3. 1
INTRODUCTION
In today’s marketing world, new products are constantly being introduced. Companies
pride themselves on innovation and uniqueness, and strive to be the pinnacle of their perspective
market. One target clientele that is often overlooked is college students. College students are an
interesting niche because they are pressed for time and money, but desire high quality and
effective products. Our goal is to penetrate the market with an innovative product that can supply
college students with a commodity they need.
Today’s students are constantly on the go. Between classes, work, family obligations, and
social activities students need to be active and alert at all times. However, because of their hectic
schedules, students often turn to energy drinks to stay awake and skip meals due to lack of free
time. Additionally, students need something they can consume quickly and on a budget.
Knowing this, we are considering marketing a new nutrition bar by Red Bull named Red
Bull O.N.Ewhich stands for Optimal Nutritional Experience. Red Bull O.N.E. is a line
extension of the energy drink Red Bull, and it is a great fit in the company structure. Red Bull is
a company that encourages high energy adventure and activity, and Red Bull O.N.E. is the
perfect product to encourage this. Red Bull O.N.E. will only enhance the company’s reputation
and popularity because it will provide the same energy boost as the drink, but have the additional
benefits as previously mentioned. The nutrients and proteins will also be an added bonus to
consumers who need energy and nutrition while on the go. Therefore, the mission of this new
nutrition bar is to provide a unique, convenient, healthy, yet high quality bar at a reasonable price
for college student.
4. 2
FOCUS GROUPS/IN-DEPTH INTERVIEWS
Background
Our target market is college students who prefer nutrition bars as snacks or meal
replacements as opposed to other food options throughout the day. Our product is unique to other
nutrition bars on the market because Red Bull O.N.E. is a high quality nutrition bar with the
added benefit of giving energy at a reasonable price. A major difference of this new nutrition bar
compared to other brands, is that it contains energy and would be produced by the reputable Red
Bull Company. Each bar would weigh, .95 oz., the same as an average nutrition bar, and also
provide the same amount of energy as an 8 oz. Red Bull can. Although this new product could
potentially have a slightly higher than other brands, college students could benefit from saving
money by buying a product that combines nutrition and energy together. Therefore, students
would no longer have to purchase both an energy drink and a nutrition bar, as they could
purchase the all-inclusive Red Bull O.N.E. nutrition bar.
The first aspect of our data collection included our qualitative data, which consisted of
focus groups and in-depth interviews. The objective of the focus groups and in-depth interviews
was to measure how appealing this new product was to our target market as well as to gather
information about customer perspectives and opinions about this new product. The market
research we conducted required respondents to inform us about factors that would affect an
average college student in the decision making process of buying a nutrition bar.
Method
To begin our focus group and in-depth interviews, we had to dive deep into the thought
process of what we were actually looking to find from our research. We spent an ample amount
of time working together and exploring possible discussion questions, yet we found this part to
5. 3
be the most challenging. We ran into a bit of a road block when we had a number of good
questions, but had not constructed the moderator guide in the appropriate way to have the
interview flow properly. We then had to sit down and rewrite our moderator guide in order to
improve the comprehension as well as the results. Throughout this process, we began to
familiarize ourselves with our product so that we can have a greater understanding of what we
wanted to retrieve from our research.
For our focus groups and in-depth interviews, we created a screening process to recruit
those best fit for the interviews. First, to qualify respondents were required to currently be
attending college, at least part time, and fall between the ages of 18-28. Since our product is a
nutrition bar with added energy, the respondents were required to have had consumed at least
one cup of coffee or one energy drink within the last week. Additionally, respondents were
required to have eaten a nutrition bar in the last 30 days before the screening to qualify. This
allowed us to eliminate those who would likely not be interested in trying the product.
We conducted two focus groups consisting of eight and six people in each group, and
eighteen in-depth interviews. The eighteen different interviews were conducted in the library
throughout different times of the day. We did this to attempt to confirm that the information was
unbiased from the time of the day the interview was administered. However, both of our focus
groups were conducted around the same time, later in the evening. We found this to be the best
method to keep our results similar to one another. The moderator guide used for our focus groups
and for our in-depth interviews can be found below.
6. 4
Focus Group/In-Depth Interview Screener
Hello, I’m ________ and I am doing a survey on energy bars for a Market Research class and
I’d like to ask you some questions.
