Coca-Cola is targeting just about everybody

An item appeared in one of the UK marketing magazines that states that Coca-Cola is targeting the emerging middle classes, ageing customers and younger, more environmentally-conscious consumers in a bid to double its revenue by 2020.

It is would be more informative to say the groups that Coca-Cola is not targeting.

You have to give it to the brand, it’s cannot be accused of “aiming too low” when it wants double the daily servings to over three billion and be the ‘number 1’ non-alcoholic ready-to-drink brand in every market and every category within a decade.

The ceo says that there will be a renewed focus on older, wealthier consumers: “To target aging and affluent consumer globally, we are actively exploring new ingredients, new functionality and new occasions."

This all sounds exciting stuff. It will be interesting to see how the aspirations translate into product and advertising. Dick Stroud

What a future - prunes, mincemeat, denture cleaners and adult incontinence

The Nielsen Company’s Homescan consumer facts mid 2009 report contain the most depressing fact I have read in ages. Forget the horrors of the recession or the impending doom of cataclysmic climate change. Forget the threat of Pakistan descending into chaos. Forget the trillions of debt owed by the bankrupt UK.

This fact trumps the lot. There seems to be a high correlation between the food-beverage and general merchandise items that senior (65+) couples buy, and the ones that empty nest couples (50+) buy. This suggests that people start to acquire these tastes as long as 10 to 15 years before they collect their pension.

Look at the list. Good grief is this what my supermarket trolley will (is) containing? What hope? Dick Stroud

Some things about food and age groups

The Center for Culinary Development and Packaged Facts has done a survey of the generational differences in the comfort food we eat. Overall, we all seem to stuff our face with the same sort of stuff but there are a few subtle differences, things like:

Boomers prefer "classic" comfort foods such as braised meats, casseroles and ice cream, but many also enjoy gourmet choices such as high-quality dark chocolate and fancy cheeses and crave foods from their childhoods such as peanut butter, popcorn, foods made with canned tuna fish, chicken noodle soup and hot oatmeal.

Gen Xers are more accustomed to commercial fare, and crave fast food (especially hamburgers) and burritos. They cite branded foods more often than the other generations, including favourite packaged cookies, ice creams, candies and snacks.

Gen Yers, in contrast to other cohorts, also include healthier foods, including sushi and fruits, among their favourite comfort foods. They are less inclined than Gen X to associate specific brands with comfort foods.

It will cost you lots of dollars if you want the details of the study but I guess if comfort food is your busienss it is worth the money. However, I reckon there are significant differences between the US and Europe. Dick Stroud

The impact of ageing on food preferences

A recent study from Information Resources (IRI), Baby Boomers II: Preparing for the Upcoming Wave of Aging Shopper Growth provides some interesting insights into how the food category and channel preferences change by age. You can download a comprehensive overview of the study, but if you want the whole thing, you will need your credit card.

An example of a drink preference, which alters with physiological ageing is carbonated beverages, that IRI claim older people develop an aversion to as they age (i.e. They drink less beer and more wine/liquor into their 60s and 70s). Same goes for less soft drinks and more coffee. As for store choice: Boomers in their 60s shop more often and spend a higher proportion of their dollars in smaller formats such as drug and dollar stores.

The chart shows the variation on indexing of beverage categories by the age of the head of the household.

What was not clear to me, from the limited information available about this study, was the real impact of ageing and age cohort (i.e. will the under indexing of the 35-44 year old group for wine continue as they age). I also wonder the extent to which these age category differences are swamped by lifestyle. Dick Stroud

Inspirational nuts

There is an extradinary article in Brandweek about a new snack food that has been launched by Frito-Lay call True North that is aimed at boomers.

Frito-Lay thinks it can be 'inspirational' and is positioning its new nut-based, Boomer-targeted snack line, True North as "a truly inspired natural nut snack." The marketing director of True North said: "We're defining it as a purpose in life or a calling," she said of the brand's name. "Our calling was to bring inspiration to the nut category."

Cripes. ‘Inspiration’ from a bag of nuts that will bring passion in life and lead to extraordinary things. Have any of my American friends crunched their way through a packet of True North and feel inspired to tell us about the experience? Dick Stroud

Motivations to stay healthy

The annual research conducted by The Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) among US Boomers provides some interesting insights into why Americans (well some Americans) are concerned about their health.

The main health worries are the need to lose weight (40%), high blood pressure (35%), joint pain (30%) and high cholesterol (29%).

The above chart shows the factors motivating this group to try and stay healthy.

When you think that each of these factors represents billions of dollars of consumer spend, it is worth taking seriously. Dick Stroud

The environmentally aware or nationalistic 50-plus?

