Consumer Journey and Digital Touch Point Analysis for Gatorade

Gatorade

Consumer Journey and Digital Touch Point Analysis

Team 4

Consumer Journey and Digital and 1:1 Touch Point Analysis Jamie Bland Ebony Francis Maggie Hallam Maria Harper Patrick Mulvihill Emily Pfitzinger

Table of Contents ............................................................................4 Brand Overview...............................................................................6 History......................................................................................7

Table of Contents

Contents Past Campaigns ......................................................................8

Competitors...........................................................................11 Strategy..........................................................................................14 Objective ...............................................................................15 Audience ...............................................................................16 Consumer Journey........................................................................18

Day in the Life .......................................................................27

Touch Points...................................................................................40

Touch Point Analysis.............................................................41

Mission Control.....................................................................42

Recommendations ........................................................................66 Sources...........................................................................................70

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Brand Overview

History Born in the Lab

Gatorade’s entire history is backed in research. Not only does Gatorade currently hold the title of most researched beverage on the market for athletes and active individuals, but its inception happened in the lab as well.

In 1965 at the University of Florida, the football team’s assistant coach wanted to solve a problem: his players were underperforming because of the summer heat. He turned to the university’s physicians, and they determined that the fluids and electrolytes the players lost through sweat weren’t being replaced, and the large amounts of carbohydrates the players’ bodies needed were not being replenished. The Florida Gators created their own scientific solution to replenish the body with nutrients lost during exercise and called the concoction “Gatorade.”

PepsiCo Mission

“Our mission is to be the world’s premier consumer products company focused on convenient foods and beverages. We seek to produce financial rewards to investors as we provide opportunities for growth and enrichment to our employees, our business partners and the communities in which we operate. And in everything we do, we strive for honesty, fairness and integrity.”

Competitive and Intense

The Gatorade athlete has a need to compete that fuels his or her very existence. Gatorade is not a brand to consume casually. It is the brand that helps its athletes power through their final plays, laps and innings.

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@Gatorade 1965: The year sport met science. #ThrowbackThursday #TBT

Brand Overview

The Science of Gatorade Water acts as a base Electrolytes include potassium, chloride and sodium Carbohydrates provide energy Osmolality is the electrolyte-water balance that measures how efficiently the body absorbs Gatorade

On the Sidelines Gatorade is the official sports drink of: More than 70 Division I colleges for men and women’s intercollegiate sports The National Football League—a title it has held since 1983 The National Basketball Association, Association of Volleyball Professionals, Professional Golf Association, Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, and numerous other elite and professional organizations and teams

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Past Campaigns Athlete endorsements have played a big role in Gatorade’s advertising efforts. Starting with the iconic 10-year endorsement from Michael Jordan and leading up to today’s athlete endorsements, Gatorade strategically chooses athletes who push through the hard work and rise to the top of the competition.

In addition to athlete endorsements, Gatorade has used a variety of strategies in its advertising campaigns. Five notable campaigns include:

Gatorade Is Thirst Aid

Time Frame: 1984-1990 Key Message: “Gatorade is thirst aid for that deep-down body thirst.”

Fun Fact: This campaign brought in around $900 million in sales.

Be Like Mike

Time Frame: 1990-2000 Key Message: Gatorade is the leading sports drink.

Fun Fact: Michael Jordan signed a 10-year, $13.5 million contract with Gatorade.

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Time Frame: Mid 2000s Key Message: Is pure competition in you?

Fun Fact: This campaign capitalized on a variety of athlete endorsements.

Brand Overview

Is It In You?

Become

Time Frame: mid 2000s Key Message: Gatorade keeps your athlete properly hydrated during competition.

Fun Fact: This was the first time Gatorade targeted moms in its advertising.

Heritage

Time Frame: 2012-Present Key Message: What athletes put into their bodies is just as important as what they put on them.

Fun Fact: This campaign lets athletes make their own digital Gatorade bottle label.

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Competitors Powerade

Powerade is without a doubt Gatorade’s most direct competitor. Positioned as a drink for “underdog athletes,” Powerade was introduced in 1988 by Coca-Cola as a direct substitute for Gatorade. The Powerade Zero product line has been considered the brand’s most discernible advantage over Gatorade, boasting zero calories and zero sugar. Despite the wide reach of the Coca-Cola brand in the carbonated beverage industry, Powerade still remains the second most popular sports drink of choice for athletes, holding a 22.7 percent share of the market. Powerade is the official sports drink of FIFA and the 2016 World Cup in Brazil.

Propel

Made by Gatorade as a “flavored hydration” alternative to Gatorade, Propel is marketed toward a more health-conscious market, as opposed to Gatorade’s “serious athlete” target. Propel might become more popular as health trends push away from sugar and calories, which might endanger Gatorade’s control of the market. Propel, known as the “workout water,” comes in nine flavors.

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Coming in six flavors, Muscle Milk is considered a post-workout drink that might also be considered a meal-replacement. The drink, which does not actually contain any milk or lactose, is extremely high in protein compared to other “sports drinks” and might arguably be placed in a category of its own with other protein shakes. Its nutritional value and growing sales have made it an indirect competitor yet a very real threat for Gatorade.