1. In which of the following age groups do you fall?
Under 18……….(TERMINATE)
18-28……………( )
29 and over…….(TERMINATE)
2. Are you a…
□ Full-time college student
□ A part-time college student
□ Not attending college at all (TERMINATE)
3. In the past week, how many times have you had these products?
(TERMINATE IF THEY HAVE HAD LESS THAN 1 OF THESE PRODUCTS)
-Energy drinks _______
-Coffee _______
4. When was the last time you ate a nutrition bar ?
❏ Past week
❏ Past month
❏ Past six months (TERMINATE)
5. RECORD GENDER: Male….. Female…..
NAME OF RESPONDENT_______________________ PHONE #_________________
DATE OF INTERVIEW________________________________
INTERVIEWER NAME_______________________
7. 5
Focus Group/In-Depth Interview Questionnaire
RED BULL O.N.E
RED BULL ONE
Optimal-Nutritional-Experience
Warm-up (10 minutes)
Go around the group and identify yourself:
Name, what gender you identify with. What year are you, major, which energy source
most used, and why
Consumption of Coffee & Energy Drink (15 minutes)
1. How many times in a week do you consume coffee?
2. When and where do you consume coffee?
3. What do you like and dislike about coffee?
4. How many times in a week do you consume energy drinks?
5. When and where do you consume energy drinks?
6. What do you like and dislike about energy drinks?
7. When you purchase energy drinks, which brands do you normally buy?
8. (ONCE RED BULL IS MENTIONED) What do you think about Red Bull?
9. What do you like and dislike about Red Bull?
10. How often do you use energy drinks to stimulate your mind/brain, attention level, and to
stay awake?
Consumption of Nutrition Bars (20 minutes)
1. Do you skip meals? How often?
2. PROBE: WHY? WHAT IS YOUR REPLACEMENT MEAL?
3. When you purchase nutrition bars, what benefits do you look for?
4. How many times in a week do you consume nutrition bars?
5. When and where do you consume nutrition bars?
6. What do you like and dislike about nutrition bars?
8. 6
Introduction of New Product (60 minutes)
Red Bull is thinking about introducing a new product called Red Bull O.N.E. (Optimal
Nutritional Experience). This would be a nutrition bar that provides vitamins, protein,
electrolytes as well as energy to its consumers. Each bar weighing .95 oz., the same as an
average nutrition bar, and providing the same amount of energy as an 8 oz. Red Bull can.
1. What is your reaction to this new product idea? Would you be interested in trying it?
2. What would you like about the product?
3. What concerns do you have about this new product?
4. Would it matter if the bar was low calorie or high?
5. Would you prefer the product to be a snack or meal replacement?
6. What comes to mind when you hear, Red Bull O.N.E.? (PROBE: Is there any
confusion with this product name? Does this Product name make you think of any
other products?
7. If a regular nutrition bar costs $2.49, what do you think this one should cost?
8. PROBE: IS THIS PRICE YOU’VE SUGGESTED REASONABLE FOR YOUR
BUDGET?
9. Who would this nutrition bar target best? (PROBE: Adults, athletes, students, kids?
Why?)
10. How could this product be adjusted to better benefit college students?
11. Where on campus would you like to see Red Bull O.N.E. available? (PROBE: coffee
shop, SRC, vending machines in buildings, etc.)
9. 7
Findings
During our focus groups and in-depth interviews we began our survey with a list of
question related to our new product. At first, we asked general questions and gradually became
more specific as the survey continued. We started with coffee and energy drink consumption,
then moved on to inquiries about nutrition bar consumption, meal replacements, and names.
Some common questions that we discussed during interviews included when and why
respondents consume coffee and energy drinks. The majority of respondents usually consumed
coffee and energy drinks in the mornings, throughout the school or work day, or in the evenings.
Respondents noted they consumed coffee or energy drinks to wake up and feel more alert or to
have more energy throughout long and strenuous day. Additionally, when we asked our
respondents what they like and dislike about coffee and energy drinks most noted they enjoyed
the taste, the boost they felt after consumption, and how it would help them stay awake.
Conversely, respondents noted they disliked the crash, certain ingredients, such as taurine, and
initial taste of coffee without adding flavor.
Next, respondents were asked when and why they consume nutrition bars and what they
like and dislike about nutrition bars. Virtually all respondents consumed nutrition bars during the
day, between and during classes, or before work. Most respondents also mentioned they
consumed nutrition bars because they are a quick and easy option that is healthier than other
snacks. Additionally, respondents said they eat nutrition bars because it is portable, easy to eat on
the go, and healthy. While the complaints about nutrition bars were minimal, the dislikes
included: the small size, the chewiness, or the dryness of the bar.