The over 50s seem to be more environmentally savvy than their younger counterparts, with a greater understanding of seasonality and propensity to “buy British”. These conclusions come from a research study conducted by BMRB.

It looks like 55% of 25-34s are aware of the concept of food miles compared with 72% of over 50s. 49% of 25-34s regularly or always buy food grown in Britain, compared with 66% among the over 50s.

I think this research is possibly drawing false conclusions, although I cannot sure without seeing the research questionnaire. I think the propensity of the 50-plus to “Buy British” has far more to do with supporting British (often English) farmers than concern about food miles and the ozone layer.

It would be interesting to hear from anybody who was involved in this research to know if these motivations were excluded from the results – I bet my boots they were not. Dick Stroud

How to delight women, gays and baby boomers

If you don’t, you should subscribe to the newsletter from Trendwatching, which is an opinionated consumer trends firm that takes a global view on what is driving consumer behaviour and most importantly consumer spending. I really like its style and the scope of its coverage – like the comment about the photo. Yes, we know these pictures are cheesy.

This month’s edition has the eye catching title of “How to delight women, gays and baby boomers”.

It is has some good examples of what is going on with the boomer consumers and the products that are tempting them in the categories of dating, health, travel, homes and housing plus another half a dozen product groups. Definitely worth a look.

What it doesn’t do – I suspect because of space problems – is to look at the interaction of these three groups. Now that is really interesting and a subject I am going to blog a lot more about. Dick Stroud

50-plus fitness - fantasy or fact?

Fitness First, claims to be the largest gym, health and fitness club group in the world, has done a survey (8,000 respondents)

Over 93% of the over-50s claim to ate healthily, 84% said they were careful about alcohol consumption and three-quarters avoided additives in food. A total of 55% were content with their body shape and nearly four in five had a good work/life balance.

For the 18-29 year old group, 79% claimed they ate sensibly and 69% said they drank in moderation.

Surprisingly 62% were satisfied with their physique but just over two-thirds of this group were happy with work/life balance.

I tend to take all of these surveys with at large pinch of salt and I wouldn’t put too much store in the absolute numbers. But, I think it shows that there is a huge market for the health-aware sector of the 50-plus. The other explanation is that the over-50s are better liars, especially about their drinking habits! Dick Stroud

Travel and cookery get the video habit

This is an off-subject blog posting about video. At the beginning of 2007 I suddenly became aware that the future moved. I think video-free web sites will soon start to look the same way that animated GIF's appear to us today.

Here are a three examples of companies using video to bring life (and value) to their Web activities.

Lonely Planet has launched a brand new online channel featuring the best travel videos from around the world. This is a vertical YouTube for travel. You can upload and watch videos created by Lonely Planet as well as other travelers. Users can rate each video, share them with friends and create playlists and friend groups. All good Web 2.0 stuff.

Ocado is a rapidly growing home delivery grocery service. Instead of boring old recipes go and look at how to prepare the meal and with a push of the button add all of the ingredients to your shopping basket. Now that is smart marketing.

The dreaded Martha Stewart has just launched her new web site that is dripping with video.

No video no credible web presence - what do you think - is this the message of 2007? Dick Stroud

Boomer food

A Reuter’s press release claims that: “Food manufacturers and retailers are recognizing that they need to go after aging U.S. baby boomers who have money to spend and time to shop”.

Some of the companies who are turning their marketing budgets on the 50-plus are:

Kraft - who calls consumers 50 years and older the "liberated boomers." (give me a break) has products such as a South Beach Diet line and Crystal Light drinks and of course the company's mainstay products such as macaroni and cheese. (Sounds as appetizing as a baked brick). Soon to hit the supermarket shelves will be its Bistro Deluxe line ("a sophisticated Mac & Cheese experience with unique ingredients that appeal to an adult palate"). This makes the brick sound appetizing.

Unilever - has its restaurant-style line, Bertolli Dinner for Two

Sara Lee - hits the floor running with its ready-to-eat meals such as Jimmy Dean sausage sandwiches and skillet meals.

Wild Oats Markets - is a company that thinks it is well placed to cater for the boomer with its range of natural and organic foods, also has gluten-free, sugar-free and diabetic products.

Ken Dychtwald (“the man”) is much quoted in the press release. Why do I think he hasn’t been trying the delights of a skillet meal or a ‘sophisticated’ Mac & Cheese experience, washed down with a mug of Crystal Light.

This food sounds dreadful. I can only assume that these global food giants have concluded that one of the physiological effects of aging is the complete loss of taste and smell. Dick Stroud