Brand Overview

Muscle Milk

Bottled Water

Water is the basic, calorie-free, sugar-free alternative to sports drinks. Widely considered to be the simplest and most effective source of hydration (let alone the cheapest), bottled water is arguably a larger threat to Gatorade than Powerade. There are hundreds of brands of bottled water globally, and many possess their own subtle yet distinct tastes and personalities, the most notable being Dasani, Aquafina, Ice Mountain, Nestle Pure Life, Evian, Smart Water and Fiji.

Vitaminwater

Vitaminwater is owned by a Coca-Cola subsidiary, hosting the tagline “Hydration For Every Occasion.”

Marketed as a healthy and nutritional product, Vitaminwater mostly appeals to moderately active 20-something females who are into fitness and reasonable exercise. With flavors such as “Revive,” “Glow,” “Energy,” “Focus” and “Defense,” the brand takes on a fresh and energetic personality.

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Strategy

Objective Advertising Objective

Gatorade’s objective in its advertising efforts is to celebrate the epic history of Gatorade and to encourage competitive high school athletes to demonstrate what it means to #WinFromWithin.

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Gatorade prides itself on being born in the lab and wants the Millennial generation to recognize the importance of Gatorade’s origins. The Heritage campaign positions Gatorade as a sports drink for the most competitive athletes and aims to recognize these athletes and their accomplishments. Leveraging social media to share the struggles and successes of various G athletes, Gatorade inspired high school athletes to put their own photos and experiences on a digital Gatorade bottle and share it across various social platforms. This engagement empowered the audience with the voice of the Gatorade brand, using #WinFromWithin to focus on the idea that what athletes put into their bodies is just as important as the clothing and gear they put on the outside.

Communication Strategy

Gatorade’s communication strategy is to focus on competitive athletes who seek research-based and scientifically proven products that will heighten their athletic abilities and aid them in defeating all competition.

Gatorade reaches the competitive athlete primarily through eye-catching images, encouraging quotes and professional athletic endorsements on traditional and digital spaces. Gatorade focuses on social networking platforms such as Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube because posts can be easily shared to the target audience with just one click.

@hannengland Thank you @GatoradeUK @Gatorade for sending me drinks to help me on training camp in Florida. Hydrate or diedrate!

Current Audience

Strategy

Audience Gatorade’s current target audience in the #WinFromWithin campaign is competitive athletes ages 13 to 17. These competitive athletes represent about 15 percent of the total population and have an innate need to compete. They have fun playing sports and enjoy the social aspect that sport provides, but for them competition means more than that. Competition is a mindset; it’s their lifeblood. They cannot extract who they are as a competitor from who they are as a person.

They gain extreme satisfaction from winning, and they expect themselves to perform their very best in every game and in every practice. They expect their teammates and coaches to bring their A-game in every situation as well.

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Consumer Journey

Consumer Journey Target Audience

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Inspired Recreational Competitors are 18to 24-year-olds who used to be competitive athletes. They played a traditional sport or two in high school but haven’t considered themselves serious athletes since coming to college. They play on a club team, play pick-up games at the rec center and work out occasionally. However, their athleticism does not define them. Since they were athletes in high school, Inspired Recreational Competitors can still identify with serious athletes, but they no longer consider themselves a part of that category. They are, however, competitive by nature and love the rush that comes from winning, no matter how small the victory. They are ‘healthy enough,’ meaning that they are aware of what they should be eating, but that doesn’t always mesh with their college lifestyle. Inspired Recreational Competitors are extremely loyal to their school and hometown teams and love feeling like they are part of a community of sports enthusiasts.

They tend to purchase products based on what their parents always bought for them when they were younger. Inspired Recreational Competitors are very familiar with Gatorade because they drank it as a kid, but they are not loyal to the brand. They know that Gatorade is supposed to be good for them when they work out, but they do not know the exact science behind the product.

Start

1. Draft Day

Consumer Journey

The consumer journey allows Gatorade to better understand the purchasing habits of Inspired Recreational Competitors. This process encompasses the Inspired Recreational Competitor’s interaction with the brand from need recognition to brand loyalty.

2. Scouting the Prospects Loyalty Loop Start

6. All-Star Status

5. Champions Are Made Off the Court

3. Showtime

4. Hit the Showers The consumer journey highlights the key opportunities for Gatorade to reach Inspired Recreational Competitors via mass and 1:1 touch points. Although the journey may differ based on individuals or circumstances, the journey can be easily explained through six simple steps.

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Draft Day The first step in the consumer journey is when Inspired Recreational Competitors realize they need a drink for their athletic activity, such as an intramural game. They begin their journey by leaving home and heading to a convenience store.

Though they have their favorites, they often buy on impulse. Inspired Recreational Competitors are situational users; they buy NCBs when they know they will be participating in physical activity.

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Inspired Recreational Competitors often do not decide on a specific NCB until they are standing in the aisle of the store, looking over the options. Thus, this second step in the journey is a highly important part of the process. They need something to keep them hydrated through their competitive athletic activities, but will they choose water, a sports drink or something more natural? They make their choice based on a variety of attributes such as flavor, price and brand recognition. If Gatorade places its messaging effectively, the brand will be present in the minds of Inspired Recreational Competitor during this stage.

