From Local to Global Branding

8/2/2019 From Local to Global Branding

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From Local to Global BrandingA Coca-Cola Case Study

Eric Hogue Vice President, Millward Brown

Neil Mathis Director of Client Services, Millward Brown

Anne McAllester Director, Knowledge and Insights, The Coca-Cola Company


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has succeeded with a variety of positionings around

the world. Launched in the United States in 1992,

Powerade is now sold in 80 countries. Powerade is

the fastest growing major sports drink brand globally,

and is one of fourteen billion dollar brands from The

Coca-Cola Company.

Because of Powerade's association with high-profile

international sporting events such as the Olympics

and FIFA World Cup, the establishment of a unified

global positioning is critical. By adopting a consistent

brand vision, Powerade will be able to speak to

consumers around the world in a consistent voice

while leveraging financial efficiencies with agencies

and global media outlets.

THE CHALLENGE OF RATIONALIZING POSITIONING

AROUND THE WORLD

Like most global companies, The Coca-Cola Company

(TCCC) has historically drawn on in-market experience,

competitive review, and strategic rationale to inform its

brand positioning in a region. This positioning is then

BACKGROUND: THE NATURE OF GLOBAL BRANDS

Hundreds of brands around the world could be described as "global," and hundreds more aspire to the same

status. But unfortunately for those aspiring global players, there is no one prescriptive formula for success on the

world stage. The requirements vary according to a myriad of factors, most of which ultimately boil down to the

nature of an individual brand or product category and the way that brand is perceived in new markets comparedto the brand's country of origin. Culture, economic circumstances and government regulation all vary by country

and all exert influence on the evolution of a brand, especially when a brand is managed locally rather than

globally (that is, out of a centralized or corporate office).

As a result, a global brand may manifest itself differently in different parts of the world. The packaging, the

product formulation, the advertising, and sometimes (though rarely these days) even the name might vary. One

branding factor has taken on increased significance as the world simultaneously grows larger for brands (as new

markets open) and smaller for consumers (as new technology allows news and entertainment to cross borders in

real time). That factor is the brand's positioning.

POSITIONING OF GLOBAL BRANDS

Many well-known and successful brands have found

themselves using multiple positionings around the

world. This may occur for a number of reasons. An

entrenched local competitor may already occupy

the position that the global brand staked out in

its home country, or the global brand may have

deliberately chosen a different positioning to takeadvantage of conditions in a new market. Many

brands can continue to thrive without rationalizing

those diverse positionings, but advantages may exist

for brands that do tackle the issue. For example, a

global positioning facilitates the implementation of a

global communications strategy, even if customization

and adaptation is needed for specific markets. A

global brand can also provide a platform to increase

scale, synergy, and productivity across markets byenabling efficiencies in manufacturing, operations,

supply chains, communication across different media

channels, and in-store execution materials.

Powerade, the sports drink of The Coca-Cola

Company (TCCC), is an example of a brand that

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integrated with the brand's goals and targeting in each

cultural and competitive context to establish a brand

vision. When considering a move towards a consistent

global brand vision, the challenge in this approach

is that it doesn't allow for accurate cross-market

comparisons of consumer appeal, volume potential,

and risk. This exacerbates a problem TCCC shares with

other global companies: the difficulty of convincing

local managements to change from a local positioning

that has proven successful.

Without the facts and rigor provided by the

quantitative measurements that can address local

concerns about the risk of changing, it can be hard to

align markets behind a singular approach.

A NEW APPROACH

TCCC hoped that by combining quantitative research

with strategic rationale, market experience, and

qualitative learning, they would bring greater precision,

rigor, and insight to this process, thus facilitating

consensus across markets and reducing the overall

risk involved in global repositioning. TCCC asked

Millward Brown to collaborate in developing such an

approach. The research model that resulted linked

the art of position creation with the science of

a rigorous volume-based outcome. This enabled

TCCC to review the findings across markets and

align a global positioning that conveyed a consistent

vision for the brand but also allowed for the local

flexibility needed to assure the relevance of in-market

messaging and other marketing activities.

