| Category: | Sustained Success |
SUMMARY
Approaching its 25th birthday this year, Just Juice will be celebrating its continued brand success. This brand is still growing and demanding a premium despite many other brands which find themselves declining after such a long period. Just Juice's success is reflected in the fact it is now the second most recalled beverage brand in New Zealand – second only to Coke.
This is a major achievement given the challenges faced by the brand. Competition has increased dramatically with many new beverage categories emerging. Health is also constantly under the spotlight meaning Just Juice needs to be consciously aware of this issue. Just Juice has also needed to stay aware of competitor activity with competing brands developing strong badge value and emotional connections.
In 1998, a decision was made that a stronger brand connection was needed. This key judgment has resulted in the continued success of the brand that can still be seen today. The brand moved from a more functional platform of “tropical taste” to a more emotive one of “Living De Tropical Life”. It was a distinctive, ownable and compelling position for the brand. Living this life was all about escapism, being happy, and laid back and carefree. A highly emotional aspiration for many New Zealand families.
The campaign has changed very little from 1998 to today resulting in over eight years of solid, consistent brand strategy and communications. The key to sustained success for Just Juice is the strong continuity of the brand and a creative strategy that is relevant, compelling and aspirational.
MARKETING CHALLENGE
Within four years of its launch, Just Juice was leading its category1 and despite the challenges facing it, this success is still being enjoyed 25 years on.
As times have changed, different issues have been raised in the minds of consumers. Just Juice was traditionally focused on health and goodness. While this functional territory is still relevant, a stronger emotional brand equity had to be built to ensure long-term, sustainable success in a changing and highly competitive market. In the late 90's, competition was increasing dramatically among emerging categories:
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Bottled waters were even more natural and hydrating and were growing quickly.
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Energy drinks had a clear, powerful benefit and used new ingredients like guarana or taurine
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Fruit drinks were being developed with new, exciting blends and flavours and fortifications
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“Real” juice bars were showing up shelf stable juices as being “fake” in comparison
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Many brands had developed strong emotional territories leading to greater badge value and stronger loyalty
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Price competition both in supermarkets and route was fierce
An increased awareness around obesity, especially amongst children led to changes in the beverage industry. For instance, New Zealand schools set strict guidelines on what is allowed to be sold.
New products were developed by Frucor to help counter these health-based issues. Just Juice Plus and Just Juice Bubbles were launched. Just Juice Plus contained extra health benefits via added vitamins. Just Juice Bubbles was a healthier soft drink option aimed at mums who were becoming more conscious of what their kids were drinking.
Heavy discounting of 3L juice in supermarkets was leading to a decline in brand loyalty and pricing was driving people's decisions and driving down category value. The challenges facing Just Juice were huge. The brand could not just trade off tropical taste and goodness if it was going to survive. A more emotive connection, driven by brand advertising was needed. One that could weather the storm surrounding health debates, fierce competition and vicious price-cutting.
From agency research, Colenso BBDO understood that Just Juice needed to play up its fun loving side, which people enjoyed and connected with. Its tropical heritage provided a distinct and compelling point of difference versus other juices. The thought of the tropical lifestyle was also incredibly aspirational for New Zealand families.
The major change for the advertising strategy came in 1998. The move was made from the literal dimension of the Just Juice brand to a more emotive connection. The strategy moved beyond just the taste of tropical fruits into a positioning based on the tropical lifestyle, attitude and outlook on life.
Focusing on the tropical lifestyle was the right way to go. It drew on existing brand heritage, was highly distinctive and motivating for consumers. The essence of the brand became “Live De Tropical Life”. This was all about being unhurried, down to earth and happy!
The tropical world of Just Juice was full of sunshine, warmth and a carefree existence. Just Juice could provide an emotional escape for household shoppers via the carefree, relaxed lifestyle of the Caribbean. The brand refocused on 'living de tropical life' and the continued success of Just Juice was ensured.
CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVE
The Just Juice campaign objectives were updated in 2003 given that the campaign had been running since 1998. The three year strategic plan had the following targets:
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Maintain and defend market leadership
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Maintain price leadership in a price driven market
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To increase Total Spontaneous Awareness and maintain prompted awareness at 100%
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Increase emotional connection with consumers via key image statements
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“Popular with all the family”
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“Tropical flavours” which is an important sub component of “Living De Tropical Life”
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“A fun brand”
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TARGET AUDIENCE
Given the objectives, it was clear Just Juice had to target those currently buying juice (both Just Juice and competitors) from supermarkets as well as drinks from the route trade (service stations, dairies, smaller stores).
The two identified target audiences were:
Core grocery target:
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Household shoppers with kids (aged 0 – 14)
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Aged 25–44
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Heavily female skewed
Core route target:
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Both genders, aged 15–29
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Young bias (school students, university students, first jobs etc)
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Busy lifestyles, few structured mealtimes, often eat alone, high “on the go” consumption, a wide purchase portfolio
CREATIVE STRATEGY
While the original Just Juice campaign contained some focus towards the tropics, the new campaign was directed towards the more functional aspects of tropical fruit and taste.
