24. 1) What relationships do consumers have with the NFL and Skittles
on game days?
2) Why do consumers gather with each other to watch NFL games?
3) How does the presence of food fit into the NFL game day
experience?
4) Are consumers’ snacking/eating habits while watching the NFL
consistent with their snacking/eating habits in everyday life?
Goals
45. Diets don’t exist when football’s on
Skittles matches the other game
day foods because it’s unhealthy
Show respect by trying all the
dishes
Attendees may have a staple dish
Takeaways
46. “Game days definitely
aren’t like any other day of
the week when I’m
watching portions. I ate
15,000 chips; it’s fine.”
-- Kara
47. “Sunday is kind of a cheat
day for me. It’s a chance
for me to binge, and I feel
like I’m given the right to
eat a lot of wings and
stuff.”
-- John
48. “I’m mindful of what I put in
my body, and I try be a
healthy eater. But on
Sundays, I usually eat an
unlimited amount of food
and find a way to
rationalize it.”
-- Lindsay
49. “All the buzz these days seems to be about eating healthy. For
the most part, I do my best to watch what I eat, but sometimes I
like to turn off the calorie counter and indulge. I’m only on this
planet for a little while, and I’m not gonna spend all my time eating
leaves. Sometimes it’s a Pickleman’s pizza after a night out and
other times it’s a bag of chips while watching House of Cards with
my roomies.”
52. Takeaways
Food is essential to game day
Traditional game day foods are
expected at game day gatherings
Chill Connectors are hesitant to
bring nontraditional dishes
Strong recall of NFL sponsored
food/beer brands
53. “I eat and cook the
traditional foods like wings,
pizza and guac on game
day. Those are the
stereotypical images you
see on TV, and that’s what
people expect to eat.”
-- Athena
54. “When else can I eat
wings, pizza and chips all
in the same sitting? God, I
love America.”
-- Ryan
55. “On Sunday, it’s pretty much a given that the Bears are gonna
lose. Thanks to Cutler, the food usually ends up being the
best part of the day, and I’m left looking forward to the buffalo
chicken dip more than anything. Just like you have to get a hot
dog at a baseball game, my friends and I can’t watch football
without chips and wings.”
58. Takeaways
The game is an excuse to gather
Sundays mean relaxing with friends
Rekindling of family atmosphere
59. “I like watching football,
but my biggest motivator
for gathering to watch
games is that it’s relaxing.
When I think about football
season, I think about chill
Sunday afternoons.”
-- Kara
60. “I’m content and relaxed
while watching football on
Sundays. It’s not like the
rest of the week when I’m
stressed out or worked
up.”
-- Finn
61. “For me, Sundays are an
excuse to relax. I always
look forward to taking
some time to rest.”
-- Sam
62. “During the week I feel like I’m going nonstop. Late nights,
overwhelming projects, countless meetings, all while trying to make
enough money to stay off of the ramen and peanut butter diet.
Sometimes I feel like the Energizer Bunny would have trouble
keeping up with my to-do list. But on Sunday I put it all on the back
burner. My friends have just as much going on as I do, so we all get
together to unwind and take our minds off of next week’s due dates.
Some Sundays we’ll head to the trail for a hike and others we’ll watch
a throwback movie on Netflix. I really don’t know how I’d stay sane
without Sundays and my friends.”
63. Recommendation
Resonate with chill connectors in
their relaxed states
Tone down the obnoxious,
high-strung Skittles personality
Position Skittles as a brand perfect
for the break from life’s day-to-day
craziness
65. Takeaway
Desires to please others are
represented through the dishes
Chill Connectors bring to gatherings
The amount of effort they put into a
dish reflects how much they care
about their friends
People feel guilty if they don’t bring
a dish as elaborate as their friends’
66. “For the Super Bowl, my
friend who was hosting
told me to bring food if I
wanted to eat. I wanted to
bring chips ’cause they’re
easy, but I decided to
bring lemon cookies
instead.”
-- Sam
67. “If I brought LAY’S to
someone’s event, I’d feel
like a douche, especially if
everyone else took time to
prepare a dish.”
-- John
68. “For game day gatherings,
I like to bring something
that’s homemade. I feel
bad if it isn’t.”
-- Athena
69. “Damn. What was I thinking? Everyone else made something to
bring to this watch party, and all I brought was a $2 bag of chips. I
thought this was going to be a chill get together, not an audition
for Iron Chef. Am I even allowed to eat the rest of the food here?
