This case study analysis examines the rise and fall of Snapple. Inasmuch as most soft-drink brands gained success in the '80s, only Snapple hit it better. It became a national success and was looking into invading the international market at the time Quaker acquired the company. However, Quaker did not foresee that it might be harder for them to manage, hence, it was subsequently sold. This case study analysis also deals with the factors influencing the growth and decline of Snapple and seeks to answer the question of what action the new proprietors should undertake to ensure its success.
John Deighton
Harvard Business Review (599126-PDF-ENG)
June 04, 1999
Case questions answered:
Use the 4P framework to analyze Quakers’ failures. Imagine the case was happening right now and generate an action plan for Triarc’s turn-around of the Snapple brand in 2018. What would new media and technology allow you to do that wasn’t possible in 1997? Don’t just look up what Triarc did and parrot their actions back — there is no control case to decide if Triarc’s plan was the most optimal, so think carefully and critically about the best Marketing Mix possible. Draw on the information in the case and the exhibits to generate strategies about Product, Promotion, Price, and Place. Pay special attention to ensuring that the 4Ps work in harmony with each other and highlight the synergies where they occur.
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Snapple Case Answers
Context
It is 2017, and Triarc Beverages just acquired Snapple from Quaker for the revalued amount of $300 million dollars (a value more than 5 times smaller than the amount Quaker acquired Snapple for 3 years ago).
To fight the devaluation of the brand, which was mainly caused by Quaker’s efforts to promote synergy between Snapple and Gatorade, Triarc will take measures to restitute Snapple’s presence in cold channels and recreate the brand’s value.
The Number 1 P: People1
Before developing the analysis of the 4 marketing Ps2, it is interesting to use technological tools to better understand the audience we will be reaching out to.
Using Facebook’s Audience Insights tool3, one can get a quick understanding of the segment of people that engage with Snapple on social media. Setting the interest search to the keyword ‘Snapple’ (Figure 1), one can see that, for example, approximately 70% of Snapple’s audience are women, and around 80% are within the 18-34 age range.
Figure 1. Facebook’s Audience Insights. Analysis of the audience for the keyword ‘Snapple.’
Comparing Snapple’s audience (1.5m-2m monthly active users) to the soft drinks industry’s (20m – 25m monthly active users), one may find similarities (e.g., approximately 70% of users matched are medium or high online purchasers (Figure 2).
The biggest purchasing category after Food and Drink is Subscription services (Figure 3), and most users matched lead lifestyles identified with keywords like ‘Firmly Established,’ ‘Work and Play,’ and ‘Active Lifestyles’).
The differences such as the industry’s audience uses credit cards (Figure 4) as the most used payment method, indicating larger spending, while Snapple’s group spends more in cash, indicating the preference for buying the product in…
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