Christopher Kyle
Marketing
Pepsi Case Study
Due 4/14/13
Question 1
Unfortunately, I experienced severe difficulty in accessing the link provided on
Ilearn. I received the following message from the Pepsi Cola website, “We are sorry, but
there is not a FAQ section for that subject, and please click the link below to return to the
main FAQ page, or select a subject from the dropdown.” I used several other websites in
order to gather the information needed for question 1.
The Pepsi Cola target market is based on the particular product being and brand
personality sold. There is a relative amount of overlap, as very few products are intended
for one specific target market. Generally speaking, Pepsi targets the following market
segments. Pepsi’s sport drinks line, such as Gatorade, targets those individuals with an
active lifestyle. Pepsi’s Diet and tea lines are offered to people who are more health
conscience or to those who seek to lose weight. Additionally, Pepsi has targeted people
who purchase items from a convenience machine such as Doritos (Market Segmentation,
Positioning and Target Market of Pepsi). Pepsi has created a campaign called “Live for
Now” which is targeted at young and bubbly younger generations. This campaign has
been endorsed by Nicki Minaj, a young and successful pop star (List of Pepsi
spokespersons, 2013).
Pepsi also tries to gain influence and favor on the societally important issues of
the day. Pepsi also realizes the gains which could be realized if they took an active role in
people lives. For example, this corporation has enacted various campaigns in order to
entrench itself into the communities, e.g. Pepsi Refresh Program. Pepsi has used a wide
assortment of spokesmen and women to advertise their products. Over the past three
decades, Pepsi has employed the Michael Jackson, Ray Charles, Britney Spear and
Beyoncé Knowles to name a few. Each celebrity embodies a certain generational quality,
and for this reason they have been chosen to represent this company. (List of Pepsi
spokespersons, 2013).
The target market has changed over the years as our culture evolves over the
years. These changes include the specific segment that is targeted. In 1966, Pepsi
established a campaign targeted dieting women and in 1976 the company created a
campaign targeting children (Pepsi History). As Pepsi gained notoriety, it needed to
incorporate more diverse groups into its target market.
Question 2
Pepsi has utilized advertising, sales promotion, and public relations as part of its
promotion mix. This corporation used advertising to spread the word about its most
recent advertising program, the Pepsi Refresh Campaign. It provided individuals with the
grants so that they could realistic and sustainable changes within their communities.
Moreover, Pepsi has a strong following on many social media. (The Marketing Strategy
Critique of Pepsi Bottling Group)
Pepsi has also used sales promotion as part of its promotion mix. The majority of
the sales promotion manifested themselves via the demonstrations of the Refresh
Campaign. These demonstrations were not simply short-lived performances. Rather they
are a community building event that is the result of Pepsi’s initiatives. Consumers sent in
their proposals to help their local communities, these pitches were then either accepted or
denied. Public Relations is also an essential part of their marketing mix because of the
special events and sponsorship programs which were held by Pepsi. All of these measures
help to establish a stronger corporate image.
I personally do not think that I would have taken a different approach to this
initiative. I say this because they offered over 20 million in funding to the community.
They partnered alongside NBC “Today” and the had many well-known celebrities as
spokesmen such as Jeff Gordon and Drew Brees.(The Marketing Strategy Critique of
Pepsi Bottling Group) Pepsi has cast a wide net. I do not think that it is possible to have
positively changed this program.
Question 3
The first step in developing an effective Marketing Communication is identifying
the target audience. Without a holistic and extensive understanding of who will buy your
product it is impossible to determine who the audience is. The target audience will affect
the communicator’s decisions in regards to what will be said and who will say it (Kotler
et al, 2012).
It is important to determine the desired response of the target market. Under this
stage, consumers must pass through six stages until they make a purchase. These stages
include the following: awareness, knowledge, liking, preference, conviction and purchase
(Kotler et al, 2012). Awareness and knowledge is achieved once the target or general
market has become conscious of a new product. Liking occurs once a consumer has
favorable sentiments regarding a product. Preference happens once a consumer will opt
for one item over another. Conviction, the last stage, occurs when consumers are
determined to purchase a respective item (Kotler et al, 2012).
Designing a Message is crucial attracting consumers as these message gain the
attention and hold the interest of consumers. Message Content is how the message will be
received by the general public. It can manifest itself using rational, emotional and moral
appeals. This will then pass on to the message structure and message format, both of
these categories help to ensure success as the campaign is viewed by consumers.
The collection of feedback is quite possibly the most important step in this
process. This measure helps to ensure that the consumers are being satisfied. If customers
aren’t pleased with the offering, it is doubtful that these products will have a long life.
Question 4
On a social level, Pepsi’s Refresh campaign was a success because it helped many
communities throughout the United States. Pepsi demonstrated its commitment to the
community during an economically challenging period. This company pumped $5
million in several months into various nonprofit organizations, although, this campaign
was less than prosperous for this corporation. This program has definitely improved the
lives of more than 1.4 million people in the U.S., directing more than $23 million to fund
over 760 ideas. (Harvard Business Review, 2012)
Unfortunately, this program was deemed unsuccessful and it was scrapped for in
order to promote other advertising campaigns. Many issues arose while many nonprofits
that were vying for grants from Pepsi. Allegations of fraud were rampant as Pepsi could
not give the proper attention to each organization. The campaign fell into further disarray
because of the lack of Return on Investment. Many non-profits were unable to show an
actual change as a result of the received monies. It appeared as though this campaign was
based on generosity and not quantifiable evidence.
References:
Kotler, Philip. Principles of Marketing. Englewood Cliffs, N.J: Prentice-Hall, 2012. Print.
"List of Pepsi spokespersons." Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc,
n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
"Market Segmentation, Positioning and Target Market of Pepsi." Scribd. N.p., n.d. Web.
14 Apr. 2013.
"Marketing Matters: PepsiCo's Strategic Focus." Marketing Matters. N.p., n.d. Web.
14 Apr. 2013.
"The Marketing Strategy Critique of Pepsi Bottling Group." www.personal.psu.edu. N.p., n.d.
Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
Passikoff, Robert. "Coke Clobbers Pepsi." Forbes. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
"Pepsi History." Sirpepsi. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.
"PepsiCo Harvard Business Review." PepsiCo. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2013.