The chips were supposed to be my ticket to the game day feast.
Maybe if I put them next to that homemade seven-layer bean dip,
people will think I took time to make that too.”
70. Recommendation
Equip consumers with recipe ideas
or games for groups to play with
Position Skittles as a thoughtful, fun
choice for a game day
72. Barriers
Skittles has a childish brand
perception
Nontraditional game day food
Flavor mixes poorly with game day
foods
Most packaging is too small for
sharing
75. Central Theme
Chill Connectors create makeshift
families out of their core group of
friends because they are
in-between family units
76. Insights
Calories don’t count at game day
watch parties
There is a set of traditional foods
strongly associated with football
Sunday is set aside for gathering
with a core group of friends
The food people bring to a watch
party is reflective of themselves
77. Rework ads to reflect the relaxed
atmosphere of game day
gatherings
Stay away from health related
branding
Produce team-branded bags
Encourage one ‘Skittles Guy’ to
bring Skittles to each watch party
Equip consumers with recipes to
incorporate Skittles into their game
day spreads
Recommendations
Jackie
Just like Marshawn Lynch, let’s dive right into our research findings.
http://ytcropper.com/cropped/QL5703030725cd3
Jamie
13 to 17 years old
Making awkward transition into adulthood
First hint of independence, still rely on their parents
Raised on technology
Juvenile, goofy, middle school stage
Skittles advertising is awkward enough to be relatable and outlandish and goofy enough to be shared
Jamie: Skittles’ current target market is teens aged 13 to 17 making the awkward transition into young adulthood. They are beginning to think independently and make decisions on their own for the first time, including what to eat and how to express themselves. Skittles serves as a treat for this audience who still eats the PB&J their moms pack them for lunch every day. Raised with electronics, these tech savvy teenagers are easily influenced by social media and rely on it as a source of connection and entertainment. The quirkiness Skittles features in its advertising appeals to their goofy, juvenile sense of humor. The commercials are wacky enough to be shared with friends and awkward enough for them to relate to.
Juvenile, awkward, goofy. Tech savvy, heavy social media users
Jamie
We found very little overlap and interaction between Skittles’ current target consumer and the NFL as a brand
According to a Nielsen report, home viewers between the ages of 2 and 17 make up only 9% of NFL viewership
NFL doesn’t target this group
Creates barrier for Skittles if current advertising is reaching only 9% of NFL market
Twitter, Facebook, website
Impressive following on social
One of the main forms of secondary research we conducted was social listening. We took to the internet to look at how Skittles interacts with consumers on social media, like Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest, and their website.
One thing that struck us immediately was the impressive following that Skittles has on social media. They have almost 350 thousand followers on Twitter and over 25 million facebook likes. This obviously presents a huge opportunity for Skittles to engage with consumers who are not only willing to listen but are seeking out skittles content online.
Most posts are humorous/wacky
Other than football posts, the vast majority of Skittles’ posts on social media used the wacky/outlandish sense of humor that Jamie talked about. On the following slide we’ll see some examples of these posts.
And one key character to this relationship was Marshawn Lynch. He was the one that sparked Skittles partnership with the NFL, and they featured him in a lot of their social media content. Two particularly popular videos were a Home Shopping Network style video featuring Marshawn selling Skittles and a press conference with Marshawn. Both of these videos integrate Skittles’ funny side with the NFL.
Skittles is trying to solidify partnership with NFL
During the NFL season Skittles made sporadic posts about football in order to solidify their partnership with the NFL in the minds of consumers. As you can see in their NFL partnership slogan, “Make game day awesomer,” they still use a wacky sense of humor in their posts about football.
Reflections, starring Steven Tyler
We also noticed a lot of recent posts about Skittles’ reflections campaign which launched with a tv spot during super bowl 50 and starred Steven Tyler. According to AdWeek, this spot had an 86.1 percent engagement rate, making it one of the most talked about spots during the super bowl; however, about half of responses on social media were negative. So Skittles had a great opportunity to engage consumers who were willing to listen, but the execution missed the spot.
But not great reactions...
Clayton
Clayton
People checking phones every now and then throughout game
Some people said they came for the food. In any setting where food is presented, it immediately increases the likelihood of attendance and estimated outcome of fun.
Mindless eating of small items like Skittles and chips. Something consumed while doing another activity (watching game, interacting with friends) Super Bowl ad ran → 3 people grabbing Skittles, didn’t even know it.
