learnthe4ps.com - For students of marketing.

Mountain Dew’s sales skews toward young whites — a declining demographic.  While the brand sells well in the southeastern part of the United States, it doesn’t do as well in other parts of the country — or in major cities.  One of PepsiCo’s major brands (accounting for 20% of its sales), for growth Mountain Dew has targeted blacks and Latinos with new advertising and products (see “Mountain Dew Wants Some Street Cred” Bloomberg Businessweek, April 26, 2012).

Read the article, check out one of ads in the new “This is How We Dew” campaign below.  What else could Mountain Dew could do to appeal to these new target markets?  Think about all 4 Ps.

Sometimes marketing managers are afraid to rule out segments of the market. But that is what targeting and positioning is all about — making decisions about which target market our offering will serve and which it will not. By designing a marketing mix that appeals more to one market segments, you will probably make it less appealing to others. That is almost always a good trade-off. Dr Pepper Ten makes it clear that this soft drink is for men — and a great example of targeting for our students.

What do you think of this ad?  Will the “not for women” ads make Dr Pepper Ten more appealing to men?  Do men avoid drinks labeled “Diet” but really want to take in fewer calories?