Marketing PlanWhat To Do: My topic is BudweiserFinish the marketing plan you began in Week 2 and wow your internship bosses!How to Do itCreate an APA style formatted Word document that includes at lea

Marketing Plan

Janquetta Wright

BUS 330 Principles of Marketing

Shiquita Blue

May 3, 2019

Budweiser is one of the biggest beer brands in the world. This brand was developed in 1876 by Anheuser-Busch. Over the years the brand has achieved success internationally under the company’s watch. The brand is one of best selling beers in the US. The company advertises this brand heavily across the world. In 2012 the company expended more than $449 in the US for marketing the brand which made it the highest advertised drink brand in the country. In 2018, global brand sales rose by 5.3%and in Brazil sales rose by 25%. During the 2018 FIFA world cup, Budweiser was the highest trending brand on digital and social media (Heath, 2016).

Budweiser has a wide range of products which over the years has given the brand an edge in the market. Anheuser-Busch produces several different drinks in addition to the regular Budweiser including Budweiser select Bud light lime, Bud light Apple, Bud light platinum, Bud extra and bud dry among others (Toko & Tahara, 2016). While bud light is a heavy drink, Bud light platinum is a lighter and slightly sweeter version of the earlier. As a result of the increases in wheat beers, the brand developed bud light golden wheat in 2009. However it’s production seized in 2012 after failing to achieve market objectives.

Budweiser was created in 1876 by E. Anheuser Brewing Association. In 1879 the company was renamed to Anheuser-Busch. As the decades flew by the brand continued to gain firm market grip. Budweiser became an icon among Americans. However the name Budweiser brought some controversy as another company in Czech was using the same name for their brand. According to the Czech company, their local beer had used the name for many years. This prevented Anheuser-Busch from using the name in many regions and instead using the name “BUD” in those markets. The trademarks issues between Budvar and Anheuser-Busch still exist even today (Ashenfelter, Hosken & Weinberg, 2015).

Budweiser have many competitors both locally and internationally. They include Nazdar, Beer Bong, SABMiller, Veuve Clicquot, Pabst Brewing, Diageo, Miller, Coors, and Corona Extra. These companies have developed products that have come head to head with Budweiser products. Their rapid innovations and introduction of new products in the market together with their financial strengths is a great threat to Budweiser. Currently Budweiser is the fourth best selling beer in the US having been overtaken by Miller. This is the first time since 1970’s that the brand has not cracked the top three bestselling beers. The competitors are working very hard to grow their market share which significantly affects Budweiser (Cabras, Higgins & Preece, 2016).

Budweiser has various strengths including huge distribution channels, strong brand name and has more than a century’s experience in the industry. The brand also has a huge presence across the globe. Anheuser Busch sell their products I more than eighty countries across the world. The company also has strong work culture with the focal point being its transformational power. Some of the major weaknesses of the brand include poor organic growth, grabbing of millennial market, merging of top brand and a rise of the dollar. The merger between Groupo Modelo and Anheuser Busch pose a great challenge since the two organizations have wide differences in their culture.

Budweiser has the opportunity of growing craft beer. Creation of craft beer will increase market scope for the brand and improve the organization’s overall efficiency. The company can also improve their operations in international markets and reduce its overreliance in the US market. Social media and online marketing has increased awareness for foreign brands. This can help Budweiser to look for new markets in Africa and Asia (Pokrivčák et al., 2019). One of the major threats facing the brand is competition. Budweiser faces significant competition from Heineken, fosters as well as millers. The rising cost of production is a great threat to Budweiser profitability. Since the company operates in many countries, currency fluctuation may affect its operations.

The product that I would like to develop a marketing plan for is Bud light apple. This product has a natural flavor of apple and therefore will give customers the natural taste they have been looking for. Since it customers are used to the Bud light platinum, this new products need marketing to gain market momentum. It could help the company to diversify its market hence good net returns. Due to its natural flavor, it will help Anheuser Busch to have an edge over their competitors in the market. This product also has a sweet finish that most people like and if well marketed it can gain market grip in a very short period of time.

References

Heath, C. (2016). The Budweiser cases: Geographical Indications v trademarks. In Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Geographical Indications. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Toko, K., & Tahara, Y. (2016). Beer Analysis Using an Electronic Tongue. In Electronic Noses and Tongues in Food Science (pp. 161-170). Academic Press.

Cabras, I., Higgins, D., & Preece, D. (Eds.). (2016). Brewing, Beer and Pubs: A global perspective. Springer.

Pokrivčák, J., Supeková, S. C., Lančarič, D., Savov, R., Toth, M., & Vašina, R. (2019). Development of beer industry and craft beer expansion. Journal of Food & Nutrition Research, 58(1).

Ashenfelter, O. C., Hosken, D. S., & Weinberg, M. C. (2015). Efficiencies brewed: pricing and consolidation in the US beer industry. The RAND Journal of Economics, 46(2), 328-361.