The results of this research program provided

compelling quantitative evidence that has fostered

consensus across markets and increased confidence

in Powerades global positioning strategy. The research

also identified ways in which the positioning could be

optimized, both overall and for each market.

THE RESEARCH PROGRAM

After a review of best practices in leveraging

consumer opinion to inform effective positioning,

Millward Brown designed a two-stage approach. In

the first stage, respondents used an online forum to

report their motivations for participating in sports,

as well their current perceptions and sports activity

behaviors. They also provided their reactions to

different Powerade positioning concepts and the

extent to which these resonated with their sports

activity experiences. A score card from Stage 1

summarized each concept's appeal, uniqueness, fit

with the brand, and overall potential, as well as key

take-aways (messaging), likes, dislikes, associations,

and opportunities for improvement. This information

fueled efforts to prioritize and refine the concepts for

Stage 2 testing.

The positioning process begins with articulatingthe brand's goal and their target customer

GLOBALBRAND VISION

CORECUSTOMER

TARGET

MarketNorms

ALIGN WITHCULTURE

CATEGORYINSIGHT &

COMPETITION

BRAND GOAL

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Stage 2 examined the refined concepts through

multiple lenses including:

A monadic score card

An examination of how each concept

changed perceptions of the brand relative to

the competition

Diagnostic exercises that identified promising

shifts in brand attitudes and personality

A benefit statement trade-off exercise that

identified alternative bundles of benefits to

maximize the winning concept's potential

Incremental volume potential and source-of-

volume analysis

Both stages of the study were conducted in five

countries (the United States, Mexico, Great Britain,

Italy, and Australia) using online or face-to-face

interviewing depending on the country. The test

stimulus for Stage 1 involved a 100-to-150 word

concept with supporting visuals that described

various aspects of the sporting occasion, the needs

within the occasion, and the role of the beverage. For

Stage 2, the stimulus was again a 100-to-150 wordstatement, accompanied by a picture of the product.

Respondents for both stages of research were defined

as "sports active" and recruited based on criteria

provided by a preceding segmentation study.

STAGE 1: IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT WINNING

Ten concepts were tested among five different

segments of sports active consumers. The prioritysegment for analysis was the "True Sportsmen" group.

This group, which primarily consists of young males,

is the core target for the brand. True Sportsmen have

played sports all their lives and consider sport to be

a part of daily life. They enjoy sporting activity for the

social benefits it offers as well as the competition. This

group plays more sports than others we studied, and

its members are 50 percent more likely to consider

sports drinks as their regular drink during sporting

activity.

The response to the various concepts yielded one

critical insight. There was a general consensus across

groups and countries that too much emphasis has

been placed on winning in sports competition. Our

respondents indicated that they participated in sports

to challenge themselves and to continue to improve.

They enjoy competition, but these athletes reserve the

right to define winning for themselves.

STAGE 2: IT IS MOTIVATING TO PLAY AT YOUR BEST

Insights from Stage 1 were used to hone and craft a

smaller set of five concepts for further quantitativetesting and optimization. In addition to identifying

the most promising concepts, the results enabled a

flexible analysis of phrases and language to identify

a unique and compelling brand vision for Powerade

to move forward with on a global basis. The analysis

also enabled us to understand the contribution of

WHAT DID WE LEARN? While athleteswant to win, winning is not everything

We all have the right to try and to perform at

our best in spor ts to feel good about ourselves.

I am not a professional but I enjoy competing

against myself, setting challenges and struggling

to achieve them; I think this should be the basis

or philosophy of any sportsperson.

Even in sports where I have little ability, it's not

a question of feeling 'loose'. It's about tryi ng hard

to better my previous performances.

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specific benefits to incremental volume and elevate

the concepts to a higher level of performance.

CONCLUSION

The research did not point to a clear "winner" among

the concepts; no one concept outscored the others

consistently across countries. The strongest concepts,

however, all revolve around the globally resonant themeof "performing at your best" while being rooted in

persuasive benefits and reasons to believe that revolve

around hydration. Inclusive and not elitist, they appeal to

committed athletes who participate because of their love

of the game and their desire to stretch their own limits.

