Brand Analysis By Lulu Yang
Introduction: The Smirnoff brand •
Smirnoff is a vodka brand owned and produced by British alcoholic beverages company, Diageo
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Founded in Moscow in 1860s by Pyotr Smirnov
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It is the number one selling vodka in the U.S.
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It is distributed in 130 countries
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It is produced in several countries countries including India, I ndia, Ireland, the U.K., the U.S., and Italy Smirnoff products include vodka, flavoured vodka, vodka, and malt beverages –
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Most well known are Smirnoff Red Label and Smirnoff Ice (which (whi ch spawned the drinking game called ‘icing’)
Smirnoff’ Smirnoff ’s target audience is young adults aged 21-34
Source: Smirnoff website
Why Smirnoff? •
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I chose this product because alcohol is very prevalent in college communities and I wanted wanted to learn more about my favourite type of alcohol (vodka) I also find alcoholic beverage beverage advertising (especially some of Smirnoff’s old campaigns) interesting interesting and decided to take this opportunity to explore how the most popular vodka brands market themselves and how they differentiate themselves from their competition in a competitive category where all of the products are quite similar
Vodka category: Overview •
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Vodka sales grew 34% between 2007-12 Vodka is the most popular segment in the larger white spirits and RTD (ready-to-drink) category – it represents represents 55.7% of total sales
Sales of 9-liter cases Year 000 % change 52,518 2007 55,246 +5.2 2008 58,505 +5.9 2009 62,100 +6.1 2010 66,470 +7 2011 70,600 +6.2 2012
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Source: Mintel/The Beverage Information Group
Figure to left shows U.S. volume sales of 9-liter cases of vodka from 2007-12 and the %change in sales between 2007-12
Vodka category: Overview O verview cont •
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Vodka category is experiencing growth, and is very crowded crowded and highly competitive flavoured Recently there’s been a big expansion of flavoured vodka products contributing to the growth of vodka category Vodka is also a highly compatible and popular mixer, used extensively in cocktails (another reason for the continuing growth of the market) Number of vodka drinks consumed per month increased from 3.81 to 4.05 from 2007-12 (measured by Experian Simmons NCS/NHCS)
Source: Mintel
Vodka category: Market share •
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Following figure shows market share of top four brands in 2010 and 2011 Category leader (market share) is Smirnoff, followed by Absolut, then Svedka, then Grey Goose Company
Brand
Market share 2010
Market share 2011
Diageo
Smirnoff
15.5
14.6
7.5
6.9
5.3
5.6
5.5
5.2
Pernod Ricard USA Constellation Spirits Bacardi USA Source: Mintel
Absolut Svedka Grey Goose
Chief competitors •
Smirnoff’s (14.6%) chief competitors by market share are Absolut (6.9%), Svedka (5.6%), and Grey Goose (5.2%)
Source: Mintel
Smirnoff analysis •
Brand name: Smirnoff
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Headline: Pure Smirnoff
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Slogan: The difference is clear Benefit: Smirnoff is pure and clean, original and quirky – it will make you see things in a different and more interesting way
Details: This ad is part of a larger campaign that depicts depicts how random scenes viewed through a bottle of Smirnoff are different from their surroundings. The campaign is surprising and emphasises quirkiness, being different and fun, as well as
Competitor Competit or analysis: analysis: Absolut •
Brand name: Absolut
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Headline: Absolut Perfection
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Slogan: None
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Benefit: There’s nothing better than Absolut, it’s so perfect it’s angelic
Details: The Absolut campaign is iconic now, and is more about awareness, creativity, and art than promising a benefit. The focus of the ads is the distinctive shape of the Absolut bottle.
Competitor analysis: Svedka •
Brand: Svedka
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Headline: None
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Slogan: Voted #1 vodka of 2033 Benefit: Svedka is the drink of the future Details: Svedka is known for provocative provocative and edgy advertising that centers around the future and uses the Svedka ‘femme-bot’ as its mascot. The slogan is a reflection of the futuristic theme.
Competitor Competit or analysis: analysis: Grey Goose •
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Brand: Grey Goose Headline: Discerning taste Slogan: World’s World’s best tasting vodka
Benefit: Grey Goose is classy, elegant, and tasteful drink
Details: Grey Goose ads are understated and sophisticated like the brand itself. itself. The ‘discerning taste’ campaign positions pos itions Grey Goose as the perfect drink for a variety of elegant and more luxurious activities like golfing, tennis, and sailing.