High presence of savory foods like pizza and wings. Food contains substance, turns into a full out meal, not just a snack.
Not many desserts at the parties. Maybe some cookies or brownies, but that’s about it. Only candy was brought by us
Skittles don’t mix well when eaten with savory foods with sweet/substance clash. Also, beer.
6 SUPER BOWL PARTIES ATTENDED
After being briefed on the assignment, each team member attended and observed an NFL game day gathering on Super Bowl Sunday. There were many consistent themes and commonalities at each of the events. One of the biggest themes was the importance of food at the gathering. At each event the majority of the food consumed was eaten at the beginning of the game. People could be observed snacking throughout the entire game and were usually doing so while talking to others, not paying attention to what they were consuming. Another similarity was evident in the types of food and drinks that were present. There was an abundance of savory foods like pizza, wings and dips, while there were noticeably less sweets included in the spread. When Skittles were introduced, guests were receptive but felt the flavor didn’t mix well with the other foods or drinks, especially beer. The Skittles were consumed the most if they were presented as a mindless snack near the TV as opposed to being set next to more substantial food items. Another major theme observed at each Super Bowl gathering was the social aspect. Though guests were surrounded by close friends or family, many were tuned into their phones numerous times throughout the game to check social media. Our observations proved to be extremely valuable and provided us many topics to explore more in our discussion guides.
Skittles dont mix well
Clayton
Elaborate on the placement - where were they? What were the rules? What are the obstacles here?
Play jeopardy music
We visited supermarkets and convenience stores around the Columbia area to look at how and where Skittles are displayed compared to its competitors. We found that Skittles tend to be hidden on shelves next to similar chewy candies. The bright bag colors are camouflaged by the vibrant colors of the confectionary industry, with little to differentiate Skittles from any other candy other than its brand recognition.
Maris
Needed to know to know if consumers at NFL game day gatherings are open to trying new, less traditional foods and if they are making health-conscious decisions while watching the game with friends. Our focus group goals then included what is shown on the screen.
We predicted these gatherings revolved around the food, the actual game or the social experience with friends. We hoped to find overlap between consumers’ desires to watch the NFL in groups and eat Skittles.
We also envisioned Skittles having a hard time fitting in with traditional game day foods like pizza, chips, wings and dips. The millennial trend toward healthy eating led us to wonder if there would even be room for the confections category at game day viewing parties.
Derek
We sought to speak with men and women aged 19-36 who had either hosted or attended an NFL game day gathering during the 2015-2016 season.
Respondents who had attended an event(s) and bought Skittles would be placed into focus groups held in our living rooms.
Respondents who had hosted an NFL watch party would receive an in-depth interview in a private room at the MU Student Center.
Need some statistics about the number of responses we received, how many people qualified, how many were willing to be interviewed, etc..
The screener was distributed through social media and direct messaging among our social groups.
Talk about how people had fun, what was it like when we were in the living room focus groups? Why did we choose to do this type of focus group? What did it add?
We chose living room focus groups to grasp more of a home viewership feel. Participants felt more open to talking about what they believe in a more relaxed environment.
We provided bottled water and Domino’s pizza. We prefaced before each session that this was an open conversation and to please make yourself at home. Once they entered one of our homes, we moved chairs and couches around in a circle with the TV on (usually ESPN was on). There were no complaints at all from participants. Once we began the focus group, we turned off the TV and conducted our research. We switched off who was moderator each time and there were a couple of note takers at each session (usually 2 or 3) At the end of the night, we would debrief for about an hour and consolidate and organize our notes.
Derek
Jackie
Pizza, chicken wings = most common
Almost all had chips and dip of varying kinds
Very few sweets, if mentioned they were brownies and cookies
Inclusion of signature dishes - fudgecicles, payday bars, lemon bars, pinwheel, etc. Tater tot hot dish on slide
People expect signature dishes
Will try it to be polite if its a strange food
Jackie
Jamie
Jamie
Jamie: But do these people want Skittles people at their watch parties? We’ll let Marshawn answer this one:
Maris:...No. Most people were afraid that Skittles would be too high energy and annoying at their watch parties. They described the scene like someone else’s child intruding on their adult time.
Skittles is who you want to be with on Friday and Saturday nights, not Sunday afternoons.
Maris
Maris
Maris
Clayton
Drumroll please...
Jackie
Jackie
Set aside Sunday afternoon to relax and indulge with their friends.