The insights gleaned from the research helped Powerade

to evolve their global brand vision to one that promises

to be effective across markets. But not only did the

research inform a global decision, market-level data is

available to aid individual markets in implementing the

position in the way that best fits the local culture and

competitive context.

The research program Millward Brown designed

harnessed the power of an interactive, qualitative

consumer-listening approach with quantitative research

to engage respondents with the rigor of advanced

analytics to predict results. We believe this approachpromises a new way forward for global positioning

research.

However, such an approach requires art as well as

science. Research will never be able to craft your

positioning for you; it must be based on a hypothesis of

what the brand should stand for. Further, while research

can point toward the most promising concept and

language, interpretation is required to develop the final

positioning. And finally, in developing and implementing

positioning, marketing can't go it alone. Support is

needed from all functions across the organization to

ensure that the idea is ultimately expressed through all

consumer touchpoints.

We also learned there is significant upsidevolume potential with new global positioning

Replacing the control benefit with a series of alternativetest benefits shows potential to drive additional

incremental volume

Lastly, much of the incremental volume is

sourced from outside the category

Sources of volume(% of post volume - % of pre volume)

Percent Find Benefit Appealing

Benefit Statements

-6.9

47

16 7

POWERADE incrementalvolume vs. (pre vs. post)*

Volume (ml) Change to Benefits

RemovingControl

AddTest 1

AddTest 2

AddTest 3

Remove Control

Add Test 3

Add Test 2

Add Test 1

-591

354

454

622

-7%

Tap water-8%

Bottled water

3%

Other sports drinks

12%

PowerAde

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AUTHOR BIOGRAPHIES

Eric Hogue, Vice President, Millward Brown

Eric is a senior strategist and marketing scientist at Millward Brown where he oversees strategic research for leading

clients and leads Millward Browns restaurant consultancy. His work includes brand positioning, new campaign

development, new product innovation and ROI/econometric modeling. Prior to Millward Brown, Eric was Director ofConsumer Insights for Brinker International (parent company for Chilis, Maggianos, Macaroni Grill, On The Border

and Corner Bakery) and held marketing research, product development and business strategy roles with Verizon

Communications. He holds and MBA from Vanderbilt University and BS from the University of Tennessee

Neil Mathis, Director of Client Services, Millward Brown

With over ten years of research experience, Neils primary focus is on developing research solutions to help

leading marketers build, grow, and manage their brands. His work includes advertising evaluation, new campaign

development, global brand positioning, and strategic planning for major global companies. Prior to joining Millward

Brown, Neil began his career with Nielsen consulting on sales forecasting, customer segmentation, and market

prioritization. During this time, Neil has worked closely with major clients across a number of industries including

consumer package goods, retail, restaurant, and telecommunications. He holds a BS from the Georgia Institute of

Technology.

Anne McAllester, Director Knowledge and Insights, The Coca-Cola Company

Anne has been part of the Corporate Knowledge and Insights community at The Coca-Cola Company for the last

15 years. During that time, Anne she been a key resource for consumer insights and understanding in the stil l

beverages, juice/juice drinks, new product, Health and Wellness, and kid targeted beverage areas. In the late 90's,

Anne initiated the Company's first global study on Juice Attitudes, Use, and Market Structure, and developed the

New Product Research Process tool, which was used to bring greater alignment across markets on New ProductResearch. Anne began working with the Powerade Team to define a Global Brand Growth Strategy as well as

a Global Positioning in 2008. This project involved using several new approaches and research techniques to

understand, define, and optimize the consumer opportunity, resulting in an aligned positioning approach across

markets. This new process for global positioning is now being used for other categories. Prior to joining TCCC,

Anne worked at The Frito-Lay Company and General Mills. Anne has an MBA from the Owen Graduate School of

Management at Vanderbilt University, and a BS from the University of Georgia.

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From Local to Global Branding

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