Furthermore, we asked our respondents how often they skip meals, and when they do
what they eat as their replacement meal. Virtually all respondents answered that they skip at least
10. 8
one meal a week. A majority of our respondents indicated they skip breakfast on a daily basis;
and many mentioned they skip lunch. Most respondents shared they eat nutrition bars to maintain
energy, while others mentioned they ate fruit, chips, and yogurt. This is very important
information for our product because we were able to decipher that since a vast majority consume
nutrition bars, they will be more willing to try Red Bull O.N.E.. Moreover, we also wanted to
clarify the reason why they usually skip meals and why they decide to eat nutrition bars. Our
participants explained that they do not have enough time to prepare meal in the morning or do
not have time to eat between classes. Another reason they usually consume nutrition bars
because it is a healthier option compared to other snacks available on-the-go, and is cheaper than
purchasing an entire meal.
Lastly, our group was concerned about how appealing this new product name was to our
target market when introducing our new product. After collecting our findings, we did realize
that many respondents were confused by the name of Red Bull O.N.E. Some respondents
confused the product with a Red Bull sponsored event, and many correlated the name to a new
Red Bull drink. Additionally, some respondents even understood the meaning incorrectly, and
would think that Red Bull O.N.E. was actually “Red Bull won”. However, once the name was
properly explained and consumers understood the product as Red Bull O.N.E., Optimal
Nutritional Experience, the confusion lessened.
Implications for Future Research
As we finished our focus groups and in-depth interviews we started to observe that there
were quite a few common comments that were being mentioned throughout these interviews. We
took these comments into consideration for when we were preparing the attitude and usage study
questionnaire. Our group realized that it was very important during our focus groups, to read the
11. 9
moderator guide as was written. At times, we found ourselves summarizing questions and the
respondents getting confused. So, we learned that for the in-depth interviews and further studies
to read the guide verbatim.
Collectively, we found there were some attributes of the product that we wanted more
students’ opinions about. The main attributes were the price and the name. We realized
throughout our interviews that some of our interviewees either didn’t understand the product
name or had a better idea for one, so we wanted to take these into consideration. As for the price,
we found that people in the focus groups and in-depth interviews always knew the highest price
that they were willing to pay, we wanted to further continue this research to better understand
what a reasonable price for a college student would be. Lastly, we were very curious to further
investigate the reason these students were eating the nutrition bars, whether it be a snack or a
meal replacement and why. Although the focus groups and in-depth interviews were excellent
groundwork for the future studies, there was still more data to be found.
Implications for Product Development
From the results previously discussed, our research has implicated that there can be
improvements in both product development and marketing strategies. Throughout the course of
our focus groups and in-depth interviews, we found that there are a few features we can alter to
enhance our product, and several qualities we can stress during advertising.
One aspect of our product that our respondents responded negatively to was certain
ingredients in Red Bull O.N.E., most specifically the taurine. Most respondents mentioned that
they did not like that this was an ingredient in the product, and that it would be a negative
component in their purchasing decision. Our solution for this is to possibly work with nutrition
consultants, to either lessen the unnatural ingredients or to find a healthier replacement option.
12. 10
Additionally, respondents were concerned with how effective the energy stimulant
would be, and if they would feel a “crash” hours after consumption. In order to ease these
concerns, we would try to market Red Bull O.N.E. as a nutrition bar, with the added benefit of an
energy boost, not just an energy bar. With this marketing direction, we believe our consumers
will focus more on the overall benefits of the product, and not dwell on one minute detail that
would not affect all consumers.
Furthermore, one aspect that received mixed results was the actual name of the product.
While we will break down the quantitative data further in this report, it is important to give
background information on the issue. Some respondents had an issue with the name Red Bull
O.N.E. because it emphasized Red Bull. Whether respondents liked or disliked Red Bull, most
commented that while they did associate energy with the brand, they did not associate health and
wellness. Therefore, some consumers may be less attracted to the product because they would
immediately think it was unhealthy because of brand association. Our solution to this is to
possibly edit the name or perhaps just switch the order and present the bar as O.N.E., and then
write “by Red Bull” in smaller print below.
As an overall adjustment, we would plan to make Red Bull O.N.E. as healthy as possible,
while still including the energy boost. With that alteration, consumers would be more inclined to
purchase Red Bull O.N.E. because their main concern with the product would be eliminated.
Although we have listed a few areas for improvement, the majority of the research collected in
our focus groups and in-depth interviews was positive. Most respondents would indeed be
interested in trying Red Bull O.N.E..
13. 11
AWARENESS, ATTITUDE & USAGE STUDY
Background
After conducting our qualitative research, which included both focus groups and in-depth
interviews; we concluded that the findings were both very similar. In order to make sure that our
findings would produce the proper results, we decided to conduct our focus groups first,
followed by the in-depth interviews. That way, if there were any changes to be made, we would
be able to alter our questionnaire to further support or contradict the findings made in our
research. In our case, no change was necessary.
