Consumer trends that might have prompted the launch of this product
Wrigley Company is a renowned leader in confections with a broad spectrum of product offerings such as lollipops, mints, gum, and hard and chewy candies. Company’s global-famous brands – like 5™ chewing gums, Extra®, Doublemint®, and Orbit®, and, as well as confectionery brands Life Savers®, Skittles®, Altoids®, and Starburst®– generate simple enjoyments for customers day after day. With distribution in more than 180 countries and operations in around 50 countries, Wrigley’s products create smiles to faces of many people around the world (Jesrani, 2017). This corporation has its headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, operates as a subsidiary of Mars and employs roughly 15,000 associates globally. In December 2018, Wrigley launched new Twix Triple chocolate cookie bars in the United States (FoodWorld Media Ltd, 2018). Unlike most of the other chocolates and chewing gums manufactured in America, Wrigley said that Twix Triple chocolate cookie bars is a unique cookie experience made of chocolate caramel, chocolate cookie bars, and cloaked in milk chocolate.
Consumer trends can be defined as behaviors or habits presently common among consumers of a given product. Consumer trends involve more than just what consumers purchase and how much they spend on a given brand. Data gathered on trends might as well include information like how customers utilize a commodity and the way they communicate about a product with their social networks. In 2016 the United States confectionery market size was USD 36.4 billion and according to analysts, this size is expected to gain stronger grip over the coming years (Grand View Research, Inc., 2018). This can be as a result of the mounting money and efforts devoted on Research & Development by market players in attempt to innovate and rebrand their brand images in the US market. Market players in the US confectionery market are observed launching healthy snacks such as dark chocolates with higher percentage of cocoa, protein rich bars, chewing gums, and low-sugar content chocolates. What is more, reducing cocoa prices in the global market is as well acting in favor of these market players. The rising growth in demand for United States candies globally is mainly thrusting demand for the market. In addition, an accelerating development in the number of customers turning to healthy snacks is pushing market players to bring in innovation in their brand portfolios. Market players are continuously encountering competition from the escalating healthy snacks market as the population of health-mindful customers is budding every day. They are observed switching to diet food, cereal bars, fresh fruits, and healthy snacks, amongst other snack items. Nevertheless, market players are seen bringing in premium dark chocolates, healthy protein bars, and executing cross-brand selling within this market to reinforce their position in the market. Every action taken by these market players are reactions from the behaviors of their targeted customers in this particular market.
Dollar sales of chocolate confectionery keep on growing at a reticent speed, stimulated by the conviction that chocolate is an acceptable indulgence and the nearly universal penetration (BrandonGaille.com, 2018). While US consumers are creatures of habit when selecting chocolate, they are as well open to new varieties and flavors and enthusiastic to pay more for first-rate quality. Most of the chocolate purchasers do not consider the price so much; instead they prefer to buy expensive yet quality products to cheaper but low-quality confectioneries. Some of them rely on other consumers’ views and sentiments regarding a certain product. This implies that if a previous buyer gives negative reviews concerning a certain new confectionery in town, other potential customers might change their minds and perhaps go for another brand in the market. Apart from friend’s reviews, another purchasing influencer of US customers is their past experiences with a particular confectionery brand. If a customer has had a bad experience with a given product, he/she might fail to buy it in the future if he feels the urge for it again. Within this on mind, most of the prominent market players in the US such as The Mars, Inc., Nestle SA, Hershey Company, and Mondelez International, Inc. work to ensure that all customers who purchase their products have good experiences to avoid losing them to their competitors (Newswires, 2017).
Links between the consumer trends identified and the launch of a new product/brand
Wrigley Confectionery must have observed some of the described consumer trends before launching their new Twix Triple chocolate cookie bars in the United States. This brand, unlike most of the existing ones in the market offers increased texture and crunch. According to the Twix brand director, Michelle Deignan, “US customers are looking for chocolate treats which play on texture and crunch. This current flavor takes the classic Twix Cookie Bar our fans love and know and combines it with three times the chocolate to generate a new favorite for all confectionery lovers” (DSN STAFF, 2018) Twix Triple is made up of chocolate caramel, chocolate cookie bars and is swathed in milk chocolate, offering the chocolate fans in the US with “triple the flavor”. (Myers, 2018) This aspect of the Twix Triple makes the product the best option for US chocolate lovers. Due to the side effects which are associated with consumption of chocolate such as teeth decay, majority of the US consumers are looking for confectioneries with low sugar and free of any adverse side effect. Twix Triple not only has low-sugar levels but also high-proteins content; aspects which actually boost health of every consumer. In other words, Wrigley put into consideration the health benefits of their brand which many US confectioneries lovers often look for before purchasing a newly-launched brand.
