) Hispanic families have been a particular
growth engine for Honey Nut Cheerios
B. Seasonality
a. They have products that are geared towards a certain season but it is offered year
round. Such as:
b. Lucky charms
c. Monsters cereal
d. They also do seasonal media. Such as:
i. The What is love? Video mentioned above
ii. Thanksgiving cook-off
iii. Best recipes for different holidays
C. Regionality
20
a. The regional media is going to happen with the brands that are only regional
items. Such as:
i. Diablitos Underwood
ii. V. Pearl
D. Media employed by top brands
a. Over all General Mills created a blog that will bring you behind the scenes on
these brands.
b. Better Crocker- There has been a major push towards Pinterest.
E. Spending patterns
a. Investing in beating I-522
F. Spending compared with market share
a. Analyst stated that is it restrained comparatively.
Promotions
A. Major brand promotion types and examples
a. Pillsbury- a person can find over a hundred promotions and coupons if they
access their website.
b. Cheerios- On their website a person just types in promotions and they will pop up.
c. Betty Crocker- This is one of the first images you see when you open their
website.
B. Success rates of promotions
a. There is more brand loyalty.
Internet and New Media
A. Website
a. http://generalmills.com/
B. Purpose of site
a. To educate the masses on everything that is General Mills. A person could find:
i. Mission, values, history
ii. Brands
iii. Careers
iv. Location
v. Media
vi. Investors
C. Ecommerce activities
a. Recently launched an e-commerce strategy for their gluten-free products called
Gluten Freely, which is the latest in their direct-to-consumer effort. Using
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Windows Azure as a platform, General Mills was able to build a direct-toconsumer online channel in the cloud.
b. Existing e-commerce sites, BettyCrocker.com and CascadianFarms.com
D. Social media activities
a. Pinterest
b. Twitter
c. Instagram
d. Facebook
Other Pertinent Information2
A. Other information sources
a. http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/General_Mills_Inc.aspx
b. http://www.generalmills.com
c. http://www.blog.generalmills.com/2013/02/general-mills-%E2%80%98top10%E2%80%99-from-cagny/
d. http://www.generalmills.com/~/media/Files/history/history_book.ashx
e. http://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=GIS&a=05&b=10&c=1983&d=11&e=17&f=20
13&g=m
f. http://www.wikinvest.com/stock/General_Mills_(GIS)
g. http://www.forbes.com/
h. http://uoinvestmentgroup.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/08/General-Mills-GIS.pdf
i. http://adage.com/article/news/cpg-marketing-brand-loyalty-recession/137436/
j. http://books.google.com/books?id=5VAWAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA276&lpg=PA276
&dq=creative+strategies+of+cheerios+cereal&source=bl&ots=jN8HbAkxvO&sig
=mvstGeqZE2FmBC563dEYjcfhXUs&hl=en&sa=X&ei=zN6wUoHLOYvOsAS
_i4GAAQ&ved=0CDwQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=creative%20strategies%20of
%20cheerios%20cereal&f=false
k. http://stuartisaacshapiro.com/creative/betty-crocker-what-is-love/
l. http://blog.timesunion.com/parenting/5740/general-mills-promises-to-reducesugar-content-in-kids-cereals/
m. http://adage.com/article/news/general-mills-sees-sales-rise-media-spendingboost/143216/
n. http://www.generalmills.com/en/ChannelG/Inside_General_Mills_live_archive/20
11_archive/taste_of_general_mills_6_13_2011.aspx
o. http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/2013/10/28/why-big-companies-arespending-21-million-to-beat-i-522/
p. http://finance.yahoo.com/news/general-mills-downgraded-ad-spending165714577.html
q. http://www.pillsbury.com/coupons
r. http://www.bettycrocker.com/coupons-promotions/coupons/default
s. http://digitalcpg.com/category/direct-to-consumer/
Discuss their brand value and whether it has increased or decreased this year.
A. The brand value has increased this because last year the stocks were at a major low and
now it is $20 higher. The movement General Mills made all year striving for cleaner
more organic and healthy choices is really paying off. More people are reaching for the
healthier General Mills options.
2
This is not the whole list. I could not find some of the websites again.
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Brand Exploratory
A. Two types of research methods
a. Qualitative
i. Focus group3
1. What do you think when you think of General Mills?
a. The cereals
2. What do you like most about General Mills?
a. Pillsbury Doughboy
3. Do you think General Mills is still relevant?
a. Not as much, there are a lot of other brands to choose from.
4. How do you recommend they change that?
a. Internet, people are on the computers more and more.
b. Watch what other people do.
5. Who do you think General Mills is marketing towards?
a. Children
6. Who do you think they should be marketing towards?
a. Older people with money
b. Quantitative
i. Survey4
1. Demographic questions
2. Do you know what General Mills is?
3. Do you think that Kraft or Kellogg is doing better brand wise then
General Mills? Why?
4. How could General Mills improve?
5. Name as many General Mills brands as you can?
6. Rate General Mill 1-10 on the following items:
a. Awareness
b. Product
c. Brands
d. Favorability
e. Uniqueness
B. Recommendations
a. General Mills should research further into competing companies in order to
anticipate market trends so they can stay competitive in an every changing
market. This will give insight on how well off or not their competitors are faring
and an opportunity to observe what is going successfully and what to stay away
from. A broad spectrum of market analysis can hopefully help them dodge certain
bullets, as well as get a better understand of how they stack up to other large
corporations
b. Expanding internationally is crucial; they need to develop products that are
suitable for other countries’ cultures. General Mills has been focusing on the U.S.
for too long, if the U.S. economy market does not fare well, General Mills will
probably follow suit. Making acquisitions in other countries could only help with
3
4
Done with five other students, only top answers presented.
Only a couple of the questions are shown.
23
the right amount of researching first. If General Mills expand globally they
should take into consideration distribution systems because of the many layers of
intermediaries already in place.
c. General Mills need to considering selling or expanding V. Pearl because if you
are only selling in one area of China it will never become profitable enough.
General Mills has quite a few of brand not a lot of people have heard about
because they are regional brands. Eventually they need to sell or expand anyway,
it is better sooner than later
d. General Mills should increase online marketing. The growth of PCs started an
increase in advertising online. If General Mills placed more coupons online or had
a Google ad their new and existing products would reach a bigger audience at a
faster rate through e-commerce.
e. General Mills should also be conscious of the older generation. This is a new
market opening up because people are living longer. General Mills has already
made a good start with launching a probiotic line of yogurt, Yo-Plus but there
needs to be more.
24