During both our focus groups and in-depth interviews, there were a few common
concerns amongst our respondents. For example, many were concerned about how the bar would
taste, as well as the flavors it would come in. Another concern our respondents showed was the
difficulty and interpretation of our product name. Therefore, we decided to ask these questions in
our attitude and usage study to clarify the miscommunications and concerns that are respondents
showed. In order to put out the best product, we decided to ask inquiries pertaining brand
familiarity about different energy drinks as well as different nutrition bars. Another question we
wanted answered was if Red Bull O.N.E. should be marketed as a snack or meal replacement.
Furthermore, we wanted to find out where most students purchased nutrition bars. The goal of
the attitude and usage study was to determine the consumers’ likes and dislikes about Red Bull
O.N.E., so that we can gather enough information to produce the best possible product.
Method
Similarly to our focus groups and in-depth interviews, our awareness, attitude, and usage
study was also very intricate. The first and one of the most pertinent steps was to decide who
qualified for this study. To find proper candidates we used a screener, where we asked questions
14. 12
to understand not only background information on the respondent, but also tendencies that
correlate to our experiment. In order to qualify, respondents had to have no affiliation with any
market research company, advertising company, or any company that made or distributed
nutrition bars and energy drinks. Additionally, we inquired about respondent’s age, current
education status, as well as their gender. The final question on our screener asks how often the
respondent had consumed coffee, energy drinks, and nutrition bars in the past week. If the
respondent had not consumed nutrition bars and either coffee or energy drinks he or she was
terminated from our study.
Each member of our team conducted four awareness, attitude, and usage study
questionnaires, which gave us a total of twenty four interview samples. All interviews were
conducted during April of 2014, spanning over the course of about ten days. The interviews were
mostly held in the afternoon, right around the time of the typical “3 PM crash.” Other interviews
were held later in the evening, when respondents were exhausted from a full day of school and
work. We felt it would be best to conduct our interviews on the CSUN campus, where students
would be in their natural environment. These interviews gave us great insight on our product,
and our quantitative research below expresses our results.
15. 13
Awareness, Attitude, & Usage Screener
Hello, I’m ____ from _____ and I am doing a survey on food products for a Market Research class and I’d like
to ask you some questions.
Do you or anyone in your household work for any of the following types of companies?
(READ LIST, AND TERMINATE IF “Yes” TO ANY)
A market research company
An advertising company
A company that makes or distributes nutrition bars
A company that makes or distributes energy drinks
1. In which of the following age groups do you fall?
Under 18……….(TERMINATE)
18-28……………( )
29 and over…….(TERMINATE)
2. Are you a…
□ Full-time college student
□ A part-time college student
□ Not attending college at all (TERMINATE)
3. In the past week, how many times have you had each these products?
(TERMINATE IF THEY HAVE NOT HAD NUTRITION BARS AND EITHER ENERGY
DRINKS OR COFFEE)
-Energy drinks _______
-Coffee _______
-Nutrition Bars _______
4. RECORD GENDER: Male….. Female…..
NAME OF RESPONDENT_______________________ PHONE #_________________
DATE OF INTERVIEW________________________________
INTERVIEWER NAME_______________________
16. 14
Awareness, Attitude & Usage Questionnaire
1a. Now I’d like to ask you to name all the brands of energy drinks you can think of. (DO NOT READ LIST.
RECORD ONLY FIRST BRAND MENTIONED UNDER “Mention First” BELOW. RECORD ALL
OTHER BRANDS UNDER “Other unaided”)
1b. What other brands can you think of? (RECORD “Other unaided”)
1c. Have you ever heard of any of the following brands of energy drinks? (READ BRANDS NOT
MENTIONED. RECORD BRANDS HEARD OF UNDER “Ever Heard”)
1d. In the past year have you purchased any of the following brands of energy drinks? (READ BRANDS.
ONLY READ IF RESPONDENT IS AWARE OF THE BRAND IN Q. 1a, 1b, OR 1c. IF PURCHASED,
RECORD UNDER “Purchased”
Mention Other Ever
First Unaided Heard Purchased
Red Bull…………………… ( )...........................( )…..……………. ( )…..……………( )
Monster………………………( )...........................( )…..…………… . ( )…..……………( )
Rockstar…………………… ( )...........................( )…..……………. ( )…..……………( )
NOS………………………….( )...........................( )…..……………. ( )…..……………( )
Amp………………………….( )...........................( )…..…………….. ( )…..……………( )
Full Throttle………………… ( )...........................( )…..……………..( )…..…………… ( )
Xyience Xenergy.………….. ( )...........................( )…..……………. ( )…..………… … ( )
Other __________ __________ __________
__________ __________ __________
2. (ASK FOR EACH BRAND BELOW THAT RESPONDENT IS AWARE OF IN Q. 1a-c) How familiar
would you say you are with each of the following energy drink brands in terms of knowing what they are like –
very familiar, quite familiar, somewhat familiar, not too familiar, or not at all familiar? How familiar are you
with … (READ BRAND NAME)
Very Quite Somewhat Not too Not at all
Familiar Familiar Familiar Familiar Familiar
Red Bull………………………( )...................( )…..…………..( )…..………… …( )…..………( )
Monster…………………........( )....................( )…..…………..( )…..…………… ( )…..………( )
Rockstar…………………...…( )....................( )…..……….….( )…..………… .. .( )…..……….( )
NOS……………………….... ( )....................( )…..……...……( )…..……………( )…..……….( )
Amp………………………... .( )....................( )…..………… ( )…..……………( )…..……….( )
Full Throttle………………….( )....................( )…..………… ( )…..……………( )…..……….( )
Xyience Xenergy.………….. .( )....................( )…..………… ( )…..………… ( )…..…….…( )
3) What are your thoughts and feelings about the Red Bull Brand?
