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Post 12: Promotions

PepsiCo presents an interesting study in regards to its social media presence. The companies brand is forced to play second fiddle to that of the globally dominating Coca-Cola Company. With a pool of 17 million fans on Facebook and a new like machine in place generating likes for free samples one would assume Pepsi is successful in its social media presence. However, it has not been updated since 2012 with few posts achieving more than 50 likes and comments. If you compare Pepsi to Coca-Colas widespread online success it is demoralizing and begs to question if PepsiCo still employs its social media team. However, while lacking in social media presence PepsiCo is largely successful in its in store advertisement, in home broadcast and billboard advertising. In regards to sales promotions, the data would suggest that when PepsiCo is offering incentive to buy its products; Coca-Cola Company is not. Both these giants take turns discounting and promoting its products while the other is not. I believe personal selling would not be successful in promoting PepsiCo’s products and that, rather, they stick to marketing to segments of the market.

Works Cited:

Pepsi Promotional Merchandise & Apparel. (n.d.). Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://www.ideasonemktg.com/

Topic Search - promotions. (n.d.). Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://www.pepsico.com/live/content/topic/promotions

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Post 11: Place

Looking through PepsiCo’s product line you begin to notice that they are everywhere. This is because PepsiCo uses intensive distribution to make their products widely available. Seen in the image below PepsiCo utilizes a three-channel distribution network allowing for extensive distribution throughout the market. Many of the items are sold via retailer and fulfilled directly to the store. The companies dominant position in the market allows this relationship with retailers and PepsiCo to allow enormous space for their products and influence consumer shopping patterns. The customer warehouse serves as a cheap distribution network of items that are less fragile and perishable to be stored. Finally, the third party distribution includes stadiums, schools, restaurants and more.

Works Cited:

Bailey, S. (2014). PepsiCo's three-channel distribution network. Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://finance.yahoo.com/news/pepsico-three-channel-distribution-network-170022730.html

Sharon Bailey  | Dec 12, 2014 3:42 pm EST. (n.d.). PepsiCo's three-channel distribution network. Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://marketrealist.com/2014/12/pepsicos-three-channel-distribution-network/

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Post 10: Trends/Pricing

PepsiCo throughout a trends ups and downs remains constant in business. This is due to its large product mix of both junk and health conscious items. For instance, when health trends pick up and unhealthy foods go out PepsiCo offers a variety of healthy snacks and alternative options. In doing so while their soda sales may drop business will pick up in their other products balancing itself out. Nowadays from the consumer standpoint, PepsiCo products are priced cheaply relative to alternative options. 

Works Cited:

Reingold, J. (2015). PepsiCo’s CEO was right. Now what? Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://fortune.com/2015/06/05/pepsico-ceo-indra-nooyi/

Young, J. (2015). PepsiCo SWOT Analysis & Recommendations - Panmore Institute. Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://panmore.com/pepsico-swot-analysis-recommendations

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Post 9: Services

PepsiCo offers a large variety of services based on your needs as the consumer. Their services range from shipping out a soda machine to a mom and pop shop to shipping bulk product to consumers such as grocery stores. This is all backed by their support team that handles any problem one might have both quickly and efficient. Furthermore, PepsiCo also hosts a comprehensive website that covers most areas of inquiry a consumer might have regarding the products or company. In addition to the support team, PepsiCo boasts a powerful sales team split between regions allowing for a sales team specialized and focused intently on your area. Not only does this add value to the product from the consumer standpoint but it brings in new business as well. 

Works Cited:

Contact Us. (n.d.). Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://www.pepsico.com/home/contact

Global Supply Chain. (n.d.). Retrieved October 30, 2016, from http://www.pepsicojobs.com/en/supplychain

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Post 8: Brand

PepsiCo is a rising star among its market competitors quickly rising to the top of every market it steps its feet into. PepsiCo has strong brand loyalty among its consumers whether they belong to the CSD groups or those that purchase snacks. Though the use of line extensions they have been able to accumulate a large and diverse product mix within the market. Today if you were to walk into your pantry you would more than likely find one if not more of PepsiCo’s products among your goods resulting in its classification as a family brand.

