Dr. Pepper Situation Analysis
 

Instructions: Thoroughly read through the Dr. Pepper Case and begin to critically analyze the contents of the information from a marketing perspective. You will have to identify issues (if applicable), the market orientation/concept (customer, service, profit oriented) the kind of firm (not type of business - i.e.

Corporation, Partnership, Proprietorship), the best marketing objectives the company will express to its intended market (clientele), these should be well articulated, precise and concrete to the goal/focus; and identify the market segmentation (demo, geo, psycho, benefit, volume, etc) are the products convenient, shopping, specialty, unsought or industrial goods?, identify the social class of the market, as well as the life cycle (stage) of the product.

 

please include: 

 

KIND OF FIRM (HINT: Dr. Pepper operates in two kinds of operations)

5 for correct selection(s) with justification (explanation); 2.5 for partial correct selection/correct selection without justification

 

MARKETING ORIENTATION/CONCEPT

10 for correct selection with justification (explanation); 5 for next best selection with justification; 2 points with correct or best selection without justification

 

MARKETING OBJECTIVES (Use numbers to identify each objective)

10 for listing four or more concrete, precise, short objectives; 5 for listing three complete, precise, short objectives

 

TARGET MARKETS (May use columns to differentiate between markets or summation in paragraph)

10 for best segmentation and social classes); 5 for partial correct response (listing segment but not social class or social class but not segment)

PRODUCT CLASSIFICATION (DIFFERENTIATION)

5 for correct product classification type with justification; 2.5 for correct product classification with no or wrong justification

 

LIFE CYCLE STAGE HINT: Dr. Pepper has two cycles with one being the primary of the two (this company is an existing company); clearly identify which is the primary stage

10 for listing both correct (primary and secondary) stage with justifications; 5 for listing partial correct stage(s) with justification; 2.5 for listing correct or partial correct stage(s) without justification

 

 

Business 231 Dr. Pepper Case Situation Analysis How can a soft-drink company get its message across when its advertising budget is much smaller than the budgets of its deep-pocketed competitors? For Dr Pepper, pitted against Mountain Dew and Sprite in the noncola soft-drink category, the way to put the fizz into sales is through sales promotion. Dr Pepper has scored solid market share increases for more than a decade with creative sales promotion efforts targeted at light and occasional users. The purpose is to encourage these customers to purchase more rather than trying to get non-Dr Pepper drinkers to switch. The company also uses trade sales promotion methods to support both its bottlers and the retailers that carry its products. Sports play an important role in Dr Pepper's sales promotion activities. The company sponsors the Washington Erving Motorsports' Ford Taurus racecar on the NASCAR circuit. Owned by former NFL great Joe Washington and former NBA star Julius "Dr. J" Erving, the car sports a bold Dr Pepper logo on its hood, visible to spectators and television viewers throughout each race. For a small fee, local bottlers can park the racecar at key retail sites to generate excitement for the brand. In addition, Dr Pepper uses special sales promotion efforts during the annual Southeastern Conference championship football game, putting its logo on everything from T-shirts and cups to coolers and banners. In one recent year, consumers were invited to win free. game tickets by checking under the caps of specially marked Dr Pepper bottles. Ticket winners were then entered into a drawing for the $1 Million Pepper Pass Challenge, which invited a consumer to try throwing a 40-yard pass during halftime (the consolation prize was a check for $10,000). During the championship weekend, the company handed out 100,000 product samples. On the trade side, Dr Pepper supported this promotion by providing retailers with shelf labels, refrig- erator case decorations, and display signs. Among the other sporting events around which Dr Pepper builds sales promotions are college golf tournaments and college football games. Retailers get involved by creating point-of-purchase displays touting the Dr Pepper promotion. The best displays earn store employees free tickets to the events or free merchandise. Dr Pepper is a long-time sponsor of the Hispanic Heritage Awards, and it often creates special promotions linked to these awards. In one recent tie-in promotion, called Pinta Sus Suenos-Paint Your Dreams-the company invited Hispanic teenagers to compete by submitting their artwork. First prize was a trip for four to the Hispanic Heritage Awards ceremony in Washington, DC. Other winners received U.S. savings bonds, and their schools received grants to buy art supplies. In addition, Dr Pepper displayed the winning works on local billboards and on its website. College students are a particular target for Dr Pepper. As the purveyor of the official soft drink of the Collegiate Players Tour, Dr Pepper can park its colorful van in a prominent place during the 16 golf tournaments played at U.S. colleges and country clubs during the summer months-a peak period for soft-drink consumption. In this way, the company reinforces brand awareness and encourages more purchases. Although soft-drink companies have traditionally targeted students, sales promotion activities geared toward children have drawn fire in some areas. Critics worry that such promotional efforts encourage youngsters to drink too many soft drinks---an average of three cans daily, according to some studies. Not long ago, Dr Pepper was criticized for paying the Grapevine- Colleyville school district near Dallas to paint the Dr. Pepper logo on two school rooftops that airline passengers could see when passing overhead. The school district also received more than $3 million in exchange for making only Dr Pepper drinks available in its schools for the next decade. A spokesperson for the school district explained that such agreements are not new. "We've had exclusive bottling agreements for about twenty-five years in the state," she said. "The thing that is new is that instead of having each campus determine what bottler it wants to stock its soda machine, districts are saying, "We'll make you a deal for all of our campuses, and in return we get some extra funding." Despite this controversy, Dr Pepper and its bottlers aim to be good corporate citizens, donating free products, logo merchandise, and money for many community events and fundraisers. For example, a Dr Pepper bottler recently teamed up with Wal-Mart to raise money for the Red Cross by sponsoring a country music charity concert in Nashville. As another example, the company and its bottlers raised more than $35,000 for the central Mississippi March of Dimes by sponsoring a golf tournament fundraiser. Because retailers account for a good chunk of Dr Pepper's sales, the company supports its consumer sales promotion activities with a constant stream of trade sales promotion efforts that boost its products' point-of-purchase visibility. For example, a North Carolina store displayed 400 cases of Dr Pepper products as part of its Santa's Workshop exhibit. Thanks in part to this promotion, holiday sales of Dr Pepper rose 24 percent at that outlet. Dr Pepper's website plays an integral role in the company's sales promotion efforts. In addition to inviting online entries to games and sweepstakes, the website allows visitors to download a variety of personal computer screensavers, each emblazoned with the Dr Pepper name and logo. The website provides a means of bringing sales promotion activities directly into the customer's home or office. As Dr Pepper's sales increases attest, properly targeted and well-designed sales promotions can help any company compete against much larger rivals.