4) When you think about Red Bull, what comes to mind? (PROBE: What do you know about Red Bull?)
17. 15
5) What are some familiar brands of nutrition bars?
6) What brand of nutrition bars do you personally purchase?
7) Why do you purchase this brand over any others?
(PROBE: What do you look for when purchasing nutrition bars?)
8) When and where do you most often eat nutrition bars?
9) Why do you choose to eat nutrition bars?
Energy drink company Red Bull is planning to release a new product line of nutrition bars with the added
benefit of giving you energy. The product would be in flavors such as Raspberry, Chocolate, and Peanut Butter.
Ingredients would include vitamin b, taurine, sugar, artificial flavoring, protein, fiber, nuts, oats, honey, all
depending on the bar flavor purchased. The nutrition bar would comparable in size and price to other nutrition
bars on the market.
Based on the information I just provided you, I’d like to ask you some questions.
10) Based on the description of the Red Bull energy bar, and what you already know of the Red Bull
company, how interested would you be in trying this new nutrition bar?
Using a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 means not interested and 10 being really interested. You can use any number
between 1 and 10. Now, how interested are you in trying the new red bull energy bar?
11) Based on the information provided to you, and what you already know about Red Bull products,
what do you think you would like about the new nutrition bar? (What else would you like?)
12) Based on the information provided to you, and what you already know about Red Bull products, what do
you think you would dislike or be concerned with about the new nutrition bar?(What else would you dislike?)
13). Now I’m going to read you some statements about these new Red Bull nutrition bars, and based on what
your impression of these new nutritional bar as well as your previous experience I’d like you to tell me how
much you agree or disagree with each one by using a 10 point scale where “1” means you disagree completely
and “10” means you agree completely. You can use any number from 1 to 10.
18. 16
14a. How would you rate it on (READ FIRST STATEMENT)?
14b. Now let’s go to the next statement. (READ NEXT STATEMENT). How much do you agree or disagree
that the product (STATEMENT)?
14c. REPEAT Q.14b UNTIL ALL STATEMENTS ARE RATED.
( ) Comes in several varieties of flavors _____
( ) Is a high quality nutrition bar _____
( ) How it’s convenient at school _____
( ) Good value for the money _____
( ) Is a nutrition bar you’d buy or serve when you really want to impress someone _____
( ) Is healthy for you _____
( ) is a product college students would like _____
( ) provides an energy boost _____
( ) different from other energy bars _____
( ) taste good _____
( ) Is convenient for replacing meal _____
15a. Now I’d like to know how interested you are in each of the flavors they are considering. So, for each
flavor I mention, please tell me if you are very interested, quite interested, somewhat interested, not very
interested, or not at all interested in trying that flavor. Let’s start with (X’D FLAVOR BELOW) How
interested are you in trying the (FLAVOR) of Red Bull nutrition bar- very interested, quite interested,
somewhat interested, not very interested, or not at all interested?
15b. And how interested are you in trying the (OTHER FLAVOR) of Red Bull nutrition bar.-- very interested,
quite interested, somewhat interested, not very interested, or not at all interested?
15c. And how interested are you in trying the (OTHER FLAVOR) of Red Bull nutrition bar.-- very interested,
quite interested, somewhat interested, not very interested, or not at all interested?