Works Cited:

Explore PepsiCo Brands. (n.d.). Retrieved October 27, 2016, from http://www.pepsico.com/brands/brandexplorer

Sebastian, A. (1970). PepsiCo Is Positioned For A Healthy Future. Retrieved October 27, 2016, from http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/04/22/pepsico-is-positioned-for-a-healthy-future.aspx

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Post 7: Packaging

As seen in the pictures above PepsiCo utilizes unique design and vibrant colors to distinguish its products from others on the shelves. When PepsiCo acquires a new product through a buyout or partnership they do not slap the PepsiCo logo on it rather keep the products design and look in order to promote it as its own product line rather than rebranding it. It is my belief that this promotes more success within the individual products successes and therefore would not change how PepsiCo packages its products. 

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Post 6: Competition

PepsiCo is a leader among the snack and refreshment market. Coca-Cola Company is the closest competitor to PepsiCo with products such as Coca-Cola, Powerade, Sprite, Smartwater, etc. According to Forbes, PepsiCo which holds around 25.4% volume share in the U.S. liquid refreshment beverage market, second behind Coca-Cola’s 33.6% share, is dominating the savory snacks market with a 36.4% market share. With widespread concerns about health and wellness rising CSD’s continue to bear the brunt of these concerns dropping overall market value year to year. It is through this that PepsiCo has emerged a market leader among snacks with its closest competitor, Kellogg, owning a market share of 7%; a staggering 29% lower than PepsiCo.

Works Cited:

Trefis (Ed.). (2015, August 31). PepsiCo's Snacks More Crucial To Overall Growth. Retrieved October 26, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2015/08/31/pepsicos-snacks-more-crucial-to-overall-growth/#59e5b24d5837

Trefis. (2016, October 24). PepsiCo (PEP). Retrieved October 26, 2016, from https://www.trefis.com/stock/pep/model/trefis?easyAccessToken=PROVIDER_93d2ee4db431d6acec7eeddfde9f8bff58f890f8#

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Post 5: Target Market

PepsiCo’s target market is quite large due to its product diversity. In order to understand its target audience, we must break it into segments. Market segmentation can be defined as a strategy which involves dividing a broad target market into subsets of consumers, businesses, or countries that have, or are perceived to have, common needs, interests, and priorities, and then designing and implementing strategies to target them. PepsiCo targets specific subsets of consumers through marketing. In a recent report published by PepsiCo, they state that the target consumer demographically is one that fits the following categories:

Age: 15-45

Gender: Male & Female

Life-cycle stage: Bachelor stage, newly married couples young, full nest I, and full nest II

Income: Average, above average

Occupation: Students employees, professionals

Psychographic segmentation divides buyers into groups based on different personality traits, values, attitudes, interests, and lifestyles of consumers. This further segments individuals who fulfill the demographic above into subsets of consumers that PepsiCo then tailors product design and marketing to. PepsiCo segmentation has also been emphasized psychographically. Many of their beverages fulfill the wants in many lifestyles and personalities. A recent example of this was Mountain Dew a drink that targets: "16-18 year old males, who embrace excitement, adventure and fun, Mountain Dew is the great tasting carbonated soft drink that exhilarates like no other because it is energizing, thirst quenching, and has a one of a kind citrus flavour." This statement defines the target in regard to age and further breaks down into psychographics emphasizing the benefits that someone would receive from drinking this such as its energizing effects, its adventurous nature, and its refreshing qualities.

