Integrated marketing communication

Group No: 8

Submitted to:
Dr. Ruby Chanda
Submitted By:
Aakanksha Sena A_01
Anuj Dutt A_10
Prince Kumar Singh A_35
Abhijit Kundu A_39
Rajat Sharma A_50
Q1. WAS THE YES
COMPETITION Market dominated by Rational Marketing Players: Water,

IN THE Homemade Isotonic Drinks, Isostar (Power mix) and Gatorade

(Main Competitor).
SPORTS DRINK Gatorade (later acquired by Pepsi), reimagined itself as a flavorful

MARKET (Lemon and Orange) drink.

Gatorade claimed of giving faster replenishment, revolutionized
RELEVANT FOR the advertisement by including Sports teams and Athletes for

COCA COLA endorsements.

Reformed Brand Communication strategies, quickly made
AT THAT Gatorade the market Leader.
Revised brand Communication threatened Coca Cola's Sales and
TIME? Visibility as it was lacking behind in the sports drink Segment.
Q2. WHAT OPTIONS DID
COCA COLA COMPANY
HAVE WHEN NEW
SEGMENT APPEARED
THAT DIRECTLY
COMPETED WITH COCA
COLA FOR A SPECIFIC
TYPE OF
CONSUMPTION??
“Where there are sports,
Coca-Cola is there.”
Consumers enganging in Physical activity.
How Coca Cola gained Consumer's perception?
Marketing
Sponsors for Sporting Events

NEW SEGMENT SPECIFIC TYPE OF CONSUMPTION

ISOTONIC DRINKS ATHLETES/ PEOPLE INTO SPORTS

 Q3. What were the actual reasons behind the
launch of Aquarius?
Before the launch of Aquarius, Coca
cola for decades was trying to advertise
its main beverage as a great option for
consumers engaging in physical activity.

Consumers in the 80s naturally

perceived Coca-Cola as the best
beverage to drink while
participating in sports,
as a result of all the marketing
initiatives and ongoing sponsorship
of thousands of athletic events.
 Entry of new players
However, professional athletes understood that the ideal beverage option
would have the same concentration of mineral salts as is in body fluids.
Despite the other different impression created by Coca Cola.

And places where isostar was lacking

Gatorade was able to take advantage of
Hence, to fill this gap a thoses shortcomings (Product’s capacity to
multinational company rehydrate athletes faster, distribution
introduced a product called channels & flavour)
Isostar in Spain.
 Threat realization
Isostar in sales and by the mid 80s it dominated In 1990, just two years before
the sports drink market. Coca-Cola one of the main
sponsors for the Barcelona
It posed a serious threat to Coca-Cola, because
Olympics. The Coca-Cola
of the competition in sponsoring sporting
Company saw a need to provide a
events, which had belonged almost exclusively
sports drink for Olympics events.
to Coca-Cola until that time.

If Coca-Cola did not have a sports

drink on the market one year before
the games began, the IOC would
appoint a different sports drink
sponsor for the Olympics that did.
Gatorade was the most likely
candidate
 Aquarius was introduced
With the possibility of losing the opportunity that They introduced one of their
Coca-Cola had via its Olympic sponsorship contract, already selling isotonic sports
headquarters in Atlanta asked Coca-Cola Spain to drink (in Japan) under the brand
introduce a sports drink at least one year prior to the name Aquarius.
Olympics, even if it was temporary.

In addition to being the fastest, simplest, and cheapest

option, the name sounded good in Spanish and
described the product’s characteristics well.

Q4.HOW COULD SETTING A LOWER PRICE THEN COMPETITORS

INFLUENCE THE CUSTOMER PERCEPTION?
Pricing is perception based.
Associated with value-provided.
Price has two reciprocal roles in a consumer’s mind.
The first role is negative, the monetary sacrifice one has to make in exchange for a
product/service.
On the positive side, price is a cue of high quality.
Balance of perceived value and quality is essential.
Customers build internal reference prices.
If the price is way too low against the competitors, the perception is built of cheap
quality.
Pricing also is influenced by the target segment focused and type of product, i.e.
essential commodity or lifestyle commodity.
Internal reference points and building pricing around it.
Q5.HOW SHOULD THE FINAL PRICE BE DECIDED FOR THIS SITUATION?
Aquarius is not only an energy drink but
also comes with a feel good factor and this
shows that they are better than the whole
market.
Target audience was specific to having a
specific lifestyle.
Association with Olympics rings & Aquarius.
Backed up from Coca-Cola Brand Image.
Recommended by doctors to young ones
and adults as well as older ones.
Establishing the best quality image.
GATORADE AQUARIUS
So, Final pricing should be competitive yet
a little better considering above mentioned
factors.
Q6.WHAT ADVANTAGES DOES SELL A SPORTS DRINK EXCLUSIVELY IN VERY SPECIFIC CHANNELS FOR
PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES HAVE FOR THE BRAND’S IMAGE?
Brand Visibility: Sports events are attended by millions. Representation of brand at such an
extent becomes the perfect opportunity for the company to showcase the brand for the
fans and upcoming sports enthusiasts who become future spokespersons for the brand.
Brand Perception: Choosing a professional athlete who represents the same ideology as
the brand is the perfect representation for the television viewers. Advertisements on
Television have direct impact on the viewers and can help Brands reach far and wide quick
and easy.
Brand Representation: Hydration is highly important in every active sports at all levels.
Having successful pro athletes represent a brand can create a brand image which is
attuned with best health practices which not only affects the youth but also entire families.
Brand Resonance: For every sport enthusiast, becoming professional is a dream come true.
Having a pro athlete who the consumers can relate to can help nurture a relationship with
the brand as it provides them with a dream and a goal to reach new heights.
Brand Positioning: With multiple Pro athletes on
board, brands can target multiple target
segments through proper representation. A
famous pro athlete who is well respected as a
model citizen can help position the brand in the
market as a model brand as well.
Brand Authenticity- Reaffirms to the consumer
about the authenticity of the drink and hence the
brand since famous athletes and professional
teams are linked with it.
Brand Credibility: With so many brands
competiting for relevance, representation by
professional athlete helps create brand credibility
and trust.
Q7.How did Aquarius redefine the isotonic
beverage market?
Isostar and Gatorade had already Therefore, consumers merely
done the legwork of teaching the needed to be reminded through
public about the scientific Aquarius' communications that its
principles of salt replenishment product had the exact same
and the necessity of rehydrating qualities as any other sports drink.
during exercise before Aquarius
joined the market.
 Not just a sports drink
From the very beginning, the marketing team tried to remove the
beverage from a strictly sporting context.

Aquarius’ advertisements used

images of consumers engaging
in physical activity during their
everyday lives, thereby
increasing the number of
potential consumers.
They markets it as, anyone who led an
active lifestyle, whether they were
athletes or not, could drink Aquarius.
 Claiming the market
In just three months, Aquarius had become the
sports drink sector leader in the Spanish market,
claiming over 60% of sales.
The strategy evolved to when and
how frequently the beverage would
be consumed. The new idea was
summed up in the slogan: “Life is a
hard sport.” This new communication
compared a busy life to a sports
competition and encouraged the
consumption of Aquarius in both
The new communication strategy ensured cases.
sustained growth for the Aquarius brand for
several years.
Thank
you!!