Inspired by Wotsits’ move into ready meals, Richard Lomax shares his insights on what makes a brand stretch work, and how market research helps brands get it right.
First things first, don’t worry, I’m not going to trot out the mythical Colgate Beef Lasagna to explain brand stretch in this blog. So those of you with vivid imaginations, don’t worry about being triggered into pseudo-tasting minty mince!
What DID get us talking at Mustard was Wotsits’ move into ready meals. It’s a bold example of brand stretch in action: leveraging the strength of an existing brand to launch products in a new category. Pepsico have teamed up with Samworth Brothers Group Meals and the Lean Kitchen Network to launch Wotsits branded mac ‘n’ cheese ready meals in three flavours: Really Cheesy, Sweet & Spicy and Flamin’ Hot.
When done right, brand stretch can unlock revenue, reach new audiences or simply breathe fresh life into a familiar brand. Equally, get it wrong, you can confuse customers or dilute brand equity (looking at you EasyGroup).
Wotsits launching mac ‘n’ cheese might feel like a curveball but all of us at Mustard think it’s built on some solid principles, and we feel there are 4 key market research questions brands should have (and hopefully did!) ask themselves before making the leap:
1. Brand fit – does the new product feel like it belongs under the same brand umbrella? In Wotsits’ case the brand is already synonymous with cheesy indulgence and lighthearted fun. A cheesy comfort food ready meal isn’t a huge leap emotionally or sensorially.
Tools such as brand association mapping or semiotics can help brands understand if your brand is flexible enough to do the splits between two categories.
2. Consumer permission – Just because you can stretch a brand, doesn’t mean your audience will come with you. Consumers have the final say on whether your stretch feels credible or is just a cash grab!
Concept testing, attitude and usage studies or even in-home testing can reveal if your brand has the ‘permission’ from consumers to extend into a new category.
3. Category adjacency – Some categories are close enough that a stretch feels natural, others would require a contortionist’s level of flexibility to make happen. Wotsits into ready meals, yes; a Wotsits-branded artisan cheddar, probably not!
Mapping consumption occasions and segmenting need-states can help identify whether the target category aligns with your brand to make sure it’s not too big of a leap.
4. Distinctiveness – Finally, does the new product bring something different to the table? For Wotsits, the proposition is all about fun and bold flavours something that could cut through in the traditional ready meals category. That’s a valuable angle.
Research tools such as MaxDiff, or concept, shelf and product testing can help identify how elastic your brand is!
Market research plays a crucial role in the brand stretch journey – helping you to understand whether a stretch is possible and also whether it’s right. Testing in the early, mid and final stages of the development process can help brands warm up without pulling a muscle.
A successful brand stretch shouldn’t just be a marketing leap, it should be an iterative, data-informed decision to ensure it’s the right fit and does not impact the core range.
Oral B Risotto, anyone?
For more insight on how research can help with brand strategy, check out this bit of the Mustard website!