Works Cited;

Core Competency And Sustainable Competitive Advantage Marketing Essay. (n.d.). Retrieved September 25, 2016, from https://www.ukessays.com/essays/marketing/core-competency-and-sustainable-competitive-advantage-marketing-essay.php

PepsiCo Segmentation, Targeting and Positioning - Research Methodology. (2016). Retrieved September 25, 2016, from http://research-methodology.net/pepsico-segmentation-targeting-and-positioning-2/

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Post 4: SWOT

SWOT Recommendations:

1. Diversify businesses to minimize risk to market exposure.

2. Further penetrate markets in developing countries to increase revenue.

Works Cited:

PepsiCo Announces Strategic Investments to Drive Growth. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2016, from http://www.pepsico.com/live/pressrelease/PepsiCo-Announces-Strategic-Investments-to-Drive-Growth02092012

PepsiCo Annual Report. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2016, from https://www.pepsico.com/docs/album/default-document-library/pepsico-2014-annual-report_final.pdf

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Post 3: Strategy

PepsiCo’s sustainable competitive advantages are based on three interrelated factors with their employees at the center of every decision.

First are PepsCo’s “Muscular Brands” that incorporate its cash cows such as Pepsi, Lays, Gatorade, Quaker, and Tropicana. These brands generate a majority of PepsiCo’s sales at the retail level. While most of these brands have been made in house, PepsiCo also takes advantage of mergers and acquisitions of already successful brands such as Quaker and Gatorade. This strategy can be seen as an aggressive variety-based positioning, where they produce a large variety of products from different facets of life. This strategy offers two primary advantages being: loss recovery from brand success fluctuation and access to a large base of consumers.

Second is PepsiCo’s “Powerful Go-To-Market Systems.” PepsiCo has one of the most diverse sets of distribution systems of any consumer product company. Furthermore, the reach and scale of these systems provide cost efficiency and system effectiveness in all areas of transportation. A direct result of this distribution system is the ease of access to PepsiCo products at nearly every retailer, market and gas station in the United States.

Third is PepsiCo’s “Innovative Products” an advantage PepsiCo strives to fulfill through their continuous stream of products and packages to meet consumer needs and wants. A recent example of a highly successful innovative design was PepsiCo’s new “Smart Spot” label which marked products that met a certain set of guidelines for a healthier alternative. In the wake of America’s move toward a healthier lifestyle, this has helped solidify PepsiCo as a frontrunner in a world of growing health concerns.

Lastly, all of these competitive advantages tie into one central idea and that is PepsiCo’s employees. PepsiCo prides itself on their diversity and equality among workers offering the best work environment it can to encourage success further from within.

Works Cited:

PepsiCo Annual Report. (n.d.). Retrieved September 17, 2016, from https://www.zonebourse.com/PEPSICO-INC-13978/pdf/70990/PepsiCo, Inc._Rapport-annuel.pdf

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Post 2: Brand

PepsiCo is a leading global food and beverage company with brands that are respected household names throughout the world. The company is known for its diverse product portfolio including brands such as Pepsi, Lays, Gatorade, Quaker Oats and Tropicana. Ranking among the world's most valuable brands Pepsi-Co earned annual sales of 63.056 billion dollars in 2015. Pepsi-Co is headquartered in Purchase, New York and is a public company. Currently, Pepsi-Co employs 263,000 individuals split between their subsidiaries. The mission statement is as follows: “As one of the largest food and beverage companies in the world, our mission is to provide consumers around the world with delicious, affordable, convenient and complementary foods and beverages from wholesome breakfasts to healthy and fun daytime snacks and beverages to evening treats. We are committed to investing in our people, our company and the communities where we operate to help position the company for long-term, sustainable growth.” 

Works Cited:

Forbes The World’s Biggest Public Companies 2016 RANKING (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2016, from http://www.forbes.com/companies/pepsico/

PepsiCo. (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2016, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PepsiCo

PepsiCo Official Website. (n.d.). Retrieved September 13, 2016, from http://www.pepsico.com/

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Post 1: Start

I chose Pepsi-Co because my father has a contract with Pepsi-Co through his business.  I was drawn to this topic because contrary to popular opinion I am a Pepsi fan and would like to know the inner working of the company and its secondary brands.