Consumer Journey

Scouting the Prospects

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Showtime Now that Inspired Recreational Competitors have purchased their favorite Gatorade flavor, it’s time to hit the field. They sip their Gatorade in between plays to stay hydrated and perform their best during the game. Inspired Recreational Competitor are conscious of the fact that Gatorade will help prevent cramps from physical activity; however, they know that if they drink too much, they will get cramps.

They bond with their teammates on and off their field and playfully mock the other team. They don’t finish the entire bottle of Gatorade during the game.

This is only phase one of consumption.

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After the game is when Inspired Recreational Competitors finish off the bottle. After a big win, they chug the rest of their Gatorade as they high-five their buddies, and any of the Gatorade that is left is finished off on the way home. They understand the importance of replenishing necessary electrolytes, and they crave a drink that makes them feel refreshed. They recycle the bottle on the way home, and it never sees the inside of their apartment.

Consumer Journey

Hit the Showers

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Champions are Made Off the Court Inspired Recreational Competitors continue their week as usual, going to classes and hanging out with friends. They stop in the convenience store a few more times throughout the week for snacks and drinks, and they may or may not take notice of Gatorade in the refrigerator aisle. They know Gatorade is always going to be there, so it will continue to be a part of their consideration set. They continue to be inspired by Gatorade’s advertising because sports and competition are always on their minds. Inspired Recreational Competitors talk with their friends about everything, including classes and sports, and their friends have a huge influence on their future purchase decisions.

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Inspired Recreational Competitors enter the loyalty loop, where they don’t think twice about which NCB to purchase at the convenience store. Inspired Recreational Competitors view Gatorade as essential to recovery because it replenishes necessary electrolytes and makes them feel refreshed.

They skip the consideration phase and immediately choose Gatorade from the refrigerator. They may even buy Gatorade ahead of time.

They bring Gatorade to every game, follow the brand on social media and encourage their buddies to purchase Gatorade as well.

Consumer Journey

All-Star Status

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Day in the Life

To better understand the consumer journey, we developed an outline of the typical day in the life of Inspired Recreational Competitors. This will allow for a better understanding of how Inspired Recreational Competitors interact with various touch points.

This is just one example of what Inspired Recreational Competitors could look like. Inspired Recreational Competitors are diverse, but their motivations are all the same.

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Meet Jacob, a 21-year-old college student who played basketball and ran track in high school. He is now a member of the club rugby team at his university. He lifts weights occasionally and runs and plays pick-up basketball regularly. However, his athleticism does not define him. He can identify with athletes but does not consider himself a serious athlete. Still, he is competitive by nature and loves the rush that comes from winning, no matter how small the victory. Jacob is ‘healthy enough,’ meaning that he is aware of what he should be eating, but that doesn’t always mesh with his college lifestyle. He is extremely loyal to his school and hometown teams.

Twitter

Retail

Mobile

Facebook

Instagram

WWW

Coupons

TV

Magazine

YouTube

Radio

PR

Newspaper

Email

Branded Entertainment

Out of Home

Display Ads

Consumer Journey

Touch Point Guide

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Day in the Life Guide 8:00 a.m.

Waking Up

10:30 p.m.

9:00 a.m.

TV Time

Class Time

12:00 p.m.

8:00 p.m.

Lunch

Practice

1:30 p.m.

4:45 p.m.

Study Time

Downtime

3:00 p.m.

Basketball

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Waking Up

Consumer Journey

8:00 a.m.

Jacob’s alarm goes off, and he hits snooze.

Nine minutes later, he realizes it’s getting late but checks his phone before getting out of bed anyway. He sees that he got a notification from Eric on Twitter and scans his feed. He rolls out of bed and does some push-ups and sit-ups before he showers. Once he’s finished, he throws on a hoodie, grabs a banana and a granola bar and heads to Econ.

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9:00 a.m.

Class Time

Jacob finds his buddies in their seats near the middle of the room as the professor starts lecture. After listening for 20 minutes about opportunity costs, Jacob decides paying attention to this lecture is not worth the lost opportunity to chat with that cute girl from Management on Facebook, so he checks Facebook, then ESPN.com and Bleacher Report.

In the middle of class, Jacob gets a text from Patrick asking if they’re still on for basketball with the guys at 3 o’clock. He totally forgot, but he responds that he’ll be there. This gives him some much needed motivation to make it through the rest of his classes. During his third class of the morning, Jacob becomes too hungry to focus on anything, and he starts fantasizing about lunch.

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Lunch

Consumer Journey

12:00 p.m.

Once he’s finished with classes for the day, Jacob heads to the student union to grab lunch with his friends. He orders a toasted footlong turkey sub with cheese and extra banana peppers and refills his reusable water bottle at the soda fountain. Over lunch, Jacob and his buddies argue over their 40-yard dash times in high school. As they’re finishing up, someone hands Jacob a coupon book, and he flips through it on his way to his marketing group project meeting.

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1:30 p.m.

Study Time

Jacob meets with his marketing group in the library. As he is waiting for the meeting to start, he scrolls through his Twitter feed, clicks on an article from the New York Times and reads a few more articles until his group shows up. Thankfully, the meeting flies by, and Jacob heads to the rec. On his way, he listens to the Jay-Z Pandora station and browses his Instagram feed. Jacob also stops by the student market to grab a drink.

