KitKat Marketing Strategy & Marketing Mix (4Ps)
Marketing Strategy of KitKat analyzes the brand with the marketing mix framework which covers the 4Ps (Product, Price, Place, Promotion). These business strategies, based on KitKat marketing mix, help the brand succeed in the market. Let us start the KitKat Marketing Strategy & Mix to understand its product, pricing, advertising & distribution strategies:
Quick Glance:
KitKat Product Strategy:
The product strategy and mix in KitKat marketing strategy can be explained as follows:
KitKat, by Nestle, is one of the most popular wafer based chocolate. KitKat is a moderately priced chocolate available to customers looking for a delightful chocolaty experience with a crunch of wafer trying to experience quality at an affordable price. The traditional KitKat bar has 4 fingers each 0.4 inches by 3.5 inches. The first flavor variant to be ever introduced by KitKat was KitKat Orange which started distribution in United Kingdom long time back. KitKat faces extremely stiff competition from other chocolates across the globe, with the maximum from Cadbury and its signature chocolate Dairy Milk. In terms of variation of product in its marketing mix, KitKat comes in different flavors, shapes and sizes across the world. Half finger sized KitKat Petite are available in Japan and 12-finger sized family bars are available in Australia and France.
It comes in different shapes and forms like individually wrapped fingers in France, bite-sized pieces and kubes along with praline filled senses, all of which are extremely popular with consumers. KitKat offers a variety of flavor variants in the world. Since 2000, more than 200 variants of KitKat have been released in Japan alone ranging from flavors such as ginger ale, soy sauce, green tea and banana. Other popular products include the KitKat white and dark chocolates which have significantly high penetration across the globe in various countries. The original KitKat is made up of commonly available ingredients which include sugar, milk ingredients, cocoa butter, cocoa mass, whey powder, lactose to name a few. The brand has taken out promotional flavors like white chocolate, orange chocolate, peanut butter etc.
Image: company website
KitKat Price/Pricing Strategy:
Below is the pricing strategy in KitKat marketing strategy:
KitKat is priced at a range to compete with existing competition. Since chocolates do not occupy a large portion of the expenditure a consumer is incurring, KitKat like other chocolates is an impulsive buy.
KitKat has a reasonably priced offering that ensures it has enough of a customer base which stays loyal to its products when it comes to making purchasing decisions. One characteristic feature of KitKat which makes it an extremely popular choice with individuals is that it has maintained it’s pricing over the years. KitKat price starts at $1 but bigger packs & more flavors go upto $20.
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KitKat Place & Distribution Strategy:
Following is the distribution strategy in the KitKat marketing mix:
Nestle is responsible for producing KitKat across more than 15 countries in the world which include Brazil, UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, Russia, Malaysia, Thailand, India, Japan, China, Turkey, UAE etc. This shows the strong distribution strategy in its marketing mix for the chocolate brand. KitKat has a dedicated Chocolatory which is like a chocolate laboratory that allows customers to experience KitKat. The store in Melbourne, allows consumers to customize a KitKat for themselves depending on the choice of their ingredients and flavors that they wish to consume.
The chocolate is widely available through retail stores & ecommerce platforms.
KitKat Promotion & Advertising Strategy:
The promotional and advertising strategy in the KitKat marketing strategy is as follows:
In order to promote themselves well in the chocolate segment, Nestle thought of introducing various flavor options and market them as special editions, to firstly increase the buzz around these products and secondly make sure they are rolled out only for a specific interval to prevent the sales of the original KitKat from being affected. The slogan for KitKat since a long time has been- “ Have a break, have a KitKat “.This slogan has helped promote the brand as a snack more than as a chocolate, something which can be consumed at any point of time and not specifically when you have a sweet craving. Previously, in history KitKat was also advertised as the “ best companion of tea” , “ the biggest little meal” and “ what active people need” to emphasize the importance of KitKat as a wartime food. KitKat has associated itself with other brands and revolutions as well. Google took permission from Nestle to make use of KitKat as a version of the Android software that it wanted to roll out. It collaborated with the show “The Big Brother” that allowed normal people to visit the Bigg Brother house on showing a golden ticket, 100 of which were up for grabs with every KitKat pack. This was based on the lines of the popular movie Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Promotions through media channels is extensive for KitKat. Channels include television advertisements, posters and billboards along with newspapers and social media advertising to boost the sales of KitKat. Hence, this gives an overview about KitKat marketing mix.
About KitKat:
KitKat was started in the year 1935 by Rowntree of England and was later acquired by Nestle in the year 1988. Since then, globally Nestle using its strong brand image and name has been able to market KitKat extremely well with the exception of operations in the United States which are franchised to Hershey’s under license by HB Reese Candy Company.
KitKat is one of the widely distributed chocolate brands in the world. The chocolates are available at all retail outlets as well as all ecommerce platforms.
This article has been researched & authored by the Content & Research Team. It has been reviewed & published by the MBA Skool Team. The content on MBA Skool has been created for educational & academic purpose only.
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