Product Differentiation – Vodka
In 2005, I traveled to Russia. I went with a Russian friend who was excited to show me their homeland. Before going to Russia, I did not drink much Vodka. In fact, during my trip to Russia, I drank more Vodka than I probably had in my entire life. No meal was complete without a toast (or two) with chilled Vodka. Vodka is defined as “alcoholic liquor originally distilled from fermented wheat mash but now also made from a mash of rye, corn, or potatoes (Free Dictionary, 2013). Some people translate Vodka to mean water or water of life.
Brands can differentiate their products based upon size, form, performance, features, durability, reliability, ease of repair, design and style (Kotler & Keller, 2012). Three popular Vodka brands consumed in the United States include Absolut, Grey Goose, and Skyy. Each brand employs different tactics to differentiate itself from its competitors.
ABSOLUT
Absolut established in 1879 by Lars Olsson Smith is solely manufactured in Åhus, Sweden, a small town of 10,000 people. According to Absolut (2013), this brand differentiates itself as follows:
PRODUCT DIFFERENTIATION:
1. Form – Absolut Vodka is delivered in one-liter glass bottles. The Swedish Vodka brand shaped all their bottled in the likeness of an old Swedish medicine bottle (AbsolutAd, 1997). No labels are affixed to the bottle, so as to avoid covering up the product. Each bottle has a medallion of the face of the creator Lars Olsson Smith.
2. Features: Absolut offers seventeen different flavors of Vodka including Absolut Mandarin, Absolut Raspberri, and Absolut Citron (Liquor.Com, 2013). The brand website offers customers numerous recipes for making a variety of cocktails, including free apps for iPhone...
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Free Dictionary. (2013). Definition of vodka. Retrieved from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/vodka
Grey Goose. (2013). Our craft. Retrieved from http://www.greygoose.com/en/us/our-craft
Grey Goose. (2013). Our vodkas. Retrieved from http://www.greygoose.com/en/us/our-craft
Kotler, P., & Keller, K. (2012). Marketing management (14th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall
Liquor.Com. (2013). Absolut Vodka. Retrieved from http://liquor.com/brands/absolut/
Liquor.Com. (2013). Grey Goose Vodka. Retrieved from http://liquor.com/brands/absolut/
Skyy. (2013). Skyy Vodka. Retrieved from http://www.skyy.com/
Washington Times. (2012). Grey Goose: The proof of social media. Retrieved from http://communities.washingtontimes.com/neighborhood/status-update/2012/may/31/grey-goose-proof-social-media/
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In the summer of 2011, Absolut Vodka launched a limited edition new flavor red apple and ginger of vodka and named it Absolut Brooklyn. They collaborated with Spike Lee, a filmmaker. He designed the style of the picture that was presented on the bottle. He drew a stoop because that is where he grew up in and the stoop was a place for entertaining. Before this campaign Absolut already produced three city themes which were New Orleans, Los Angeles, and Boston. Brooklyn was chosen for several reasons. Brooklyn is the most populated city in New York City populating 2.5 million people, making it the 4th largest city in the US. The campaign wanted something different that would make an impact in New York and Brooklyn was the perfect candidate for something unique and different. Through research Brooklyn was the new city of popular cool trends with art, music, film, and fashion. It was the new Manhattan. Also Brooklyn was a popular city that many people could trace their roots from.
Art and substance are sometimes concomitant. One verdant drink, Absinthe, is a landmark to an era long passed among the modern age’s most brilliant artistic minds. Although originally used for medicinal treatment, it was consumed ravenously by such famous individuals such as Hemingway, Van Gogh, Degas in Parisian cafes. However, the rise of the prohibitionist movement and fear of its narcotic effects led to its ban across western Europe in 1915. Nevertheless, its resurging popularity stands as a testament to a yearning of the radicalism and change at the turn of the century.
Mackay, D., (2014). Vodka Binge-drinking Deaths in Russian Men on Rise Due to Boozed-up Fights and Alcohol Poisoning. Retrieved from http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/vodka-binge-drinking-deaths-russian-men-3097908
The ad appears in Adbusters Magazine, a web page created by The Adbusters Media. This is a Canadian foundation that uses ads to fight issues in society like smoking and alcoholism. For example, in this case they are discrediting the Absolut vodka brand, creating a mockery ad against the product...
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In Western countries, in bars and other places where alcohol is served (e.g., airplanes, restaurants and nightclubs) many mixed drinks are made by blending a soft drink with hard liquor and serving the drink over ice. One well-known example is the rum and coke, which may also contain lime juice. Some homemade fruit punch recipes, which may or may not contain alcohol, contain a mixture of various fruit juices and soda pop (e.g., ginger ale). At ice cream parlours and 1950s-themed diners, ice cream floats are often
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