Gatorade Vs Powerade

What's all the "flap" about?

Its always interesting when the big boys go head to head. Now PEP has brought out the big legal gun in the contest between Powerade and Gatorade.

From Ad Age - NEW YORK (AdAge.com) -- PepsiCo's Gatorade brand today filed a lawsuit against Coca-Cola's Powerade, alleging false advertising, trademark dilution, deceptive acts and practices, injury to business reputation, and unfair competition. The suit, filed in U.S. District Court in New York, takes Powerade to task for its new advertising campaign, first reported by Advertising Age.

Gatorade has dominated sports drinks with a combination of positioning, advertising and functionality since the 60's. But recently the brand has proved to be vulnerable, first to Vitamin Water's incremental functionality appealing to non-sports use occasions. And now second to a direct sports competitor.

As the second punch, KO has gone after Gatorade's core sports occasion with a "better" sports drink: Powerade Ion 4, that has 4 electrolytes, over Gatorade's 2.

To publicize this product advantage Powerade has run some partial flap covers on Magazines (like ESPN Magazine) claiming that Gatorade is "incomplete". Hence the lawsuit.

However, (while I am no lawyer) since there are no real definitions anywhere in beverages, and, as long as there is no disparagement to the trade dress, or mis-representation of Gatorade's formula, its tough to see how this lawsuit will work. In fact it may be that just bringing the lawsuit plays into KO's hands: It puts Powerade on the same plane as Gatorade.

The battle reflects the contest for the high ground in one of the key market segments in functional drinks. Gatorade may currently be the 400 pound gorilla of sports drinks, but that position is starting to slip as other brands are using new claims to challenge Gatorade's almost 50 year old formula, and positioning that it is the ultimate sports drink.

But both KO and PEP don't let reality get in the way of good marketing. There are 7 electrolytes that can be lost in exercise; protein is important for endurance; and caffeine can improves athletic performance: Neither of these beverages are complete functional sports drinks.

Interesting though, eh?

New Year, New G...

In a tumble of public statements and press releases Pepsico has stepped-up its response to the disappointment of last year's earnings. The messsage is clear: 2008 is now gone - say hello to 2009, with a brew-ha of new CSD graphics, stevia sweetened drinks, and cosmetic changes to Gatorade.

I find the Gatorade changes to be the most interesting. After 40+ years of dominance in "sports", Vitamin Water through the Coke system is starting to impact Gatorade's dominance. Gatorade is a drink for athletes, but it also gets sizable consumption from consumers looking for non-sports refreshment. Vitamin Water is tapping this market with its promise of added Vitamin functionality.

Having done my share of focus groups on sports and refreshment drinks, a couple of things remain on my mind:
1) Women don't like Gatorade's salty aftertaste or in-your-face attitude and,
2) The neon colors of Gatorade make everyone think the beverage isn't that good for you.

These two dynamics make Vitamin Water an attractive alternative.

So, what is Gatorade's response? - To be more Gatorade than ever:
New more aggressive graphics, and rebranding of sublines like Gatorade Rain to Gatorade "No Excuses", and Gatorade AM to Gatorade "Shine On". More here.

Are the new base graphics cool? Yes, very striking. Probably helps the core flavors - very true to the brand and the experience.

Will rebranding the sublines help? I doubt it - they feel very short term at best, and cliched at worse: When will we see "Feel The Burn" or "Go For It"...

Will these changes address the structural consumer weakness Gatorade faces? I doubt it. But we will watch all this with interest

Here is the commercial being used to launch these changes...




Foods, Fluids and Beyond Blog by Neil Kimberley at www.foodsfluidsand beyond.com is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License.