Diets during the week, pig out during watch parties.
Mindless eating - relate back to
release in ignoring health concerns for an afternoon - No amoun
Maris
Connor
Jamie
Jackie
Jackie
Connor
Connor
Food is absolutely essential to game day and is central to the home viewing experience. The food is a huge motivator for people to attend game day gatherings, and for some people it was an even greater motivation than the game itself.
Going back to what Jamie said earlier with our game day spread interactive technique, there is a set of traditional game day foods that are at the top of consumers’ minds.
Aside from the friend who will bring a novel food item, most Chill Connectors are hesitant to bring nontraditional dishes to their game day watch parties. They bring foods that are expected on football Sundays and that they know their friends will enjoy. It goes back to bringing something that their family of friends will enjoy eating.
The final takeaway for this insight is that during our primary research we found that participants have a strong recall of NFL sponsored food and beer brands, like Bud Light, Papa John’s and Tostitos. And sometimes they referenced these brands without even realizing they had done so. This is important because it shows how effective NFL sponsorship and advertising during game day can make brands become a central piece of the traditional game day set.
This leads into our recommendation...
Jamie
Clayton
Connor
Connor
We recommend that Skittles use team-specific packaging to solidify the brand as an NFL sponsor in consumers’ minds and as a member of the traditional set of foods.
This is something that Skittles experimented with with the Seahawks after they won Super Bowl 49. It was a hit with fans, who posted a lot of pictures of the packaging on social media.
NFL watchers know the official NFL foods and drinks because they are exposed to NFL advertising while watching the teams they love. We recommend Skittles use the NFL shield and team branding on packaging to distinguish Skittles as the official confectionery treat. By further establishing Skittles as the NFL candy, the brand can become synonymous with game day gatherings, like other NFL brands. This will drive consumers to add Skittles to their shopping carts on game day.
Clayton
Clayton
Jamie
Connor
Derek
Clayton
Bold important words in insight
Even though the NFL game is the reason for gathering, our target market comes to watch parties to see their friends. In our research groups, interviewees consistently described the game as an excuse to gather, a secondary event compared to the fun they anticipate having with their friends. They gather for the opportunity to experience something together. Our market will continue to get together for other activities after the NFL season has ended, demonstrating their desire to be with friends is stronger than their desire to watch football. NFL games provide a constant, frequent opportunity for gathering, whereas other activities throughout the year are not as planned out.
Our target market collectively sets aside Sundays for relaxation with their friends as a way to recharge before going back to work and/or school the next day. Friday and Saturday are often reserved for outings with friends and late-night partying. Sunday, however, our market makes an unspoken promise to keep reserved for relaxation with their core group of friends. It’s a day to look forward to, regardless of whether or not it’s football season, because it’s one of the few times during the week that they get to unwind and rest with their friends. This concept of Sunday as a day of rest is something that came up frequently in our primary research. At a life stage when most people are living away from family members, it feels nice to come together with best friends who feel like family in a setting that feels like home.
Clayton
Skittles traditional, outrageous and comically inappropriate advertising creates a tension in this chill part of chill connector’s weeks.
Talk about how Stephen Tyler does not align with this focus group. Not relatable, not funny. Just stupid.
Derek
Derek
guilt
There are certain pressures that come with a game day gathering in regard to living up to friends’ expectations
The more personal the touch on a particular dish, the more confident these consumers feel inside.
The more effort, the more likely a person will be invited back to the same party next season.
Therefore...
Clayton
Connor
Jackie
Derek
After speaking with the target market, we found that there is a conscious thought process behind what someone brings to a game day viewing event.
The people they’re gathering with are important to them, and they don’t want to disappoint anyone.
They feel the level of effort required to cook, bake, assemble or purchase the food they brought is a reflection of how much they care about the people at the party.
No one would kick them out for bringing something simple or even neglecting to bring anything at all, but our target feels internally guilty regardless of their friends’ reactions. The embarrassment of bringing a dish with an effort level well below that of the rest of their makeshift family is an intimidating motivator.
Furthermore, bringing food represents a contribution to the game day feast, which makes our target feel entitled to partake in the rest of the shared food. If they neglect to bring something or bring something below par, they might abstain from indulging in the party food.
Derek
Paper football-type game with Skittles where there is a plastic kicker with pullback leg that launches Skittles through a field goal post or into your friends’ mouths
Recipes
Skittles rice-krispy treats, etc.