Raspberry
( ) Very interested
( ) Quite interested
( ) Somewhat interested
( ) Not very interested
( ) Not at all interested
19. 17
Chocolate
( ) Very interested
( ) Quite interested
( ) Somewhat interested
( ) Not very interested
( ) Not at all interested
Peanut Butter
( ) Very interested
( ) Quite interested
( ) Somewhat interested
( ) Not very interested
( ) Not at all interested
Some different names are being considered for our new Red Bull nutrition bar. I’m going to read each of these
names, and for each one, please let me know how much this name appeals to you. We’ll use a scale from 1 to
10, where a 1 means does not appeal at all, and a 10 means appeals a great deal. You can use any number from
1 to 10. Here is the first name (READ NAME).How much does it appeal to you from 1 to 10? (RECORD
BELOW)
16. How much does (READ NEXT NAME) appeal to you, from 1 to 10? (CONTINUE UNTIL ALL
NAMES HAVE BEEN ASKED ABOUT)
( ) Red Bull O.N.E., O.N.E. standing for (Optimal Nutrition Experience) ___
( ) Red Bull Flex ___
( ) Red Bull Fuel Bar ___
( ) Red Bull Active Bar ___
( ) Red Bull Grab-a-Bull ___
17a. In the past week, what is your best estimate of the number of nutrition bars you’ve personally purchased?
(GET SPECIFIC NUMBER, NOT A RANGE)
17b. Out of the total of (NUMBER IN Q. 19a) nutrition bars you bought in the past month, how many were
used for each of the following purposes? (THE TOTAL NUMBER MUST EQUAL THE NUMBER IN
Q.10a)
As a snack ……………………………..._____
As a meal replacement………………………….._____
All other reasons…………………………………._____
20. 18
17c. And the total of (NUMBER IN Q.19a) nutrition bars you bought in the past month, how many were
purchased from each of the following sources? (TOTAL NUMBER MUS ADD TO THE NUMBER IN
Q.10a)
A convenience store, such as 7-11……………….________
A supermarket……………………………………....________
In a gym or fitness center………………………….________
Vending machine……………….…………………..________
All other sources…………………………………....________
17d. Of the total of (NUMBER IN Q.19a) nutrition bars you bought in the past month, how many were
enhanced with extra protein or other nutrients? (GET A SPECIFIC AMOUNT, NOT A RANGE)
21. 19
Findings
During our awareness, attitude, and usage study; we asked informants to rate various
questions about their attitudes toward Red Bull O.N.E., in addition to specific product and name
attributes. First, we wanted to get an idea if people knew the Red Bull brand and to gauge its
popularity. We asked informants to name several energy drinks and recorded their answers,
specifically which energy drink they mentioned first. After tabulating our findings, the results
showed that 50% of our respondents mentioned Red Bull first. This information is important to
us because it showed that Red Bull is a popular brand that can support a line extension.
Additionally, we asked respondents which energy drinks they purchased and recorded the results.
The findings showed that 83% of our respondents purchased Rock Star followed by 63%
purchasing Red Bull. Although more respondents purchased Rock Star, we believe the data
shown is skewed because you cannot purchase Red Bull on the CSUN campus. Surprisingly, Red
Bull did come in second with 63%, showing that respondents still willing to purchase Red Bull
and bringing it to campus. The following graph shows the results.
22. 20
Next we asked respondents about their familiarity with various brands of energy drinks.
We included specific brands mentioned during our focus groups and in-depth interviews. The
purpose of these findings was to measure brand familiarity amongst our respondents. We asked
our respondents to rate each brand from very familiar, quite familiar, somewhat familiar, not too
familiar, and not at all familiar. The results shown below tabulated that 71% of respondents were
very familiar with Red Bull, followed by 63% with Monster, and 54% with Rock Star.
After getting a good idea about respondents’ familiarity with the different brands of
energy drinks, we asked our informants various questions regarding nutrition bar consumption.
In our awareness, attitude and usage study, we asked informants how many bars a week they ate.
Following this question, we asked informants where they purchased these nutrition bars. Another
important question we asked was if our informants ate nutrition bars as a snack, meal
replacement or for another use. This was important because during our focus groups and in-depth
23. 21
interviews; we found that many students skipped at least one meal a day. After tabulating our
findings, the results showed that out of the nutrition bars eaten: 74% were purchased at a
supermarket followed by 23% at a convenience store. Furthermore, 63% of respondents ate a
nutrition bar as a snack and 28% as a meal replacement. The following graphs show our
tabulated results.
24. 22
During our focus groups and in-depth interviews, many respondents showed concern
about how Red Bull O.N.E. would taste. Knowing it was a concern, we asked the participants
what specific flavors they would be interested in. We found that many were interested in the
flavors chocolate, peanut butter, and raspberry. Therefore in our awareness, attitude and usage
study, we asked our participants to rate those flavors in terms of being very interested, quite
interested, somewhat interested, not very interested, and not at all interested. The results show
that 50% of participants were very interested in the flavor being chocolate, followed by peanut
butter, and raspberry. The following results are shown on the graph below.