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Basketball

Consumer Journey

3:00 p.m.

Once Jacob and his friends arrive at the rec center, they stretch and choose teams for their pick-up game of basketball. He and his friends are competitive but friendly with each other as they play. Jacob steps over to his bag a couple of times between plays to take a few sips of his drink, and when they’re done, he chugs the rest of it before they head to the bus stop.

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4:45 p.m.

Downtime

When Jacob gets home, he turns on SportsCenter and flips through the Sports Illustrated he got in the mail. Jacob then scans his Facebook News Feed, clicks on a YouTube link his friend posted and watches it with his roommate. The SportsCenter highlights playing in the background feature a high school football player getting some big award. Jacob and his roommate throw a pizza in the oven for dinner and continue to watch TV while doing homework until rugby practice.

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Practice

Consumer Journey

8:00 p.m.

As he eats a pre-game fueling snack, Jacob mixes up a drink to keep him hydrated and help him perform during practice. Jacob and his roommate arrive at the practice field and meet up with the rest of their team. They chat, warm up and get ready to play. Jacob loves his club team because they play to win. Even when he’s on the sideline grabbing a quick drink, he stays in the competitive mindset and is always ready to go back in the game.

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10:30 p.m.

TV Time

Jacob hops in the shower when he gets home from practice. Afterward, he settles in on the couch with some chips and salsa, watches Jimmy Fallon with his roommates and Snapchats his buddies. When Fallon is over, Jacob gets into bed and scrolls through Twitter and Facebook one last time before falling right to sleep.

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Touchpoints

Touch Point Analysis We are focusing on Gatorade’s consumer engagement through through 1:1 touch points, which are touch points that interact directly with individual target members.

Gatorade can utilize these touch points to create a more unique and personalized experience for each target audience member. These touch points are unlike traditional touch points in that they do not interact with mass audiences and that they can be utilized to reach individual target members in a more strategic way.

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The touch points that we are analyzing specifically include: Facebook Twitter Instagram Website YouTube Tumblr Google+ SEO/SEM Mobile Word of Mouth Native Vimeo Vine Pinterest Display Ads Email

Touch Points

Mission Control

Huddle Up!

VML, Fleishman-Hillard and OMD created Mission Control for Gatorade in 2010. Mission Control has served as the source of social and digital consumer insights for Gatorade’s online audience.

Through Mission Control, Gatorade can engage with its target in real-time and monitor all social media interactions, as well as experiment in order to optimize consumer experience online. The two-way dialogue system has drastically influenced the way Gatorade interacts with its online consumers and has helped build Gatorade’s influence through social media.

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Facebook

About Random Facts

In January, a majority of posts featured a hand holding a G2 bottle in the lower left corner The public likes to respond to posts in th comments with memes

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6,682,331 Likes

How Gatorade Can Improve Its Game

The majority of Gatorade’s Facebook posts are inspirational and come from the voice of an intense all-star athlete. Since Inspired Recreational Competitors no longer consider themselves to be athletes, Gatorade should bring down the “all-star intensity” tone in an effort to not lose relevancy with the target audience. To create a personal relationship with the consumer, Gatorade can ask more questions, as this will create a space for interaction and allow Gatorade to educate consumers on the science behund the Gatorade product .

Gatorade posts a combination of photos, videos and inspirational quotes four to five times per week. This content includes the #WinFromWithin campaign and occasionally drives the consumer to Gatorade’s website, Tumblr and other social media platforms. Photos are uploaded to the main timeline and feature products, professional athletes and familiar sports settings, such as a soccer net. Photos are often accompanied by short phrases that reinforce Gatorade’s competitive tone, such as, “Defend your season,” “Better your best, or someone else will” and “Sweat not regret.” Videos are posted less frequently and are used strategically to feature tips from professional athletes or to capitalize on popular events or holidays.

Video Example: Gatorade uses videos to take advantage of current happenings, holidays or popular events.

For example, the “Be their worst nightmare” spot plays off of Halloween, showing athletes in shadowing headgear and athletic masks.

...And The Crowd Goes Wild

Inspired Recreational Competitors interact heavily with the photo posts, which each receive at least 200 likes. Popularity, timing and relevance play large roles in the amount of likes a post receives. For example, when a post forges a personal connection with the follower, focuses on a highly publicized game or rivalry or features a well-known athlete, the post can gain almost 10 times as many likes as other posts that do not include such information.

Touch Points

Summary of Content

Likes range between 200 to 2,000 per post.

However, videos and photos that are shared or receive a high circulation, such as the high school locker room makeover video featuring Dwanye Wade, have reached 28,000 likes.

Inspired Recreational Competitors typically do not share Gatorade’s Facebook posts onto their personal timelines or comment on the actual posts. Comments range from zero to 25, and this may be because Gatorade typically does not respond to comments unless a question is asked about the brand specifically, in which Gatorade tends to respond with a link or general information.

The public tends to comment in agreement or disagreement with the phrase/quote or in support of a specific sport or team featured in the post.