Most of the confectionery products normally do not go for high prices especially when purchasing as the final buyer. Customers buying these confectionery products such as chocolates, lollipops, candy bars, cotton candy, and other sweet items of snack food incur less. As a result, confectionery purchasers do not consider the price so much before buying any brand; instead they look for their respective quality features. It is not a surprise to see a premium quality yet an expensive chocolate bar having a higher demand than a low-quality cheaper one. US customers just like others in any part of the world hardly base their decisions to buy a given confectionery or not a on its price. They primarily look for quality. However, for Wrigley to ensure a smooth and fast market penetration, launched a quality product at a pocket-friendly price. This way, they managed to outshine their competitors who offer low-quality products at the same or slightly higher prices. Despite the price attitudes of US consumers, Wrigley Company decided to price their Twix Triple Chocolates at affordable prices to ascertain a long-lasting dominance in the market (FoodWorld Media Ltd, 2018). People will be eager to taste the new chocolate in town being offered at a good price. Besides, Wrigley intends every customer to have a good experience in his/her first association with the company. They realized that most of the customers in this country rely on others’ reviews and past experiences with a certain brand. This, as described earlier will ensure the buyer returns and perhaps comes along with friends to purchase more Twix Triple chocolate.
Market performance of a product refers to the performance of a brand that can be measured through customer satisfaction, market share, profitability, sales revenue, loyalty, and competitive advantage (Homburg, et al., 2010). Customer satisfaction is a phrase frequently used in marketing and it is a measure a given good or service supplied by a company meets or surpasses customer expectations. Felix, (2017) defines it as the number of customers, total or percentage of customers, whose reported experience with a brand or a company surpasses specific satisfaction goals. In simple terms, market share is portion of a market a company or a brand controls. A market share can be defined in terms of revenue or units accounted for by specific entity vis-à-vis to other market players. Profitability, on the other hand, refers to the capability of a product to earn a profit. Profitability is one among the four building blocks for examining financial statements and performance of a brand as a whole. The other block is sales revenue which is the amount a company gets after selling its goods or services in the normal operations of a business in a certain period. Rizan, et al., (2014) argue that a brand cannot do well in the market without ample customer loyalty. According to him, consumer loyalty shows the level to which a customer is dedicated to a firm’s product or service and how strong is his/her propensity to choose one brand over that of the competitor. A firm also needs to have a stronger competitive edge or advantage for it to compete favorably in the market. It needs to have ample capacity to produce goods or services of equal value to that of the competitors at lower price but in a more desirable fashion.
Assessment of the market performance of the new product
As the name suggests, Twix Triple are made of milk chocolate, chocolate cookie bars, and caramel. This combination makes every confectionery lover to feel satisfied after consuming this product. According to Michelle Deignan “Our consumers are seeking chocolate treats that play on texture and crunch,” “This new flavor takes the classic Twix Cookie Bar our fans know and love and combines it with three times the chocolate to create a new favorite for all chocolate lovers.” (Leffler, 2018) Twix Triple chocolate offers 100% customer satisfaction. Since the brand was launched earlier this month of December 2018, Wrigley has not yet precisely established its market share. However, as at the end of the first quarter 2019, the Company will compute these statistics to determine the portion Twix Triple is controlling in the US confectionery market. Owing to its uniqueness to create chocolate triple taste, the marketing strategies Wrigley is employing, and current customer response to Twix Triple among other aspects, this product’s ability to fetch splendid profits for the Company is not at doubt. TWIX® Triple Chocolate unlike other competing brands is available in almost all retail shops in US and is sold in Share Size (2.80oz) or Singles packs (1.41 oz.) (Black Cat Importers, 2014). This will enable the commodity’s sales revenue to increase. On daily basis, the Wrigley Inc. is able to collect ample sales income from this new brand. With increased sales revenue, (FoodWorld Media Ltd, 2018)emphasizes that the business will be able to realize splendid proceeds from Twix Triple chocolate. After its first launch earlier this month, TWIX® Triple Chocolate has not received any grievance from its customers implying that most of them like this confectionery and there nothing off beam with it. Actually, as a result of the promising sales Wrigley is making so far, it is evident that consumer’s enthusiasm and tendency to buy it is indeed high. As stated earlier in preceding sections of this essay, Wrigley, since its introduction in the US market has gained superiority since it can provide a product of a higher value that those of its competitors but at a lower price and with time it will be able to charge higher prices by offering greater value through their brand differentiation.
