Search

Admiral, now a division of Magic Chef, has regained its former prominence in the marketplace. A new sales and marketing plan is the cornerstone of Admiral's success. The plan calls for the introduction of one new life-sytle based appliance every year. The company also decided to make appliances more interesting. The advertising campaign positioned it towards the gourmet cook and the home entertainer. All of Admiral's advertising was placed behind this one product. This strategy resulted in an increased share of the market. The introduction of a second product, A La Mode, a refrigerator that makes frozen desserts and drinks, was also highly successful. The decision to put a large percentage of the media budget into a two week television blitz achieved maximum trade and consumer awareness very quickly. Admiral is now a very profitable producer for Magic Chef.

The people meter is about to become a viable research tool in the area of television audience research. The A.C. Nielsen Company is running a nationwide test in 150 homes. Audits of Great Britain will test its own device in Boston. A third company is preparing a test for Washington, D.C. The concept of the people meter is to provide the research and advertising community with specifics on viewing by individual family members. Nielsen's device is coded by family member and sex. Nielsen plans to test its device for at least a year to see if it is a viable household measurement technique. Agency and media people seem to be awaiting the people meter with cautious enthusiasm. The promise of detailed demographic data on audience viewing is exciting to many, while others question whether household members will continue to comply after the novelty has worn off.

The soft drink industry experienced a five per cent growth rate in 1983. Media expenditures increased. There was an increase in product diversification. Product development emphasized elimination of caffeine and calories. Brand indentification was achieved with younger demographics and pop music spokespeople. The major industry competition is between Coke and Pepsi. Coca- Cola outspent its competitors with lifestyle advertising. Pepsi-Cola is currently redesigning its advertising strategy. Seven-Up benefited from its absence of caffeine, boosting its brand share. Dr. Pepper lost brand share to Seven-Up and is introducing a new advertising campaign and media plan. Canada Dry has repositioned itself as a drink, not a mixer. Crush and Hires were reformulated for improved taste.