Feel free to structure your responses using bullet points instead of paragraph form – it’s up to you.
Instructions:
Please read three articles from Bloomberg Business Week:
– “Bartender, I’ll have a G&T. Hold the gin,” by Thomas Buckley (Dec. 11th, 2017)
– “The no-buzz beer boom,” by Thomas Buckley (Apr. 22nd, 2019)
– “Craft beer for nondrinkers, by Tony Rehagen (Aug. 19th, 2019)
In maximum 800 words (shorter is acceptable and encouraged), please address the following two questions.
1. According to the articles, non-alcoholic (NA) beverages are a growing sector of the beverage industry, with new firms emerging to compete with established firms to offer products like NA beer and NA gin. Anheuser-Busch, for example, forecasts that in a few years 20% of their sales volume will come from NA products!
Demand is increasing for non-alcoholic beverages, but the question is why. The articles don’t focus on this issue, but they suggest different perceptions of non-alcoholic beverages or of healthy living in general driving this revolution. For question 1, please identify two perceptions of non-alcoholic beverages or of healthy living in general that might explain why demand for non-alcoholic beverages is increasing. Be sure to (a) describe the perception, and (b) speculate how it might be increasing demand for non-alcoholic beverages.
2. Now, imagine that you are a brand manager for a hypothetical non-alcoholic beverage firm (I don’t care what kind or type of beverage you produce…you decide, and feel free to be creative!). Next, pick one of the two perceptions you identified in question #1 above. Finally, develop one consumer-targeted ad campaign for your brand, addressing the perception and communicating why or how your brand addresses this perception.
A successful ad campaign includes three elements (see attached samples for inspiration):
– an audience: Identify a clear and distinguishable target market, who you think will respond favorably to your value proposition.
– content: Describe what the ad looks like. Who/what is featured? What is being said within the ad? Your content should communicate a clear position for your brand relative to the perception you identified above. For example, if one of the perceptions is that non-alcoholic drinking is better for the environment (this was not a perception described in the articles), then your ad should clearly communicate how your brand solves the problem of protecting the environment.
– channels: Identify at least three means of distributing your message. Be specific. Don’t say “social media.” Tell me the specific social media platform(s). Don’t say “television.” Tell me the specific television station(s). The more specific, the better. It is okay to list four completely different media channels, if you plan to spread your message far and wide. It is also okay to list three platforms from within one media category (e.g., three different magazines). IMPORTANT: Justify all your decisions here; tell me exactly why you chose the media channels you chose. (Note: you should assume that you have a modest but realistic budget. For example, television is realistic. Super Bowl ads are not.)
Your final submission will be graded for quality on the following elements: totals
– question 1: did the student identify two perceptions of NA beverages or drinking? 10%
– question 1: did the student explain how these perceptions might relate to increased demand? 20%
– question 2: did the student identify a reasonable target audience? 10%
– question 2: is the content of the ad campaign sound and reasonable? 40%
– question 2: are the media channels reasonably justified to ensure effective promotion? 20%
100%