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Summary of Content

Powerade’s Facebook profile features a somewhat recent photo booth style campaign from the Great South and Great Birmingham Marathons, and it included photos with the copy “You’re more powerful than you think.” With less than 15 likes, the album generated low interaction. On average, Albums as a whole only received 15 likes and 5 comments Powerade centers its Facebook content around public marathons and races that are sponsored in part

by Powerade.

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@MrSkipBayless LeBron drinks Powerade? MJ drunk Gatorade.

There’s why LeBron isn’t clutch...

About

3.3 million likes

Random Facts

Powerade is the official sports drink of FIFA World Cup Brasil The page is Facebook verified but is labeled as the “Official Fan Page”

Touch Points

Game Changer About

507,000 likes

Show Me My Opponent

At 507,000 likes, the Propel Facebook page has a significantly lower amount of likes than the Gatorade and Powerade pages. However, Propel is more of a competitor to Gatorade on the Facebook platform than Powerade is.

Competition Strategy

Propel posts mainly photos, and it does so about once per day. Propel is positioned as a flavored fitness drink for the average person, and to reflect that positioning, its Facebook posts feature the product with relaxed fitness users in alternative workout areas including cycling, yoga and marathons.

Instead of pushing a competitive theme, Propel focuses on ordinary people and the idea of staying fit. While Gatorade may post an image of two teams competing on a football field, Propel shows friends helping each other with yoga positions in a gym or in a similar laid-back atmosphere.

We Love Our Fans

Taking heed to our previous recommendations for Gatorade, Propel creates an open space for consumers to connect. Propel frequently posts questions to the public, seeking to learn their favorite flavor, how many miles they are running, and what their weekend workout plan consists of. Although Propel poses questions to the public on Facebook, it does not interact one-on-one with individuals.

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Twitter

Gatorade Is a Twitter Champion

More than on any of its other social media sites, Gatorade is really an interactive machine on Twitter. Here are the basics: Gatorade has about a quarter of a million followers on Twitter and counting.

The closest competitor is Vitaminwater with 122K followers.

But Even Gatorade Could Do Some More Push-Ups

About

Tweets: 12.5 K Following: 7,437 Followers: 232 K

Despite Gatorade’s impeccable interaction record, there is one area where it could improve: consistency.

Many of Gatorade’s tweets are motivational quotes, and while these posts speak the language of the consumer, they seem like ‘filler posts.’

Gatorade’s posts that include pictures and graphics receive far more retweets and favorites.

Gatorade might consider using more imagery in its posts.

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Gatorade’s interactions with its followers are unlike many in the corporate arena. Gatorade ‘favorites’ an extraordinary number of mentions by its fans and responds to many of them as well.

On March 14, 2014 alone, Gatorade favorited 22 fan mentions and responded to six of them.

That rate of response may require constant monitoring, but it makes the Gatorade brand seem tangible and accessible. The Mission Control system that Gatorade uses really makes a substantial difference in interactions.

Gatorade interacts with its followers more consistently on Twitter than any of its competitors.

Teamwork At Its Finest

Gatorade’s Twitter account links to its Facebook, Tumblr, and other social media accounts, creating a seamless experience for its audience.

Touch Points

Knocking Out the Competition

Inspired Recreational Competitors Will Love This Gatorade incorporates college mascots and teams into its Twitter posts. Gatorade should increase this activity to engage college-aged consumers.

Gatorade averages about one post to Twitter per day, and this number is about average among its competitors. This seems like a good number for Gatorade to maintain, as it isn’t overwhelming for followers but is enough content to keep the target engaged.

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Instagram

About Summary of Content

Gatorade posts on Instagram once a day, often including motivational or inspirational messages to encourage its the followers. Similar to its other touch points, Gatorade incorporates timely, relevant sporting events into its Instagram posts and makes regular use of the #WinFromWithin, #TransformationTuesday and #ThrowbackThursday hashtags. Gatorade excels at including a variety of sports in its Instagram photos, including football, basketball, soccer, wrestling, swimming, tennis, running, lacrosse, hockey and more.

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511 posts 204,275 followers

Interactions

Each post receives an average of 10,000 likes, with between 25 and 100 comments. Gatorade rarely interacts with its followers, but when it does respond to comments, it usually includes a link to the Gatorade website.

Soaring Past the Competition

Overall, Gatorade excels on Instagram and should continue its current practices of posting regularly, featuring a wide variety of sports and posting timely and relevant content. To improve relationships with followers, Gatorade should make a larger effort to speak directly with consumers.

Touch Points

Interactions Summary of Content

Powerade focuses mainly on basketball in its Instagram posts, which feature many black and white photos and graphics with blue accents.

Powerade has recently been posting several graphics as the “proud sponsor” of various universities. In the past, Powerade made regular use of the #PowerThrough hashtag and featured Lebron James in as many photos as possible. Last summer, Powerade launched the #ShowUsYourStadium campaign in which they encouraged athletes to show Powerade where they are perfecting their game to win some cool prizes.

Each post receives an average of 150 likes and 3 comments, which is far less than Gatorade.

Powerade does not respond directly to individual users.

