ALL -NATURAL or NATURAL DISASTER

PepsiCo is adding three new softdrinks to its portfolio as part of the company's "refresh Everything" strategy. The lineup includes a premium all-natural cola, called Pepsi Natural, to be released this month in 10 select markets, along with limited-time throwback versions in April of Pepsi and Mountain Dew. All three products will be made with all-natural sugar, and aim to take customers in a different taste direction. Pepsi has been prepping this “natural” launch since 2006 as an answer to consumers' concerns about high fructose corn syrup.

“Pepsi Natural and the "Throwback" duo give consumersthe opportunity to refresh how they experience soft drinks,” said Frank Cooper, vp of portfolio brands, Pepsi-Cola North America Beverages, in a statement. “We’re continuing to offer a variety of products across different beverage categories, with a splash of nostalgia and entirely new experiences.”

The "Throwback" idea, I don't know if I am too crazy about it. I mean it worked for Ford when they took the Mustang back a few decades in it's look and it certainly had an appeal to buyers. This is a beverage we're talking about though. People who like and buy the product, "LIKE AND BUY" the product already. Why change the taste for a few weeks. Maybe that's why it's just for a few weeks. I don't know how I feel when PepsiCo says they're offering a line of products "with a splash of nostalgia". To me that doesn't sound refreshing or desireable to stick in my mouth. How about a blast of oldness in your mouth! No thanks! Is this what the new branding and logos were leading up to? If so, then I am way more disappointed than when I thought it was just a total brand/logo overhaul.

Now for this "Natural" thing; PepsiCo seems to be trying to re-invent a "good product" into something, not so much better, but all around different! This seems to be a plan to appeal to a whole new class and life-style of consumers. With everyone scrambling to things that are more healthy and more natural, without all of the man-made additives and preservatives, this seems like PepsiCo's contribution to a new mindset of product needs. Does this seem like a good approach? Is this too risky, will it last? Will health fanatics really pop the top on sugar filled carbonated beverages and feel good about it? I've seen many beverages similar to this around trying to hone in on people who want healthy foods and drinks. They don't usually seem to be a big hit. Will PepsiCo change it all? Will it be the trademark "Natural" soda beverage that everyone will consider, or is it just another crafty mix of words on a product that is still full of sugars, albeit "natural" sugars. And what about the branding? It seems like they have taken the new brand/logos, and rather than change them, they just threw off the bad branding on another line of products. In my opinion I think we're looking at a NATURAL DISASTER!

MySpace: Slap Them in the Face with Your Brand Message

I finally found time to jump into the latest issue of Fast Company. I had been really looking forward to reading the cover-story about MySpace.

Cruising along through the fairly entertaining article, I jumped out of my seat and shouted, "*%# %^#@#+," when I read the following passage:

In June, for example, Anderson and DeWolfe [MySpace execs] created an aggressive new "takeover" feature on their home page, which gets some 45 million views a day -- a shiny bit of advertainment offering marketers a "more creative palette" with which to burn their messages into users' skulls. "You can own the page, whether you're McDonald's, Taco Bell, or Sony with Hancock [the recent Will Smith vehicle]," says Berman. "Our users look at you as content, while you're slapping them in the face with this incredible brand message."

What?!?! What does the language say about MySpace's marketing philosophy?

Burn your messages into my skull? Slap me in the face with your incredible brand message?

Please! That's just wrong on so many levels. It wreaks of Web 1.0. It smacks of one-way communication and broadcasting the advertising message. MySpace, like Facebook and many of the great new Web 2.0 social media platforms, is all about the conversation. It's two-way, not one-way. Not to mention that the language illustrates a lack of respect for the visitor (customer).

Egad! No wonder MySpace is getting dusted by Facebook in terms of growth.

"For all the bravado and new ideas, MySpace still has significant challenges. Foremost among them is the relentlessly evolving Facebook, whose most recent comScore numbers show it widening the gap on MySpace to nearly 10 million worldwide visitors in May -- 124 million for Facebook versus MySpace's 115 million."

It appears that for MySpace it's all about the advertiser and ad revenues--and not all about the user experience (i.e., taking care of the customer). Please join in and add your perspective. Am I over-reacting here?

Starbucks: Did They Jump the Shark?

Note: we are jumping on board with Jay Ehret and company over at "The Marketing Spot" to provide commentary (and advice) on Starbucks and its ongoing efforts to remake, fix and improve its business.

The image at left is the July 2004 issue of Fast Company. As you will note, the lead cover story is about Starbucks. "Thinking Outside the Cup. Surprise! Starbucks is making a bold push into music."

The question, as we sit here in 2008, is: was it a bold push, or an ill-advised push?

The Fast Company article postulates that Starbucks foray into music, providing downloadable music for purchase in its retails outlets, would in disruptive fashion render traditional music vendors such as Tower Records, HMV and Virgin Megastore obsolete.

"What Schultz had come across was a group of music stores with something of a cult following in the Bay Area. Hear Music was one of the first stores in the country to introduce the now-universal concept of the 'listening station.'

In its intimacy, quality and customer focus, Hear Music must have reminded Schultz very much of his own company. And the rest of the music industry must have looked a lot like Maxwell House."

"We never dreamed we'd be sitting on the unique opportunity we're sitting on now," he said. "We just saw that they were doing for music what we had done for coffee."

Unique? That would appear to have been a stretch. What each player had done was innovate. But then Starbucks attempted to replicate, instead of innovate.

"What you're left with is this very broad audience, made up of the core Starbucks customer, who loves music and can't find it, Schultz said. "We have a unique opportunity to take advantage of this."

No doubt, the psychographic potential of the brand extension was alluring. But what about iTunes and other online music vendors? Did Starbucks underestimate their potential and power ... their competitive threat? Were they, perhaps, caught off-guard?

There's a phrase in the movie and TV business--"jumping the shark." It's that fateful, irreversible moment when the program, or series, goes too far. It strays too far from its core concept or storyline ... and loses credibility. Typically, such shows do not recover.

In my estimation, this article from July 2004 captures for posterity that moment when Starbucks jumped the shark.

Cut to February 26, 2008. Starbucks closed every single one of its stores for three hours. They spent that time getting back to their essence, their core. They took 3 hours (times 7,100 stores) to train their baristas (employees) on how to make and serve great espresso. Here's the corporate news release on this event. This equates to 500,000 hours of training time.

I applaud Starbucks for this tough, but necessary, refocusing intiative. Time will tell its impact. Still, I remain a devoted Starbucks fan and customer, and I wish them well.

A to Z of Marketing – A: Ask the Right Questions

Wait – before you rush into an expensive marketing program – take a few moments to ask yourself the following:

1.) WHO is my customer? Conduct a mini-research campaign to find out the demographics of your target market and - most importantly - what motivates them to buy. I’m always amazed at the number of clients that want to begin marketing their business without a careful analysis of this fundamental question.

2.) WHAT is my differentiating factor? This is the unifying thread that should run through all of your marketing, and it usually comes in answer to the question “What (client) problem does my business solve?”

3.) IS my product/service as good as it can be? All the marketing in the world can’t save a bad product – it will just let people know it’s bad faster.

Author’s Note: This is number 1 in a 26-part series on marketing essentials. Be sure to check back often for new updates and insights.