Lastly, another problem that was made to our attention in the focus groups and in-depth
interviews was the product name. During our focus groups some respondents had trouble
understanding the name Red Bull O.N.E.. They were either confused or were not sure what Red
Bull was promoting. So we asked respondents to rate various product names ideas given from the
25. 23
results of our focus groups and in-depth interviews. The following names shown in the graph
below were rated from one to ten. After tabulating the results, we were able to determine that
Red Bull O.N.E. and Red Bull Fuel Bar were the top results with an average rating of 6.5 and 6.3
respectively. These results will now be used in our experiment to study to further assess the
strength of the product name.
Over the course of our interviews we had received a lot of information, so we used cross
tabulation to be able to better visualize the responses that were given. We took the questions that
we thought were most important to the production of our product and cross referenced them with
each respondent's answers. This way we could clearly see what was most important to our
consumers. Below is our cross tabulations table with the highest common answers about
nutrition bars and about the Red Bull O.N.E. product. These are some attributes that the Red Bull
Company should take into consideration when producing the product.
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Cross Tabulations
Attitude toward Red Bull Brand
Likes
Good for Energy 38%
Taste Good 29%
Advertising 17%
Commercials
Sponsors Extreme Sports
Logo and Motto
Established Company 17%
Well known company
Good Brand
Popular
Favorite Energy Drink 17%
Dislikes
Taste 13%
Nasty
Disgusting
Crash 13%
Too Much Sugar
Jittery
Likes about Red Bull O.N.E.
Gives Energy 38%
Health 33%
Nutrition
Protein
Availability 21%
Convenient
Snack
Taste 21%
Flavoring
Red Bull Product 8%
Dislikes about Red Bull O.N.E.
Taste 46%
Flavor
Aftertaste
Too Sweet
Ingredients 46%
Taurine
Artificial Flavoring
Sugar Content
Calorie Content
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Product Familiarity 29%
Do not know if Benefits Actually Work
Red Bull has never produced nutrition bars before
Health Risks 13%
Side Effects
Reasons You Choose To Eat Nutrition Bars
Portable Snack 79%
Small
Easy
Quick
Convenience
Healthy Alternative 46%
Nutritional
Better than Chips or other snacks
Protein
Supplements
Good Taste 13%
When Do You Consume Nutrition Bars
School 83%
In Class
Between Classes
In the Car
Snack 21%
In the Evening
Before Dinner
In a Hurry
Between Meals
Work 17%
Meal Replacement 17%
In replacement of Breakfast
No time to Eat
Workout 13%
Post Workout
Pre Workout
Home 8%
Where are the Nutrition Bars Purchased
Super Market 74%
Ralphs
Costco
Vons
Wal-Mart
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Implications
The results from this study exposed a few areas to improve for the experiment portion of
our research. We have found that Red Bull is a highly known and recognized brand for our
respondents, so we do not have to do further research into the brand itself. This bodes well for
the nutrition bar brand extension since people are already very familiar with the Red Bull
company and their existing product. That was important since we found that informants seemed
to be confused by the possible names we gave for the Red Bull nutrition bar. Because of this we
felt that further research into attributes concerning the possible names were needed for the Red
Bull nutrition bar. Another needed aspect of research is attributes concerning the bar itself when
it comes to taste, energy, health, etc. What we have found will be used to be further studied in an
experiment to get a better feel for what the consumers are thinking.
EXPERIMENT
Background
One issue that came up frequently in the attitude and usage study was the name of our
product. We asked our respondents how much each name we were considering for the product
appealed to them. Many thought that certain names being considered were too plain or sounded
like another version of the energy drink. This brought a great deal of concern to our respondents
because it would play a big role in whether they would be attracted to try our new product or not.
With an immense response to the names we decide to conduct an experiment that would test two
of the most popular names chosen by our respondents in the attitude and usage study. The two
most voted names by the respondents were Red Bull O.N.E and Red Bull Fuel Bar shown below.
With these two names we hope to ultimately decide on our final product name, so that we can
enhance our product and attract our college demographic more effectively.
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Red Bull O.N.E.
Red Bull Fuel Bar
Method
The purpose of this experiment was to see how people reacted to two possible names for
the Red Bull nutrition bar. We used the results from the previously mentioned attitude and usage
study which gave us the two most popular names for the Red Bull nutrition bar Red Bull O.N.E.
and Red Bull Fuel Bar. Using this information we made a questionnaire consisting of eight
questions relating to the product and name attributes. To qualify for the experiment, the
respondent had to have satisfactory answers to the screener questions. To qualify, the respondent
needed to be a college student between the ages of 18 and 28, and had consumed either an
energy drink or coffee within the past week. Additionally, the respondent needed to have eaten at
least one nutrition bar in the past week. These interviews were done in a one-on-one setting
where the interviewer read the respondent the instructions and questions. The researcher would
also fill in the answers the respondent gave to insure accuracy. Each researcher was expected to
31. 29
have an equal split total of their respondents, were 50% were male and 50% were female. These
interviews were held during the afternoon around the CSUN campus, and all the results were
tabulated once all of the interviews were conducted.