Conclusion
Introduction of TWIX® Triple Chocolate in the US market is among the best steps Wrigley has taken this year. The product was well tailored and personalized and currently its success is mushrooming rapidly. Immediately after launching Twix Triple chocolate has had an incomparable customer loyalty. Many confectionery consumers are now switching to this product mainly due to its triple chocolate flavor. This has heightened its competitive advantage in the US market since despite its outstanding premier quality; TWIX® Triple Chocolate is sold at a pocket friendly price affordable to all and sundry.
References
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BrandonGaille.com, 2018. 41 Candy Industry Statistics, Trends & Analysis. [Online] Available at: https://brandongaille.com/41-candy-industry-statistics-trends-analysis/[Accessed 26 Dec 2018].
DSN STAFF, 2018. Twix’s new cookie bars add triple the chocolate. [Online] Available at: https://www.drugstorenews.com/center-store/twix-adds-triple-chocolate-new-cookie-bars/[Accessed Dec 12 2018].
Felix, R., 2017. Service Quality and Customer Satisfaction in Selected Banks in Rwanda. Journal of Business & Financial Affairs Journal of Business & Financial Affairs, 6(1), p. 1/11.
FoodWorld Media Ltd, 2018. Mars Wrigley launches new Twix Triple chocolate cookie bars in the US. [Online] Available at: https://www.foodbusinessafrica.com/2018/12/13/mars-wrigley-launches-new-twix-triple-chocolate-cookie-bars-in-the-us/
[Accessed 26 DEc 2018].
Grand View Research, Inc., 2018. U.S. Candy Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Product (Chocolate, Non-Chocolate Candy), By End Use, Competitive Landscape, And Segment Forecasts, 2018 – 2025. [Online] Available at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/us-candy-market[Accessed 26 Dec 2018].
Homburg, C., Klarmann, M. & Schmitt, J., 2010. Brand awareness in business markets: When is it related to firm performance?. Intern. J. of Research in Marketing, 27(2010), pp. 201-212.
Jesrani, B., 2017. A tab of long lasting freshness with Wrigley’s new Doublemint©Gums. [Online] Available at: https://mumbainewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2017/03/a-tab-of-long-lasting-freshness-with.html?m=1[Accessed 26 Dec 2018].
Leffler, S., 2018. Twix Debuts New Triple Chocolate Cookie Bar: How Does it Compare to the Original?. [Online] Available at: https://www.usmagazine.com/food/news/twix-debuts-new-triple-chocolate-cookie-bar/[Accessed 26 Dec 2018].
Myers, A., 2018. Mars launches Twix Tripple Chocolate bars in the US. [Online] Available at: https://www.confectionerynews.com/Article/2018/12/13/Mars-launches-Twix-Triple-Chocolate-bars-in-the-US[Accessed 26 Dec 2018].
Newswires, J., 2017. Nestlé Exploring Sale of Its U.S. Confectionery Business — 2nd Update. [Online] Available at: https://www.foxbusiness.com/features/nestle-exploring-sale-of-its-u-s-confectionery-business-2nd-update[Accessed 26 DEc 2018].
Rizan, M., Warokka, A. & Listyawati, D., 2014. Relationship Marketing and Customer Loyalty: Do Customer Satisfaction and Customer Trust Really Serve as Intervening Variables?. Journal of Marketing Research and Case Studies , 2014(2014), p. 12.
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