Marketing…drink it up!

In this post, I’m examining the marketing strategies used to sell products in the water bottle category. The $10 billion bottled US water industry has enjoyed aggressive growth in recent years, and it does not show any signs of slowing down. The Corporate Accountability International Company reports that today, 1 in 2 Americans drink bottled water, while 1 in 6 drink it exclusively!

The bottled water industry has engaged in an expensive public relations campaign that has allowed marketers to fuel this growth by creating the perception in consumers’ minds that bottled water is better than tap water and, bottled water is the best drinking option.

So what do marketers say/do to motivate consumers to purchase bottled water?

1) It is healthier
2) It is better-tasting
3) It is more convenient

From the leading bottle water Aquafina, to others like Dasani, Nestle, Deer Park, Great Value, Crustal Geyser, Smart, and many others—all marketers for these waters strategize to convey the “healthier, better-tasting, more convenient” message found in all of these products. Even simple things like use of the color blue, is used to illustrate a refreshing, clear, cool experience for the consumer.

Bottled water centers around a refreshing taste that quenches thirst, rejuvenates mind—body—soul, and induces peace and serenity. Marketers want to create an experience for consumers, motivating them to choose bottled water to satisfy their needs and wants. For example, the Deer Park water bottle displays a mountainous scene—depicting pine trees and a background tinted blue…there is also an actual deer in the middle of the picture. This picture is peaceful—it celebrates the outdoors and “mother nature,” advertising that Deer Park water is “natural.” Strategies like this can be identified as classical conditioning because Deer Park (and others) are utilizing a positive stimulus (in this case: animals, the outdoors, freedom, mountains, etc) to sell the “naturalness” of the product to consumers.

Another example is Crystal Geyser bottled water. This company sticks with the blue-color theme, and depicts what looks like ice in the background—promoting that cool, refreshing feeling. But, MY FAVORITE example of bottled water marketing is…Fiji bottled water. The Fiji packaging shows flowers, greenery, and blue, and it also says, “From the Islands of Fiji—Natural Artesian Water.” The display is pretty—the bottle even has a square shape to it…kind of cool! This idea can be classified as Affective Preservation—Expression. Fiji water allows me (the consumer) to express who I am…a creative, an artesian, a healthy person who enjoys drinking water!

Many of the bottled water companies use eco-friendly packaging, and donate a percentage of their sales to charity or other non-profit organizations which are examples of operant conditioning. This conditioning (along with classical conditioning) is a technique that motivates consumers that activates behavior and provides purpose and direction to that behavior.

Sources:

PerleyIsaac Reed School of Journalism, West Virginia University (2009). Lesson 2:The effects of learning, memory, positioning, motivation, personality an emotion on consumer behavior.Retrieved November 2, 2009, from the WVU eCampus Web site: https://ecampus.wvu.edu

http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/bw/chap2.asp

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