Rebranding a Struggling Consumer Product - Guinness - Essay Example

Introduction The company chosen for analysis is Diageo and the product chosen for revamping is Guinness. Guinness is a stout beer whose origin is in Ireland. The product used to be one of the best performing alcoholic drinks in the United Kingdom; however, over the past few years this has not been the case. (Ritson, 2007, par 4)There is a need to re-brand this product in order to create a turn around in performance (with special emphasis on Ireland). Marketing strategy for re-branding Guinness Product (new name, design, quality, packaging, positioning) Guinness needs to re-position itself as the beer of choice for the youth. The first step that can take towards that direction is by changing the name of the product it needs to called Guinness lite rather than just Guinness. Additionally, they also need to change the product content for this new name. The company can minimize on the darkness of the drink and its alcoholic strength. Many youth are drawn to lagers and other lighter beers. In order to capture this market, then the company should look for ways of engineering their product to suit that market preference. However, in order to maintain that older market, the company should still retain its older Guinness brand. In other words, there will be two offerings; the old Guinness brand and the new one. Since the company will be introducing a different brand, then they need to change their packaging. Consumer drinking habits have changed within the UK and in Ireland specifically. People are spending their time commuting and working and it has become increasingly necessary for alcohol manufacturers to consider selling their product conveniently in supermarkets. (O’Mahony, 2007, p 13) Diageo should re-package the new Guinness lite in a can. The can should have different colors from the old Guinness so that young people can see that they are actually buying a different product from their parents. This will go along way in making it convenient for the home consumer and the youth. The third and last aspect about Guinness’ positioning will be its Irish heritage. The beer will be tailored for the Young Ireland population. This is an element that will be communicated in the promotional, distributional and pricing strategies as seen below. Price (price point) In order to attract the younger consumer, Guinness lite’s pricing should be tailored to suit that category. Since most youth are not yet as financially stable as their older counterparts, then it will be necessary to place the product’s price at a consumer-friendly level. Promotion (advertising) Over the past five years, Guinness has been performing relatively well in foreign markets. However, the major problem is within the core market-Ireland. This aspect will be the centre piece of the promotional strategies. All avenues sought must communicate Guinness’ rich Irish heritage. A blog assessing Ire’s perception of Guinness found that most people think of Guinness as the most advertised brand and not a rich, Irish brand. The latter will be the main message conveyed in the company’s promotional strategy. The second element that will form part of the promotional strategy is an appeal to the younger audience. Statistics show that over eighty percent of Guinness drinkers fall within the 30-60 age groups. Part of the reason for this is that many youngsters are looking for something that will differentiate them from their parents. (Goodman, 2007, p 5) Consequently, they would not opt for a product that actually associates them with their parents as is the case with Guinness. This aspect of capturing a fresh consumer element will also form the basis of the campaign. As much as Guinness has been trying to make great advertisements, they have been missing the mark because they failed to capture the true essence of Guinness which is its Irish heritage. The only way which they can communicate this message effectively is through a relevant advertisement. (Kippen, 2008, p 59)The company should create an ad that resembles a documentary. The advertisement will have ten participants and an interviewer. The interviewer will look like a reporter and his/her task will be to ask people about the nature of their Guinness experience. These respondents will all look young and ‘hip’. Each respondent will be found in a different street, shopping mall, car park etc. The main idea is to make the setting appear as natural and as real as possible such that consumers may think that the advertisement was a recording of an actual survey. One of the respondents will describe Guinness lite’s creamy taste. Other respondents will describe the look of the can while others will talk about its Irish heritage. By using young actors and actresses in the ad, the advertisement will be capturing the new market segment of the younger market. However in order to bring in the Irish connection, all the locations chosen for the advertisement need to be dominant Irish locations. Place (distribution) Distribution channels can be an important marketing source if utilized properly. Guinness Lite should be a common product in supermarkets and other retail outlets. This represents a shift from the belief that Guinness is primarily a product that can only be drunk in bars. Many Irish drinkers associate Guinness with the common ‘pint’. However, Guinness lite should take a shift from this market segment; they need to make the product easily available to the home drinkers. It would be necessary for the company to consider retail chains and supermarkets as their primary distribution channels because drinking habits have changed. Additionally, the company can market their products in those distribution channels through posters.(Minnini, 2007, par 8) Conclusion The essay has examined a range of issues that need to instituted in order to revitalize the Guinness brand. First, the company should re-position themselves as the brand of choice for young consumers. However, since the focus is in Ireland, then the company’s promotional strategy should reflect its rich Irish heritage. These two issues are the core concepts that can get Guinness back on truck. Reference Goodman, M. (2007): Things look pretty black for Guinness, The Sunday Times, 24th June, p 5 Kippen, D. (2008): Ford Struggling to find big idea, Word Press Publishers, p 57-69 Minnini, T. (2007): Rejuvenating, Revitalizing and reformulating a struggling brand, retrieved from http://www.brandchannel.com/ accessed on 18th September 2008 O’Mahony, C. (2007): Guinness back in the black, The Sunday Business Post, 21st December, p 13 Ritson, M. (2007): when Brands loose their way: Guinness, retrieved from http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/ accessed on 18th September 2008 Read More