@Gatorade 48 years later and we’re still at the top of our game. #TransformationTuesday

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Website Summary of Content

Gatorade’s website takes its complicated product line and breaks it down into three very simple categories: prime, perform and recover.

The website also makes it easy for Inspired Recreational Competitors to find these products in stores near them.

Website checklist:

Visually appealing Interactive Easily navigable Linked to social media accounts

Gatorade.com expands upon what is seen on Gatorade’s social media accounts by elaborating on its videos, tweets and athlete endorsers.

Moving Towards the Goal

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Although Inspired Recreational Competitors are not utilizing Gatorade.com as much as other audiences, they are coming to the site for products’ nutritional information and to learn how the products will affect their active lifestyles.

Gatorade.com has a more simple and lighter layout compared to the competitors. Gatorade sets itself apart from the competiton by keeping a clear way for consumers to learn more about the different product lines and utilizing thier athlete endorsements via video and comics A more distinct, bold color scheme could benefit Gatorade, because its current color scheme is very close to that of Powerade and Muscle Milk.

Touch Points

Powerade

Powerade’s website focuses a lot on the brand’s athlete endorsements. Whether it is a funny commercial featuring Lebron James or a quote from Derrick Rose, Powerade plays up these hard working athletes throughout the entire site. Much like Gatorade.com, Powerade.com uses a lot of dark colors with a pop of blue.

Vitaminwater

Vitaminwater’s website focuses on its recent “Make Boring Brilliant” campaign. This website does not focus particularly on the benefits of Vitaminwater; rather it tries to position the brand as fun and lively.

Propel

Propel’s website is very clean. The colors and images are very sleek and not eye-catching. Its website is entirely product-focused and does not include much extra material for the viewer besides the basics of the product.

Muscle Milk

Much like Gatorade and Powerade, MuscleMilk.com is a very cleancut website that utilizes the brand’s athlete endorsements. Muscle Milk, like Gatorade and Powerade, uses a darker color scheme on its website compared to Propel and most water brands.

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YouTube

Summary of Content

Gatorade’s YouTube account has over 10,000 subscribers and 7.5 million individual views.

The 200+ videos offer a wide assortment of commercials and athlete endorsements. These can range from amateur athletes playing at recreational levels to tips from Peyton Manning on how to stay healthy. A recently featured video, “Gatorade Locker Room Makeover with Dwayne Wade,” received over 1.3 million views.

The “Everything to Prove” mini-series provides a collection of videos that focus on testimonies from professional athletes.

The channel’s most popular videos feature celebrity athletes like Dwayne Wade, Peyton Manning, Kevin Durant, RGIII and Julio Jones.

The channel features 8 sub-channels for geographically or athletically diverse content, such as Gatorade UK and Gatorade BMX.

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Interaction

Gatorade has linked dozens of user generated videos and athlete bios to connect with its subscribers. However, there is very little interaction between the account and its viewers besides these “liked” videos. Gatorade will comment on some videos, posting fun and encouraging responses to its viewers.

Recommendations

Gatorade can improve in the following areas to become more effective in reaching Inspired Recreational Competitors: Diversifying the featured sports, as football and basketball dominate Gatorade’s video content.

Broadcasting content from non-professional athletes and featuring more women.

Posting videos more regularly.

Summary of Content

Gatorade’s Tumblr page has approximately 12 posts that average 20 notes per post. Its content is highly focused on their endorsed football and basketball athletes including JJ Watts and Dwayne Wade. The design of the site is very sleek, linking all of its posts to its other social media websites as well as featuring an in-page search bar and updates from their instagram account. It also has an “about� page explaining that the site is used for giving users an exclusive look into Gatorade.

Touch Points

Tumblr

Recommendations

In order for Gatorade to break into the Tumblr community, it is going to have to focus on using a more converstaional tone in its posts.

Additionally, Gatorade is going to have to post a signifcant amount more than what it already does. Irregular posting leads to drops in followers on Tumblr far quicker than on any other social network. In order to connect with Inspired Recreational Competitors on Tumblr, Gatorade will have to vary the type of content it posts as well as really focus on user engagement.

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Google+

Summary of Content

On Google+, Gatorade has 16 people in its circle, including sports teams and sports associations such as the Miami Heat, Carolina Panthers, ESPN, NFL and NBA, while 1,118 users have Gatorade in their personal Google+ circle. Content includes photos of professional athletes and athletic materials, as well as photos promoting Gatorade in multiple countries.

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Recommendations

Gatorade needs to take advantage of the special features Google+ offers instead of updating the page as yet another news feed. Unique features of Google+ include live chats that users can view or join, location indicators and a strong sense of an intimate community. Google+ is popular with an older, more professional crowd who utilizes it for conference calls and in addition to their personal Gmail accounts. Google+ is similar to other social platforms in that users can +1, share, respond to others and post their own content. Gatorade could use Google+ to act as a way to feature a specific type of content, such as its current and past campaign ads.

Touch Points

Powerade

Powerade currently has two active Google+ accounts. The “POWERADE” account has 8,016 views and is in 245 circles. This account focuses on Powerade ION 4 and has only one video, which was posted in 2012. This account is linked to Powerade’s official Twitter and Facebook profiles, as well as its website.

