Case study-How Evian Became market leaders ?

History

• Owned by French food products group Danone which acquired the brand in 1968

• Initially was sold in glass bottles branded as a medicine with miraculous healing properties

Success Mantra“Has constantly focussed on continuous innovation in their products as well as a powerful and original communication to its consumers”

1908 1930’s 1950’s 1968 1980’s 1998 2007-08 2013 2016

Evian begins selling in glass bottles

Starts selling in PVC bottles

PurityHigh-end positioning

Live youngBaby & me campaign starts

TodaySeptember 10, 2016

Targeted Babies

The OriginalWater babies ad campaign starts

HealthAlps as its theme

Live youngRoller babies campaign starts

Marketing communications timeline -1930’s• Positioned itself to be the “perfect water

for babies”• Targeted mothers, mid-wives, doctors

specifically

Marketing communications timeline -1950’s• Still focussed mainly children with an added importance

to health• However the biggest development was the inclusion of

the theme of alps• Gave a sense of ethnicity to the brand and emotional

bondage with customers of that region

Marketing communications timeline -1980’s• The theme of “purity” was chosen to differentiate the

brand with competitors • Enabled High-end positioning with its own loyal

costumer segmentSlogan :

“the water you drink is as important as the air you breath”

Water Babies Campaign• The 1998 campaign made the

brand symbolize youth • It was very successful ad with a

rating of 94%• However Evian segmented this

ad just to Europe.Globally, the brand focussed on purity and used the slogan “the Original”

Economic crisis !• People started opting for cheaper alternatives which led

to a dip in sales• To stay competitive the brand was restructured

Situation Now:• Premium popular brand in France, Switzerland, UK, Belgium• Was only sold at urban centres to a specific target group in other

countries i.e. an narrow urban market• Product was positioned based on the market

Solution“ Unification of brand communication on a global level”

Roller Babies Campaign• To do this they came about with Roller

babies campaign with a single clear message, “Live Young”

• The ad was an instant hit and spawned over 254 million views. It currently holds the record for the most number of views on YouTube

• The use of humour coupled with the cuteness of the babies led to the virality of the video. To further add to the buzz, it was remixed by several artists to make roller skater baby a cultural symbol

Advert of the year by Time Magazine, Wall Street Journal, and The Guardian

Baby Inside campaign• The campaign was an

extension to the roller baby to cater to a larger globalized audience especially in Asia

• Captures Evian’s vision of youth, which is most of all an attitude, an openness to the world and to the unexpected, regardless of age

• Maria Sharapova was the brand ambassador of the campaign

Baby & Me ad Campaign• It shows a group of people seeing "baby versions" of themselves

in a shop window, before beginning to dance with them• Captures Evian’s vision of youth, which is most of all an attitude,

an openness to the world and to the unexpected, regardless of age

• The same video was advertised over several traditional channels such as during Britain's got talent, during cinemas such as “The Great Gatsby” as well as online presence via YouTube where it garnered over 130 million views

• An app was also created which allows users to see themselves as babies

As a result of this campaign, Evian’s sales have grown significantly up to 7 % for the first 3 quarters of the year.

Marketing channels• Uses a combination of digital and traditional media

Social media presence Traditional media presence

Event associations• Evian created the first Woman’s

golf open championship which is currently aired in over 167 countries

• It is also the official water brand for Wimbledon and has roped in Maria Sharapova to its brand ambassador

• It also supports various causes such as environmental protection, education for children for which it partnered with organizations such as red cross

Experiential-#LiveyoungJanuary• Experiential pushes are those in

which crowd engagement takes place.

• It might take place online through several activities such as take a selfie of oneself pulling a squirrel face or offline during events or other activities like giving away space hoppers

What did Evian do right ?• Evian has constantly created a range of very shareable content

that just clicks with its consumers• The have an array of successful campaigns where they have:

Used babies which have a natural universal appealAssured a lack of language barrierUse of humour i.e. its tongue in cheek ‘cool’Broad premium product appeal

• Minimised the use language, and words, and use music, preferably a well known sound track, as it makes communication much easier to be understood and shared

Where they could improve?• Use of apps may turn out to become messy and

uncertain• Social media accounts such as twitter must be put to

very active in order for it to be successful• A brand ambassador must not only be universally

known but also universally followed • Better integration of online and offline media with a

greater number of campaigns

Recap

• Evian has proved that a brand has to continue to innovate around the brand, not necessarily in terms of the product itself, but how it is packaged and all its various touch points.

1908 1930’s 1950’s 1968 1980’s 1998 2007-08 2013 2016

Evian begins selling in glass bottles

Starts selling in PVC bottles

PurityHigh-end positioning

Live youngBaby & me campaign starts

TodaySeptember 10, 2016

Targeted Babies

The OriginalWater babies ad campaign starts

HealthAlps as its theme

Live youngRoller babies campaign starts

Disclaimer

Created by M.S.Seshasayee, NIT Trichy, during a marketing internship by Prof. Sameer Mathur, IIM Lucknow