Product History – Slide 3
1965. A team of physicians invented a drink to replace fluids and electrolytes because the University of
Florida’s grid iron team were being affected by dehydration. It was named Gatorade as the team they
were made the drink for was called the Gators.
Late 1970s. Gator Gum was introduced and its selling point was it would cure your dry mouth after
physical activity, the first non-beverage product to help expand the brand.
2001. Performance Series introduced which featured nutritional shakes, protein shakes, energy drinks
which added to their first solid food being energy bars.
2008 – 2010. Gatorade goes through a re-branding phase. This included a major logo change which
shortened Gatorade to just G.
2010. A new heavily marketed Gatorade brand is released called the G Series.
2010 – present. Gatorade focuses on making products specifically to benefit professional athletes.
As more products are released throughout Gatorade’s history, it proves they have always tried to
expand their market.
2013 Advertisements
Slide 4: The close up and grunting of the athletes in the commercial let’s other athletes viewing the
commercial relate to them.(just athletes? I suspect the advertisers are also trying to get the spectator
market as well – by association. If my sporting hero uses Gatorade, then I should as well. The catchy
tunes can also hang around in viewers’ minds which reminds them of Gatorade. Since the two
sayings/catch phrases “hard work” and “one more” are common for athletes to use, the next time
they’ll use them after seeing the commercial it can give them the idea that Gatorade will help get them
through what they are doing. (awkward expression)
Slide 5: Product is placed in the center of the poster to be the focal point. Vibrant colours catches the
readers’ eyes as well as the bold text. Having professional athletes in a silhouettes lets the targeted
demographic of athletes who read the poster see what the product can do for them, for example in the
Bolt poster, it shows jets blasting off which leads to the idea that the product will help you gain
explosive power. (it’s interesting that they have not named the athletes, I guess the assumption is that
the viewer will know who it is – or in the case of the Gridiron player – it doesn’t really matter.)
20th Century Ads – Slide 6
The use of professional athletes targets consumers envy to be like the best (good – as I mentioned
before – the technique of association), so the advertisements tell them to drink Gatorade because that’s
what the best do. The use of children and others smiling creates a positive atmosphere, that Gatorade is
a good drink which is safe and enjoyable for everyone to have, and the upbeat audio also adds to
helping create this effect. Having the product shown a lot imprints what Gatorade looks like in the
viewers’ minds so they can easily recognise it when they see it in the public. Also advertising more as a
tasty drink rather a sports drink targets a wider market. And simplifying the logo to just a G also
broadens the appeal.
Market –Slide 7
Gatorade has always had to compete with other sports and energy beverages. By staying the near most
popular if not the most, Gatorade have always made sure that they have entertaining advertisements as
well as the most highly regarded sports people around the world. Gatorade was created to help
replenish lost liquids and electrolytes in athletes but their first advertisements tell a difference story. It
is clear in Gatorade’s advertisements before the 21st century, targeted a demographic from young kids
to adults playing sports. Recently the advertisements have changed more to show it helps performance
for athletes. They had to narrow the market as the last decade society has become warier of health and
how sugary foods and drinks can lead to major health issues. All true, but there has also been a big
increase in the number of people attending ‘gyms’ – and this product clearly is targeted to them as well.
Also, athletes have become more concerned about their own performance in sport which the new
advertisements target compared to previous ads where it’s been more about playing like your idol.
Although, Gatorade has released more and different products to widen their market again as well as
going through a rebranding phase. By targeting all sports and releasing different products to be more
‘effective’ for specific types of physical activity, it widens their market once again e.g. their G series
which has 3 different drinks to have; before, during and after a game/training. This also gives the
impression that there is ‘science’ behind the different types of drinks, linking it to the movement in
sport towards Sports Science and highly specific food and drinks for particular athletes/sports people.
Gatorade’s recent advertisements are made by an agency called TBWA which also works with other
popular Companies such as McDonalds, Adidas and Apple. It is highly regarded around the world, and it
was rated the in top 10 worldwide advertising agencies by the Advertising Age, a news outlet which
reports on marketing news. This indicates that Gatorade have a huge advertising budget.
Future Trends – Slide 8
Gatorade will become Australia’s favourite sports drink due to a deal leading it to be the AFL’s major
sports drink partner over the summer of 2013/14. More products will be released aimed at the teens as
the younger generation becomes more competitive and cares a lot about their own performances to try
and make it to a professional level. Once again the Gatorade logo will change (in what ways do you
think? It’s already pretty minimalist.. Gatorade will continue to make more advertisements on their
history as a current trend in advertising is nostalgia.
A good analysis for the most part – take note of my comments, but you are certainly on the right track.