The “Powerade” account has 1,090 views and 15 followers and is also linked to Powerade’s official website, Twitter and Facebook. This account made a strategic move to link the Powerade YouTube videos directly to the video section of the Google+ account. This way, followers get an automatic update in their Google+ feed, and clicking the video takes them to Powerade’s official YouTube page.

Vitaminwater

Vitaminwater has 698 followers and 15,570 views. The page has a variety of photos and diagrams posted.

However the last post was also in 2012.

Vitaminwater used to have a good amount of monthly posts but no longer utilizes the page.

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SEO/SEM

Search

Gatorade constantly has paid search ads appear when searching for the product, even though Gatorade is top ranked through search engine optimization efforts.

The term “Gatorade” provides an overwhelming amount of traffic for Gatorade. However, “sports drinks” and “non-carbonated beverage” do not make the list. Based on this information, one can infer that the Gatorade brand is bigger than the category of drinks in which it is often grouped.

Search Facts

College kids use Google search to find almost all information they are looking for.

Inspired Recreational Competitors are not good at refined Google searches.

Inspired Recreational Competitors often feel “anxious” or “confused” when searching online.

These are the top keywords when searching Gatorade’s website:

Moving Toward the Goal

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Gatorade should attempt to move its digital search efforts towards words that are not brandrelated in order to dominate the entire product category. This will help Inspired Recreational Competitors who are not searching for brandspecific sports drinks find Gatorade as a solution much quicker than a competing brand.

Similarly to Gatorade, Powerade’s top keywords are related to the brand and not the product category.

Touch Points

Powerade

Propel

Propel’s top keywords are also brand-specific.

Although Propel uses PropelZero.com as its domain, if Inspired Recreational Competitors just search the word “Propel” a paid search ad will appear in the No. 1 spot.

Vitaminwater

Vitaminwater does not have paid search ads appear when searching for brand-specific products. A lot of information about Energy Brands, also known as Glaceau, appears. This may be confusing for the consumer that does not know that Coca-Cola owns Energy Brand, who owns Vitaminwater.

Muscle Milk

Muscle Milk has a paid search ad through Amazon. This is for buying Muscle Milk through Cytosport, the owner of Muscle Milk. Muscle Milk’s product-specific website comes up naturally through search engine optimization.

“Cytospork”, “Muscle Milk” and specific Muscle Milk products are the most searched keywords for this competitor.

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Mobile Breaking a Sweat On the Run Gatorade’s Break a Sweat Record app for mobile helps runners track their run times and motivates them to beat their fiercest competitors: themselves. This app is only available in Spanish.

Bolt!

Previously, Gatorade sponsored a game app for kids called “Bolt!” in which the gamer follows Usain Bolt through running courses, picking up Gatorade tokens along the way to refuel during his race to the finish line. This app is no longer available for download.

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@Darrenrovell Gatorade wins award for mobile game that teaches kids that water is the enemy

Going Mobile in the UK

Gatorade currently has a mobile store available in the UK for smartphones.

Refining Mobile Performance

Gatorade does not currently have any mobile or tablet apps available in the United States that are in English. However, because Gatorade participates on so many social platforms that are also mobile, it seems like Gatorade is constantly ‘with’ its target regardless of whether it is via a Gatorade-created app or a social app. If the goal is to interact with the Inspired Recreational Competitiors, then we feel that Gatorade has a much better chance of doing that via a mobile social platform than via an app that Gatorade creates.

Miscommunication on the Field

While the vast majority of consumers are aware of the Gatorade brand name, their knowledge of the science behind the product is lacking substantially.

Gatorade faces a large barrier when it comes to consumers really understanding how the product works and what it does for the body during rigorous physical activity. Gatorade’s brand name is extremely well-known around the world, but the level of detailed product knowledge is not nearly as widespread. Gatorade has a very large opportunity to educate consumers about what the content of the Gatorade drink does for the body.

On the Path to Success

The brand has already tapped into this opportunity through the Science of G campaign on its website, but there are definitely ways that Gatorade can improve. The brand should consider looking into: Educating consumers via underutilized touch points such as email, Pinterest, and mobile Focusing on Inspired Recreational.

Competitors and explaining how they can benefit from the nutrients in Gatorade in their active yet practical lifestyle.

Inviting consumers to ask questions about the product either by creating a new forum or by opening up an existing touch point for two-way interaction.

Specifically addressing, calling out and debunking commonly accepted myths about Gatorade and what its nutrients do for the body in existing touch points.

Touch Points

Word of Mouth

Packed With Sugar

When it comes to word of mouth, it is vital that consumers are knowledgeable about the Gatorade product. One of the main objections to Gatorade is that many consumers believe that it is too sugary.

If the brand takes this opportunity to educate consumers about how the body uses that sugar during exercise, the chatter about Gatorade can potentially become more positive and well-informed.

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Native Advertising Pulsing Heartbeats and Headphone Beats

Gatorade was a pioneer in the emerging realm of native advertising. With Pandora, Gatorade created three workout stations meant to help athletes wake up, workout and cool down. This was a great way for Gatorade to offer a complimentary product to consumers that perfectly matched the strategy of its message, using its Prime, Perform, and Recover product lines as inspiration. These stations were created in 2012 and more than 485,000 stations were added by listeners.

