Gatorade enjoys an 80% share in the sports drink market — as well it should: The category didn’t exist until the beverage was developed 40 years ago for the Gators, the University of Florida football team.
And its marketing has kept pace. Gatorade, which is owned by PepsiCo., sponsors star athletes like Peyton Manning, Derek Jeter and Michael Jordan and every sports league from the NFL to the NBA.
Can Gatorade face down a $50 million marketing challenge by Cadbury Schweppes for Accelerade?
Jeff Urban, senior vice president of sports marketing for Gatorade, says he’s ready.
PROMO: What do you get out of your athletic sponsorships?
URBAN: Every deal centers on our product visibility and integration of that product into the player and game experience. The challenge today is to find athletes who transcend the sport, and then find the best way for our brand to communicate those attributes.
P: How would you handle it if a Gatorade-sponsored athlete behaved badly?
U: I would treat them like someone in my family, and understand the circumstances without rushing to judgment. If it became detrimental to the brand, we would have that discussion.
P: What do you do to fend off new competitors?
U: We are diligently mindful of our competitors all the time. But we stay focused on our game plan. If a competitor comes in, we concentrate more on the science of the product, the marketing and our retail offerings and broad communications. We’re not overly concerned, but we’re mindful.
P: Are you worried about Accelerade?
U: We will treat them like we treat every other competitor, accessing our strengths and weaknesses against theirs, and creating programming and initiatives to protect our rightful place in locker rooms, on the field and with customers.
P: Do you consider soft drinks like Pepsi and Coke to be competitors?
U: I view Pepsi as a brother. We have co-existed within the soft-drink world because we are right for a different moment in time, and the sponsorship community has recognized that. Gatorade is for the athletic moment, and Pepsi is for the fun and entertaining side of sports.
P: Is there anything new in the hopper?
U: We’re in two developing areas. We are an investor and a promotional partner in the movie “Gracie,” which premieres June 1. We’ve done product placement in films, but I believe this is the first one in which we’ve become a financial partner. So you’ll see retail promotions this summer around the movie. We’re also becoming more involved in video on demand. We want to use that medium to educate our customers on science and nutrition, and to show how our products can play a part in that.
P: Have you ever made any missteps?
U: Sure. We’ve had a few failed product launches. But we’ve learned from those and followed up with new entries. Gatorade AM, which hit stores the first of the year, is our major new flavor.
P: What are you doing to support the launch?
U: Our major retail promotion is an instructional DVD wrapped around “Gracie.” We created the DVD in conjunction with U.S. Soccer. It’s narrated by Mia Hamm with instructors Landon Donovan, Kristine Lilly and Abby Wambach.
P: How do you keep the brand fresh?
U: Here’s what has kept us moving in a positive direction for 40 years. It’s a 10-year-old’s first experience with Gatorade at summer camp, or a doctor’s recommendation of our product to avoid heat illness. It’s hip, cool marketing with top athletes, and a new flavor or package to excite customers and retailers.
P: What do you enjoy most about your job?
U: We touch all corners of the sports world, and that’s energizing every day.
P: Here’s the final question: If Gatorade and Accelerade were to meet in the Super Bowl, what would be the final score?
U: Can we do another final question?
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