Marketing And Brand Management

FdA Business & Management Degree

Marketing and Brand Management

Assignment 1

For the purposes of this report the UK consumer retail sales of dry-cell battery market has been has been selected with focus on two major players; Duracell and Energizer.

Contents Task 1:

Overview

Market Size

Primary Categories

Primary

Secondary

Consumer Segmentation

Major Players

Appendix A Ð'- Market Drivers

Appendix B Ð'- DVD Players

Appendix C Ð'- Repertoire Analysis

Appendix D Ð'- Seasonality

Appendix E Ð'- Retail Sales by Manufacturer

Overview

The UK battery market is reliant upon the success of battery-powered products. Traditionally the battery market has been a stable lucrative market, as there has been huge increase in both ownership and number of battery-powered items [Appendix A]. However there has more recently been a surge in the use of electronic products containing integral rechargeable batteries, which is having a negative effect on sales, such as DVD players up 75.3% 2000-05 [Appendix B]. The other main impact on values is the heavy price promotions (nearly 1/3rd batteries being given in promotions), which plays an annual part of the seasonal effect of the battery market .

Market Size

The value of the UK consumer dry-cell battery market exceeded Ð'Ј382m 2001 and was worth around Ð'Ј426m by 2005 . Volume sales have remained at a growth of around 2% year, except for 03/04 which achieved a growth of 5% owing to a surge in MP3 ownership . Values were expected to completely stagnate however the popularity of digital cameras and MP3 players have improved sales of batteries. In 2005 Ð''The Grocer' reported slow growth and in 2006 , reported steady growth with alkaline batteries continuing to dominate the market, taking 89% share of the product category market. Duracell holds the brand lead in the alkaline batteries market.

Product Categories

PRIMARY:

● ALKALINE (long-life) for high-drain appliances i.e. MP3 players.

● ZINCÐ'- zinc carbon best : for low-drain appliances i.e. torches

● BUTTON Ð'- can be silver oxide, alkaline, lithium or zinc-air suitable for watches, calculators and hearing aids.

SECONDARY:

● Ni-Cd (rechargeable) used as regular battery

● Ni-MH (rechargeable) for digital devices and traditional cameras.

Consumer Segmentation

According to figures taken from a TGI survey, around 79% adults purchased batteries within the last 12 months with approximately 43% [Appendix C] purchasing only one brand. The demographic profile of battery purchasers is most likely to be:

Male; Aged 35-44; Family-lifestage; AB

This is reflective of the male interest in battery-powered gadgets, supported by higher levels of disposable income. According to Duracell , even young boys have been shown to prefer battery-powered toys. At the family lifestage, consumers are more likely to have extra TVs and battery-powered toys.

Non-buyers are more likely to be female and from either the 15-24 or over-65 age groups and do not have children; hence no toys or extra TVs etc or they are more likely to own the latest gadgets with integral rechargeable batteries. The over-65s are less likely to own much electronic equipment.

Spending is strongly affected by seasonality thanks to the influx in battery-hungry purchases, with the highest period (34%) falling in the Christmas season [Appendix D].

Most purchases are made through grocery outlets, which account for 56% of battery sales.

Major Players

The battery market is an oligopoly with Duracell continuing to dominate, accounting for over a third of volume sales in the market. Energizer is the next major player, with just under a quarter of the market, while the next-largest branded player, Panasonic, accounts for slightly less than 10% of market volumes. Own-label brands take just over 10% of the market. Leaving the balance of just less than 20% of the market to the remaining brands [Appendix E]. The battery market shows strong brand loyalty; newcomers and own-label brands have not been able to develop a stronghold on the market. The strength of branding and economies of scale allowing fierce price competition, has built up a strong barrier for entry into the market.

Task 3 Evaluate the importance of branding in this market.

Market: Household Commercial non-rechargeable batteries

Brands: Duracell & Energizer

Contents Task 3:

Introduction

Brand Equity

Brand Development

Promotion

Packaging

Price

Place

Product

Positioning

Conclusion

Bibliography

Appendix F Ð'- Repertoire Analysis

Appendix G Ð'- Brand Equity & Market Share

Appendix H Ð'- Promotions eat away value

Appendix I Ð'- Battery sales, by season, 2004

Appendix J.1 Ð'- Boston