Expertise Driven Advertising

Gatorade is truly an expert at what it does. Gatorade is the most researched beverage for athletes, and the Gatorade Sports Science Institute is considered an authority on athlete hydration and nutrition.

Gatorade could benefit from more native ads in which it displays its expertise on these topics. It would be a very natural way for Gatorade to incorporate their vast knowledge about sports hydration into the every day lives of Inspired Recreational Competitors. Gatorade might consider looking specifically at optimizing this channel for the Science of G campaign.

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@USARugby Guess what sport made into the latest @Gatorade commercial? #rugby #WorkForIt

Summary of Content

The Gatorade Vimeo account currently has remarkably stagnant activity, with 42 videos posted. Most of these videos are installations of the “Everything to Prove” series (also featured on YouTube), which were posted over one year ago.

This mini-series, with its videos highlighting professional football players on and off the field, dominates the content on Gatorade’s Vimeo account. The series is presented in ten “Acts,” with each act hosting two episodes, as well as some behind-the-scenes content. The firstperson accounts of Gatorade’s benefits can be especially intriguing for young athletes in the following ways: The video featured some big-name NFL players: Trent Richardson, Matt Kalil, Robert Griffin III, Melvin Ingram, Andrew Luck and Dwayne Allen.

The players spoke of their own experiences and struggles, both on and off the field.

Gatorade is regularly cited as a product that can assist in overcoming these struggles.

The videos specifically tie in the product with athletes fueling their bodies before, during and after workouts.

Appropriate visuals, statistics and anecdotes are used to tell the whole story.

Pull-quotes featured from the videos: “You gotta look at your body as a new BMW. How long do you want your body to last? Are you going to put the regular gas in there or are you going to put the premium gas in there?...I want to put the best gas into my body.” - Trent Richardson, Indianapolis Colts

Touch Points

Vimeo

“It’s pretty interesting to see how carbohydrates help you. It’s gonna be important that I take care of my body, make sure that I’m drinking a lot of fluids, just to be sure I’m not cramping.” - Randy Bullock, Houston Texans

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Missing Touch Points Vine

Although Gatorade has an official Vine account, the brand has posted zero videos. With over 1,600 followers, the verified account could be a great opportunity for Gatorade to showcase the skills and abilities of its athlete sponsors, using 6 second videos with a Gatorade bottle or logo as a subtle plug.

Pinterest

Gatorade has 958 followers and one #WinFromWithin board with no pins.

The majority of the Gatorade content on Pinterest is consumer generated.

Boards that come up under the Gatorade search are personal boards from users, and they typically consist of eye-catching Gatorade ads, unique in-store displays and images of the product over time.

Pinterest has potential to be a beneficial touch point for Gatorade. Through the use of infographics, which have a high re-pin rate, Gatorade can leverage Pinterest to briefly educate Inspired Recreational Competitors about the Science of G. Gatorade can also use Pinterest to circulate opportunities for Gatorade to benefit users, including workout regimens or specific sports tips. Boards can also be used to archive past and current campaign ads.

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In terms of display ads, Gatorade is lacking in appearance compared to its competitors. Although it is vaguely represented on a limited number of National Hockey League ads, Gatorade has not released any display ads since the end of 2013.

Touch Points

Display Ads

Gatorade did a display ad blast during the month of August for the #WinFromWithin campaign. This included a number of ads that focused on the bottle design portion of thecampaign.

Display ads are a great way to connect with Inspired Recreational Competitors while they are browsing their favorite website.

Gatorade can use display advertising in order to stay at the top of the consumer’s mind.

Propel and Vitaminwater are not exactly threats in this area, but Powerade and Muscle Milk are delivering eye-catching display ads with inspirational images and coupon offers on a daily basis .

Email

Gatorade does not currently participate in direct email marketing. Because Gatorade is not purchased online (except through Amazon), it would be hard to work email marketing into the Win From Within campaign. Gatorade could use email in the future, however, because Inspired Recreational Competitors use email regularly throughout the day, and Gatorade’s competitors are not currently using this outlet.

However, if Gatorade chose to utilize email marketing, Gatorade would need to develop a campaign that does not become spam mail to Inspired Recreational Competitors because they receive multiple emails a day from retail companies.

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Recommendations

Recommendations Focus on more relatable settings for the Inspired Recreational Competitor.

For example, a pick-up game of basketball is more likely to relate to our target than a state championship basketball game or a professional game. Gatorade is great at inspiring our target through traditional touch points; however, such intense messaging does not work on an interactive platform.

Currently, Gatorade focuses content around commands such as, “Sweat. Don’t Regret.” or “Do work.”

The Inspired Recreational Competitor, however, is looking more for a conversation with a friend or teammate on social media rather than with a coach.

Diversify who is represented in its messaging.

Gatorade should feature more non-traditional sports, females and individuals of other races in its messaging. Although Gatorade makes an effort to include women and some non-traditional sports in its content, there is a large opportunity to engage these consumers through more targeted messaging. For example, current posts by Gatorade featuring non-traditional sports receive just as much if not slightly more interaction online because consumers who engage in these sports are excited to see a big-name brand recognizing them.

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Sources

Sources

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