Monday, February 24, 2014

Ch. 4 - The Marketing Environment

Gatorade is aiming to serve those who are athletes, whether it be by playing the sport or working out, their goal is to keep people hydrated. It targets 13-28 because they are focusing on when people begin sports excessively up until the age of pro athletes who are preforming at their prime. Gatorade is able to target a younger market, in comparison to its competitors because of them being official drinks of a majority of the pro sports both national and international. This gives them the advantage in the market place. The strategy that Gatorade uses is this if pro athletes use the drinks, and are able to preform the way they are doing, Gatorade usually gets upper end athletes who are most popular. A way they show this is through commercials, unlike its competitors who you rarely see being advertised on television. Their product works so well that the athletes are able to 'sweat it out', which gives the illusion that it works, and the human body being made up mostly of water, Gatorade is water with a plus side, electrolytes.
Thanks to the success of the Florida Gators, Gatorade has been able to became the major sports drink globally. And because of this they promise to help improve performance. As long as there is sports, Gatorade should always have a place in this current market, as they are always improving what they have to fit different needs, this was done through the G series.

Monday, February 17, 2014

Ch. 3 - Ethics & Social Responsibility

Gatorade is committed to encouraging sports participation and fueling athletic performance through supporting many programs. These include Gatorade High School Player of the Year, Women's sports foundation, elite youth tournaments, countless running events, and Action Sports events. Through this they are able to share the benefits of Gatorade with millions of athletes around the globe.

Gatorade also gives discounts to High School teams in order to promote their goal of keeping all athletes hydrated and showing them they importance of remaining healthy.

Gatorade also joined with the NFL to educate athletes, parents, and coaches about heat-related illness and the importance of proper hydration and nutrition before, during and after games. They want to show that these problem are preventable if the right steps are taken to keep athletes healthy. Hydration is the first step in order to decrease they risk of heat illness.

Gatorade being apart of PepsiCo, they follow their ideals and strategies in regards to health and safety. PepsiCo feels that all of their products abide by their standards that they have set.

Monday, February 10, 2014

Ch. 2 - Strategic Planning for Competitive Advantage

There are many sports drinks out in the market today. Something that puts Gatorade above the rest is that is was one of the first of its kind. It received attention thanks to the success of the Florida Gators. Without this accomplishment the history of Gatorade may have taken another pathway. Gatorade being the official sports drink of the NFL and other major sports across the globe allows it to have a competitive advantage over their competitors which consist of Powerade and energy drinks such as Redbull and Monster.

The national attention that Gatorade gets, from commercials with popular athletes, to the coach being bathed in Gatorade after an important win. Gatorade has more than 40 years of evidence that shows that their product helps keep athletes hydrated and which allows them to perform at their highest levels.

Gatorade has even created the "G-series" which consists of "Prime, Preform, Recover." Gatorade believes that the prime part of their merchandise will give you the energy you need to start out with. Preform is taken while you are actively either working out or playing sports. And Recover is suppose to help your muscles by having protein in their product which the muscles strengthen.

If athletes drink this energy drink, it would be more likely for those who worship and idol these pro athletes to also want to drink and become more like their idols. This strategic plans works well with in this market which is so heavily dependent on advertisement and a huge sports fan base globally. As long as sports remain on this planet, Gatorade will be there, always finding new ways to help the average athlete not miss a beat. Gatorade is always encouraging kids to be active.