Assignment Cover Sheet

Student Name: Syed

Rahman Kazi Faisal Ahamed.

Student Number: School of Law and Business Charles Darwin University Casuarina NT 0909 Unit Code:

Unit Name:

Entrepreneurship for Professionals

Lecturers Name:

PRT503

Phone:

(08) 8946 6830

Jamal El-den
Assessment Title: Project Due Date (dd/mm/yyyy):

Proposal
Applied for Extension:
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Semester: 2

Year: 2013

Lodgement Date (dd/mm/yyyy):

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02-09-2013

02-09-2013

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Coca-Cola BlK

Executive Summary:
Coca-Cola BlK has been introduced in 2006 with a view to offer an innovative beverage in the market. Being a new product in the market, Coca-Cola BlK needs a high level of advertising and market oriented approach to be successful in the beverage market. Having that in mind, several advertising and marketing techniques and tools have been suggested through answering the three key questions asked in the case study.

1. If you are in charge of the marketing strategy for Coca-Cola BlK in America, who should be your target consumers? Why?
Answer: Instead of targeting the adult Starbucks and Red Bulls consumers only, the target customer group for Coca-Cola BlK could be the young people aged 18-25, as this group really enjoys caffeinated beverages (Humblin 2013). This targeting could well turn out to be a wining approach, as Coca-Cola already has a great reputation of a low-calorie beverage (45 calories/serving) that offers the great taste of Coca-Cola and with the taste of coffee with it, all in one, the Coca-Cola BlK could be really appealing for the target market. And another reason that could well work for this targeting approach is that the age group of 18-24 is a very young group of people who always likes anything new and always likes to test new concepts and ideas and if the Coca-Cola BlK is positioned properly as the new innovative drink in the market, it can easily turn out to be a big success story in the market.

2. What kinds of advertising messages would appeal to the target consumer to cause an attitude change toward Coca-Cola BlK?
Answer: As the marketers for a new product, the advertising and promotional strategies play a highly significant role in setting up the responsiveness of the target customers towards the new product. Advertising, sales promotions public relations, personal selling and direct marketing tools have great importance for a new product. These tools should be used for integrated marketing communications (IMC). By integrated marketing communications all the tools are used to give a consistent, clear and compelling company and brand message. In the case of BlK, integrated marketing approach model can be exploited, where the message passed through this communication is very important and can place a product successfully in the market. Emotional and rational appeal can be utilized in this regard using performance, humor, excitement and self confidence. Here the suggested communication message is: Drink Fusion, Live Fusion.

While acknowledging the classic aspect of Coca-Cola, it is also very important to show that the company is being innovative. Focusing on the innovative idea of combining coffee with the classic cola beverage will appeal to a wider range of the market, not just Starbucks consumers. Packaging can be a means to accomplish the task of overcoming the price justification issue. Coke bottles BlK in glass bottles, thus giving the perception of value a boost. The shape of the bottle is sleek, slightly shaped like the contours of a womans body, thereby adding sex appeal. Also, the lettering is gold against the dark bottle color, adding to the sophisticated look of BlK. Promotion is another way that Coca-Cola can add to the perceived value to overcome the issue of price justification.

Different kinds of advertising tools, techniques and mediums can be used to create awareness among the customers about BlK. There are two types of advertising channels that BlK can use, personal and non-personal channels. Among personal advertising channels there are several communication tools. Coke BlK can use online buying guides, hotlines and online discussion boards. As the non-personal advertising channels BlK can use print media such as newspapers, magazines, outdoor/billboard advertising and different other publications; online media such as placing banner ads and creating fan pages on different popular social gathering websites like Facebook, Twitter etc. , using banner ads on Google play in the Android platform or on istore in iPhones; electronic media such as a TV , Radio ads. Celebrity endorsement could be one of the other methods of passing the advertising message to the intended customers. Here celebrity like famous American singer Justin Bieber could be a choice because of his age which is as per our target customer group age and his craze in the young generation.

An idea of the advertising collaterals that can be used is given below:

Billboard Advertising

Transit

Outdoor

Outdoor

Outdoor

Cranes and Construction Zones

Escalators and Elevators

Hotels

3. Compared to ordinary Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola BlK is expensive ($1.99). How should Coca-Cola BlK be positioned?
Answer: Positioning itself with the other soft drinks would not be a good idea for Coca-Cola BlK, as most of soft drinks in the market are priced at or under $1.00 for a bottle of the same size. Rather, Coca-Cola can place BlK can place in the category with specialty coffee and energy drinks, thus they will be able to create the value needed to sell Coca-Cola BlK at that price. Comparing the $1.99 cost of Coca-Cola BlK with the $4.39 that is spent on a Starbucks beverage, consumers could get very close to the same taste and energy for less moneya better value. Here the main positing message would be that Coca-Cola BlK is an innovative product with unique fusion of soft drink and coffee and it is offered at a comparatively cheaper price.

References:
Humblin, J. 2013, How Much Caffeine Before I End Up in the E.R.?, The Atlantic, viewed 28 May 2013, http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2013/01/how-much-caffeine-before-i-endup-in-the-er/267129/ Choueke, M. 2005, Coke plans coffee drinks in a bid to reach adult sector, Marketing Week, viewed 27 May 2013, http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/coke-plans-coffee-drinks-in-a-bid-to-reach-adultsector/2003456.article Hutson, L. 2006, Coca-Cola Blak's multiple flavors confuse, displease, The Spokesman-Review, viewed 27 May 2013, http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2006/jun/21/coca-cola-blaks-multiple-flavorsconfuse-displease/