Competitor Competit or analysis summary Brand
Headline
Slogan
Positioning
Smirnof
Pure
The difference is
Performance excellence: Smirnoff tastes
f
Smirnoff
clear
more pure than other vodka and is of a higher quality. The difference between Smirnoff and its competition is clear.
Absolut
Absolut
None
Perfection
Leader: Absolut positions itself as the most well-known vodka (and vodka advertiser) in the world through its creative campaign that speaks to people in many cultures and places.
Svedka
None
Voted #1 vodka of
Innovator: Svedka is forward thinking,
2013
out-there, edgy, edgy, and the vodka of the future.
Grey
Discerning
World’s best
Performance excellence: excellence: Grey Goose is
Goose
Taste
tasting vodka
the most luxurious and most elegant vodka in the category. It is classy and exclusive.
Smirnoff’s target audience •
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21 to 34 year olds (younger adults) This demographic is 138% more likely than the average American to drink shots of spirits, 34% more likely to drink spirits on the rocks, and 29% more likely to drink mixed drinks
Source: GfK MRI’s Survey of the American Consumer, Fall 2010 (Adults 21+
Smirnoff’s target audience cont. •
Cultural movement marketing builds brands by leading or aligning with an idea on the rise (Scott Goodson)
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Smirnoff did this recently by supporting gay rights
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Ad below was posted on Smirnoff’ Smirnoff ’s Facebook page
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Aligning with the current trend in support of gay rights further establishes Smirnoff’s target target audience of young adults who are more open to the idea of gay rights
Brand as a product • •
Place of origin: Moscow, Russia Smirnoff’s functional benefits: – – –
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Smirnoff’s emotional benefits: – –
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Premium vodka for a decent price Reliable and trusted product and brand Unique triple distillation process which leads to a cleaner and more pure taste The product and its users are unique, youthful, and vibrant It is a forward thinking and bold brand that stands for what it believes in
Users of Smirnoff are young adults Uses: – – –
Mixed drinks Drinking on the rocks Shots
Brand as an organisation •
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The Smirnoff brand is a global organisation organisation Smirnoff supports: –
Having fun
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Being young at heart
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Being unique, special, different Equality and gay rights
Brand values: –
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Originality and boldness Individuality and freedom
Brand as a personality •
Smirnoff is: –
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Youthful and contemporary (as illustrated through its Facebook page, target audience, and wide variety of flavoured vodkas and RTDs) Fun and different (as illustrated through its quirky ad campaigns and the bright and colourful pictures posted on its Facebook page) About individuality and being unapologetically who you are
Brand as a symbol •
Smirnoff has a rich brand heritage: – – –
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Founded in 1860s in Moscow Long history, history, high quality standards throughout Still produced using the same triple distillation process and still filtered ten times (just like it was when it was first founded)
Visual imagery associated with Smirnoff: – –
Eagles symbolising freedom, freedom, pride, and authority Red symbolising power and activity
Source: Smirnoff website
Social media •
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Social media is a combination of the interactions between people online and the medium me dium through which they interact interact It is used to share and exchange ideas, keep in touch with people, and meet new people Main things that differentiate social media from traditional media are: –
Immediacy: everything happens instantly and in real time
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Interactivity: Interactivity: brands can directly engage with consumers
Social media can be a great place to advertise, gain earned media, me dia, and have messages spread through word of mouth Social media sites include: Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Pinterest
Smirnoff in social media •
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As a youthful brand, Smirnoff has a solid presence in social media Facebook page which is updated daily –
Over 9.4 million likes
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226,000+ 226,000+ people talking about brand
Twitter Twitter which is also updated daily –
Over 4,000 tweets and over 13,500 followers
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But audience on Twitter is not very engaged
Smirnoff in social media con cont. t. •
‘every ‘every pairing is perfect’ ad (mentioned earlier) –
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Aired on Facebook while an estimated 2.7 million people changed their profile pictures to the red equals symbol in support of gay marriage Ad received overwhelmingly overwhelmingly positive comments (very few negative responses)
Mixhibit (March 2013) –
Social utility that takes social media activity from all your social networks and turns it into a video with personal soundtrack
Sources: Facebook and convinceandconvert.com
Smirnoff Smirno ff & the Dragonfly Effect Effect Named after dragonfly which is able to move in any direction with its four wings Four ‘wings’ to the model 1. Focus: The goal of Smirnoff Smirnoff’’s social media campaign is to showcase its products and different ways in which they can be used (as evidenced by the posts Smirnoff makes marketing its products and different mixed drinks recipes) in a way that engages its audience
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Success can be measured through views, shares, and comments on photos posted by Smirnoff or retweets retweets of its tweets on Twitter Twitter
Dragonfly Effect cont. 2.
