Product Mix and Product Line Management in Red Bull
Red Bull has initially been created as a brand new product – an energy drink that actually represents a premium/high margin product. The product mix of Red Bull is diverse and aims to satisfy the diverse needs of various target consumers. The whole range of products represented as a Red Bull product line can be seen in Figure 1:
The products represented at the figure reflect the main philosophy of product line managing in terms of marketing – each product aims at the satisfaction of different customers’ needs. For example, the overall product mix is determined to satisfy such target customer groups as the athlete, the worker, and the clubber. Red Bull for athletes is expected to become an integral part of their diet and sports life – it is a good means to increase endurance and speed, to get the maximum potential of their bodies, and to assist them in handling diverse pressure and tension sport suggests. The worker is also a target consumer because those who handle high tension tasks, work at managerial positions or in the street, and need some push up at work should drink Red Bull rather than coffee because of its intense refreshing effect. Clubbers are indisputably the main category of Red Bull consumers because they need to stay awake all night long to have fun, so Red Bull becomes highly helpful in these activities (The Marketing strategy of Red Bull).
Looking at the product line and the target customers, it is clear that the producers have conducted extensive research and have achieved the best product mix that will satisfy the general and specific needs of consumers. As an example one can look at the sugar-free variant of Red Bull – women or sportsmen are highly obsessed with their diet, but they also need energy. For this reason, they will choose the product with the lower level of sugar, which is offered by Red Bull without losing any substantial characteristics of the product. Those customers who like Cola and are proponents of natural products for consumption can choose the Red Bull Cola drink that is positioned as a 100% natural Cola drink containing the coca leaf, kola nut, lemon/lime, clove etc. Thus, people who favor the healthy way of life and need softer and more enjoyable products than plainly energy stimulators can consume the described product more willingly. The positioning of the product can be seen in figure 2:
The chosen positioning and the diverse line of products in the Red Bull company give them the competitive advantage in the sphere of dealing with its direct competitors. The list of major ones as well as their main characteristics can be seen in Figure 3.
Figure 3. Direct Competitors of Red Bull:
Marketing tools such as packaging, labeling, warranty, and guarantee
Packaging and labeling are diversely used as a marketing tool by the Red Bull company. The company engages in a wide variety of advertising campaigns that stress the unique opportunities offered by red Bull. As an example one can regard Figure 4 – here the main advantage of Red Bull consumers is skillfully shown with the help of the drink’s package in a funny buy meaningful way:
Continuing the discussion of labeling as a marketing tool for the Red Bull company, it is important to recollect the way the company is involved in various sporting events and socio-cultural events. There is a great set of sport types that are supported by Red Bull globally, which surely implies a strong focus on labeling, as one can see from figures 5 and 6:
Red Bull poses much attention to guarantees and warranty of quality of services they render as well as products they offer to consumers. This is clearly felt in their concern about the detailed description of ingredients of their products and the harm or benefit that they can bring to the organism. It is also worth mentioning that the Red Bull company uses an environment-friendly technology of canning making their packaging of recyclable glass and aluminum, which is surely a great marketing advantage for the producer under modern conditions of overall obsession with the environment.
References
Fooyoh Entertainment. 2010. Web.
Red Bull Mini. Auto Index. 2006. Web.
The B.S. report. The Word Press. 2009.Web.
The Marketing strategy of Red Bull. N.d. 2010. Web.
The Red Bull Official Site. 2010. Web.