From 1998 onwards, “Living De Tropical Life” became the essence of the brand, the main focus of the advertising campaign and was at the heart of all communications. It was a distinctive, ownable and compelling position for the brand. Living this life was all about escapism and adopting the laid back, carefree attitudes and behaviour that people who lived in the tropics enjoyed every day.
The television commercials themselves were now being set in a Jamaican scene rather than a Polynesian setting. The music was clearly more Jamaican in its rhythm and these factors were important in building the aspiration of the tropical life via Just Juice.
The campaign has changed very little since 1998. With over eight years of solid, consistent brand strategy and communications, it shows quite a contrast to the rest of the beverage world where brands are continually reinventing themselves via their advertising.
The brand campaign roll out over this eight year period has been:
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“Duel” – 1998
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The Jamaican hero enjoying the tropical way of life, playing in a guitar duel with a younger boy
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“Happy accidents” – “bike” and “plane” – 2001
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Everyday tropical life involving uniquely tropical fruit, showing how things are done in a relaxed way on a tropical island
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“Rhythm” – 2003
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Getting into the relaxed rhythm of tropical island life
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“Dasher” – 2005 to today
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Life on a tropical island with Just Juice at its centre
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OTHER COMMUNICATION PROGRAMMES
Television, radio and magazines.
MEDIA STRATEGY
Television has been the core part of the media strategy over the past eight years. Just as the advertising strategy was consistent, so too was the media strategy. Television was excellent for mass market reach as it had the ability to strongly convey the emotional proposition.
It was unbeatable from a cost efficiency perspective with its low cost way of extending reach and frequency. Whilst television built ongoing brand equity, secondary media drove relevance. Out of home, radio and magazines were used to extend reach to lighter television viewers and aid impulse purchase decisions for the younger route target.
MEDIA
The campaign was initially launched as a 60 second television commercial with 30 second variants. A 30/15 second combination was rolled out in 2002. The role of the 15 second advertisement was to enhance frequency.
Environmental placement is an important part of media planning so Colenso BBDO jumped at the opportunity to sponsor TV2's 2003 season of “Celebrity Treasure Island”.
This programme delivered on many levels:
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A tropical island setting – consistent with the creative strategy and reinforcing tropical cues
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Top ratings and dual appeal to household shoppers, kids and the more cynical 15–29 audience alike
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Relevant product placement within the show – Just Juice was used in games as a reward at the end of a tough challenge
As a measure of its success, this sponsorship followed up with product placement in Celebrity Treasure Island in 2004.
Targeted radio was used to support local events and an out of home combination of bus-backs and adshels took the brand message to the streets. Colenso BBDO was able to focus on schools, shopping areas, sporting areas and main arterial routes. This provided impact and support for impulse purchasing with a highly mobile audience.
RESULTS
Just Juice has managed to maintain and defend market leadership by being New Zealand's leading juice brand after 25 years. Just Juice enjoys 100% brand awareness,2 and is New Zealand's most recalled juice brand.
Many mature brands tend to decline after 25 years but Just Juice has experienced year-on-year growth since 1999.3
Just Juice has managed to maintain price leadership in a price driven market especially in supermarkets. In a market where price discounting is rampant, consumers are still willing to pay a premium for Just Juice. This is a strong achievement and shows the depth of the emotional connection household shoppers have with the brand. Without strong brand equity and the connection this brings, consumers would not be prepared to pay more.
Market leadership and share has been maintained over time, despite the heavy discounting of fruit juice in supermarkets.
Total Spontaneous Awareness for Just Juice has remained consistently strong since 1998, when the campaign strategy was changed. The trend line since 1998 has been steadily moving upwards.
In terms of image statements, which are driven by the advertising, consistent success has been enjoyed.
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“Popular with all the family” wasn't just maintained, it was increased by 8%
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“Tropical flavours” increased by nearly 20%
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“A fun brand” didn't just increase, it nearly doubled
Strong loyalty through bonding has also been achieved. Within bonding, popularity is the key component and advertising heavily influences popularity perceptions of a brand. Bonding is vital for a brand's connection with consumers. Just Juice needed to have strong bonding scores in order to achieve its goal of a stronger emotional connection.
In Colmar Brunton's Brand Dynamic study,4 Just Juice had over eight times the bonding levels of its nearest competitor, Keri. Colmar Brunton research shows that a brand with strong bonding drives sustainable future growth.
All these results across a variety of measures show how successful Just Juice is, 25 years after its launch. The key to this sustained success is a strong continuity of the brand and the creative strategy.
Just like life on a tropical island, Just Juice's future is sunny, happy and upbeat.
ENDNOTES
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