Findings
Our experiment was extremely helpful in deciphering the strengths and weaknesses of
our product name. While introducing the two different potential names, Red Bull O.N.E. and
Red Bull Fuel Bar, we tested name likeability, overall interest, and additional attributes. As seen
below, we first tested the two names on the overall impression of the name being easy to
remember, easy to say, and creative. As the results show, consumers rated Red Bull O.N.E.
higher in all three categories.
As our experiment progressed, we broke down different aspects of our nutrition bar into
specific product attributes. These attributes included: how different it is from other bars, how
favored it would be by college students, the price, the health attributes, how it was viewed as a
32. 30
replacement meal, the energy boost, and the taste. While most of these features were rated
similarly, certain characteristics did rank higher for each name. For example, as an overall score,
Red Bull O.N.E. was rated with an 8.5 out of 10 approval of being a product for college students,
while Red Bull Fuel Bar was rated with an 8.7 out of 10 approval of being a product for college
students. Although this is not a massive difference, every rating is essential in making sure our
nutrition bars are as successful as possible. An additional statistic that was influential in our
experiment was the response on how the bar was viewed as a meal replacement. Red Bull O.N.E.
had only a 4.6 out of 10 approval as the bar as a meal replacement, and Red Bull Fuel Bar had a
4.8 out of 10 approval rating as the bar as a meal replacement. This told us that we should only
be marketing the nutrition bar as a snack, as it was not received well as an entire meal
replacement. The entire name attributes table can be found below.
The final and perhaps most essential part of our experiment was respondent’s overall
interest in our product. The last inquiry of each informant’s interview regarded how interested
the informant would be in product based solely on the name. Then, we would mention the
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alternative name, and ask which name would make them more likely to buy the nutrition bar.
After our calculations, we tabulated the name Red Bull O.N.E. with an overall interest of 7.5 out
of 10, and Red Bull Fuel Bar with an overall interest of 7.3 out of 10. This is expressed in the
chart below.
Implications
The results from experiment study showed that Red Bull O.N.E was the most popular
name chosen among our respondents. With this valuable information we can focus our
advertising efforts on promoting the product name, which will effectively appeal to our college
student target market.
One main concern that respondents mentioned in the experiment study was the ingredient
content in the bar. Many were concerned with the calorie count, the artificial flavoring, and the
taurine. Additionally, several questioned how healthy it would actually be. To resolve this issue
34. 32
we will work closely with the product development department and find more natural ingredients
to better substitute certain ingredients in our nutrition bar.
Another concern the respondents mentioned was how the bar was going to taste.
Respondents believed the bar provided a sufficient amount of energy, but they also believed it
would taste just like the energy drink. To better address the issue will focus on advertising the
distinct flavors of the product and show how delectable Red Bull O.N.E. really is.
CONCLUSION
Throughout this report, we have shared our product idea and methods for research. Our
product, which is a line extension of Red Bull, is a nutrition bar with the added benefit of giving
the consumer an energy boost. The name of the bar would be Red Bull O.N.E., in which the
O.N.E. stands for Optimal Nutritional Experience. Every detail of our product was extensively
researched, and we feel we have developed a product that would be extremely successful if
marketed to college students.
In order to better understand our clientele and how to make our nutrition bar more
successful, we conducted focus groups, in-depth interviews, awareness, attitude and usage study,
and an experiment. Each respondent was tested with a screener so we could be sure they
qualified and would have proper insight for our research. As our research progressed, we
inquired about a variety of topics, including nutrition bar consumption as well as details about
how and when college students consume energy drinks and coffee. Additionally, we researched
reactions and opinions after we introduced our product. Finally, we focused on testing different
name options, where we researched how different attributes and opinions were affected by the
name.
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As our research concluded and we tabulated a large amount of data, we have decided to
introduce Red Bull O.N.E into the market. We will target college students, who need a quick and
healthy snack throughout their busy days. We will price the bar at $2.49, and supply in in
supermarkets, and convenience stores, as well as convenience stores on college campuses. Our
team has decided to keep the name Red Bull O.N.E., because our respondents rated it higher in
many product attributes as well as in overall interest. Additionally, we will keep the name Red
Bull O.N.E. because many respondents love Red Bull, and noted they would be more interested
in the nutritional bar because of its direct correlation to the drink line. We are confident this
product will be successful and will give students an opportunity to eat healthier and full of
energy on a daily basis.