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Grab attention: Smirnoff grabs attention by using bright colours and vivid photos, and sending tweets that are highly relatable (see right) Engage: Smirnoff engages its audience effectively through its Facebook page – –
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It’s authentic in its interactions interactions It builds a common ground with audience around appreciating a good drink and in general just having a fun time It responds in a quick, friendly, friendly, and still professional professional manner to comments
Take action: Smirnoff makes it easy for its fans to take action –
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Images marketing marketing a product or promoting articles have links to where the article can be read or the product p roduct purchased A lot of open-ended questions and statements statements inviting discussion are a re used on its Facebook and Twitter Twitter pages
Conclusion Overall, I feel Smirnoff has done a great job with its advertising. TV spots, print ads, and its social media me dia campaign are all consistent with its positioning as a fun-loving, youthful brand, that celebrates celebrates being diff di fferent erent and having a great time. They have been able to connect with their target audience effectively which I think is because Smirnoff was very good at finding the emotional link between their brand and their target (a step from the New Marketer’s Tool Chest on how to build a better position). They saw that young people just want to have fun and be themselves and made Smirnoff a product that is conducive to that and supports it. In terms of social media, their the ir Facebook page grabs attention right away away with bright colours and lots of eye-catching photographs while further solidifying the brands position. With 9.4 million likes, Smirnoff is way ahead of its competition: Absolut has 1 million likes, Svedka has 500,000, and Grey Goose has 1.3 million. This is probably due in part to how well Smirnoff implements the four aspects of the Dragonfly Effect Effect model (as covered earlier) and also how active and relatable their page and posts are.
Conclusion cont. TV spots for Smirnoff (which I haven’t covered covered in this analysis) mostly depict fun scenes at clubs and parties made even more more fun by the presence of Smirnoff drinks – once again very much in support of Smirnoff’ Smirnoff ’s positioning and very appealing to their target audience. Smirnoff Smirnoff ’s print ads are generally fun and quirky (some examples examples shown below). Smirnoff’s other marketing efforts which help them effectively effectively connect with their intended target include cultural movement movement marketing where they aligned themselves with the current trend in support of gay rights, their mobile app Mixhibit, and an event they created created called the ‘Nightlife Exchange Project’ Project’ which was about the experiencing experiencing and sharing of different different nightlife cultures.
Conclusion cont. All of Smirnoff’s marketing strategies are well integrated and present a consistent image of the brand. They speak effectively to Smirnoff’s target audience and take advantage advantage of a variety of different types of marketing (movement marketing and event hosting for example) and also platforms (print, TV, social).
A suggestion I would make for improving their social media campaign would be to either focus more on their t heir Twitter Twitter account or to abandon it altogether. altogether. With 13,500 followers, as opposed to the 9.4 million likes it has on Facebook, Smirnoff’s Twitter presence is relatively weak. Tweets they send are only retweeted or favourited a handful of times and very few people tweet at them. Having a very active Twitter account that doesn’t appear to be reaching many people might be a waste of resources and also make the brand seem far less popular than it actually is.
Conclusion cont. This contest could be one where users have to retweet, follow, follow, or favourite favourite to have a chance of o f winning. It could also be a more creative contest, for example, having people take artsy pictures of their favourite Smirnoff drink or responding creatively to a question posed pose d by Smirnoff and hashtagging Smirnoff in the tweet (e.g. #SmirnoffContes #Smi rnoffContestt – or something similar). Twitter Twitter contests have proved proved successful in the past for brands like Starbucks (#myFrappuccino, (#myFrappuccino, #freestarbucks), Uniqlo (#luckycounter), and Domino’s Pizza (#letsdolunch).
